Emma Dill

Ralph Jensen, who owns R.H. Jensen Game Callers, began woodworking in 1970 and now makes game callers using antique pieces of wood and other materials including a mammoth tusk. (Photo by Madeline Gray)

Developers recently cleared land slated for The Avenue, a proposed mixed-use luxury development off Military Cutoff Road. (Photo by Cece Nunn)

Synply Inc., a cloud-based loan syndication platform incubated by Live Oak Bank, has announced the completion of a $4.8 million seed round.The capital raise will help fuel the company’s next phase of product growth and development, company officials said in a news release on Monday. Wilmington-based Canapi Ventures and Live Oak Ventures, the investment arm of Live Oak Bancshares Inc., co-led the funding round.According to a news release, capital commitments also came from Woodforest Financial Group, OFG Bancorp and TReK Capital Partners, along with several industry veterans who backed the platform as individual investors.Synply aims to offer users a “simplified, intuitive tool to centralize the entire process of syndicated lending and portfolio management,” according to the release. “By leveraging platform data, system integrations, and workflow tools, both buyers and sellers can benefit from improved transparency and access to real-time information.”Corbin Penland and Radek Filarski co-founded the platform. Penland, who serves as the company’s CEO, ran the loan syndications team at Live Oak Bank for six years before co-founding Synply.Filarski, the company’s chief technology officer, has more than 20 years of experience as a software engineer with expertise in building products for the financial markets. Most recently, he led a core conversion for Live Oak Bank.“Putting the customer first is a major part of the Live Oak Bank ethos,” Penland stated in the release. “We didn’t have the tools to create the seamless process that we wanted, both for our borrowers and participants. We built Synply to bridge a critical gap in functionality required to enhance the experience of our banking partners and borrowers.”The platform will offer “end-to-end efficiency” that allows all banks participating in a loan to manage the entire syndication process in one platform, according to the release.In its own release on Monday, Live Oak Bank highlighted its excitement about the new platform.“Live Oak’s entrepreneurial environment is fertile ground for new and exciting companies like Synply to enter the fintech landscape,” Live Oak Bank Chief Strategy Officer Stephanie Mann, stated in the release. “After incubating the Synply platform at Live Oak, we are excited to see the company level the playing field for all banks to compete in the syndicated loan space.”Live Oak Bank has previously incubated several other companies, including nCino and Finxact.

The office building at 101 N. Third St. in downtown Wilmington is on the market for $17.25 million.(File photo)

The formal public comment period wraps up Friday for design alternatives to replace the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge. (File photo)

Wilmington-based company Clean Eatz has named Eric Wyatt as its first CEO. (Photo courtesy of Clean Eatz)

Pickle & Taps, Wilmington's first indoor pickleball venue, plans to open its doors later this year. (Photo courtesy of Pickle & Taps)

NCInnovation has announced plans to establish an innovation hub on the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW) campus to support local researchers. The Durham-based nonprofit group aims to help researchers at North Carolina universities commercialize their research products. Along with UNCW, the organization also announced new hubs at Appalachian State University and Fayetteville State University, according to a news release issued by the UNC System late last month. The three new hubs join existing innovation centers at East Carolina University, the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University and Western Carolina University. Nearly half of the UNC System’s 16 universities are now home to NCInnovation hubs.“It is an honor to have been selected as one of three institutions expanding the UNC System partnership with NCInnovation,” James Winebrake, UNCW’s provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs, stated in a UNCW news release. “Our engagement with NCI demonstrates commitment to economic development in our region and also reinforces our commitment to advancing the integration of entrepreneurship within more programs across campus.” Regional directors at each hub will provide local researchers with applied research support. The hubs also aim to connect NCInnovation grant recipients with industry and business services to advance their research towards commercialization, the news release stated.Justine Reel, UNCW’s interim associate provost for research and innovation, highlighted NCInnovation’s role in bridging the gap between research and commercialization. "The NCInnovation relationship has been invaluable to UNCW in helping innovators take their projects to the next level,” Reel stated in the release. “NCI has addressed the 'valley of death' funding issue while providing support, connections, and mentorship to UNCW researchers." Last year, the North Carolina Legislature granted a $500 million endowment to the nonprofit to help support commercializing research. In May, UNCW associate professor of chemistry Ying Wang received one of eight grants during NCInnovation’s $5.2 million pilot grant cycle. Wang is developing a vaccine platform that aims to produce a universal and longer-lasting flu vaccine. The next round of NCInnovation grants will be open to all applied researchers in the UNC System. The organization expects to announce the application period soon, according to the release.

Voters turned out Tuesday at polling locations across New Hanover County. (Photo courtesy of New Hanover County)

StepUp Wilmington announced on Friday the hiring of Teresa Wolf as the organization’s next CEO and executive director.