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4th July 2007
CAT.82
BEM
EAST MIDLANDS COMPANIES URGED TO ‘GRAB’ A SHARE
OF THE EMRVCF
Don’t miss out on a golden opportunity – that’s the message from Catapult Venture Managers to East Midlands businesses as the countdown starts on the end of the investment period of the £30m East Midlands Regional Venture Capital Fund (EMRVCF).
Companies needing capital funding of £200k up to £660k should approach Catapult - the fund managers - as soon as possible. Graham Mold, director with Catapult, commented: “Time is running out as the Fund nears the end of its lifespan. We can only invest money up until April 2008 so businesses needing, or likely to need funds, must present their business plans to us by the end of January next year.
“Up until now the initial investment in any company has been limited to £250k, but this is now being lifted to £330k,” he added.
“The Fund, which was originally co-ordinated by East Midlands Development Agency (emda), was set-up with investment from the DTI, local authority pension funds, the European Investment Fund and the Royal Bank of Scotland. It invests in young developing and existing businesses that have the potential for rapid growth and we will consider investing in ‘start-up’, early stage and development capital opportunities, as well as management buy-out and buy-in situations.
Jeff Moore, chief executive of emda, commented: “We have been delighted that the Fund has enabled a significant number of businesses within the East Midlands region to develop and prosper. There is clearly only a relatively short period left for the Fund to run and I would urge all businesses seeking development capital to apply at the earliest opportunity.”
The Fund, which has been running more than five years, has invested in around 40 businesses to date and a significant number have developed into profitable and thriving companies. Companies that have benefited from the Fund include:
Nottingham-based businesses active8, R5 Pharmaceuticals and Critical Pharmaceuticals. Northamptonshire-based enterprises include Trans Visual Media and Intamac; Safetoeat from Derby and De-Pack Ltd of Leicestershire.
Graham Mold comments: “To date, we have received more enquiries from Nottingham companies than in any other area of the East Midlands, with our latest Nottingham investment being made into activ8 Intelligence Ltd, pioneers of predictive HR analytic technologies.
“The company secured £250k backing from the EMRVCF as part of a total funding package of circa £900k. The cash injection is being used to enable the company to continue its rapid growth.
“Catapult also introduced Paul Gratton (formerly CEO of Egg) and Richard George as key non-executive appointments,” he said.
Another notable success can be found at Wymeswold Business Park in Leicestershire, where waste recycling company De Pack Limited was set-up just over two years ago. Earlier this year it was acquired by Personnel Hygiene Services (PHS) for an undisclosed sum.
“This trade sale represents a success story both for the De-Pack management team and Catapult Venture Managers, which managed the investment of £250k into the business in November 2004. This funding – along with a further £560k raised by De-Pack – was used to finance the construction of a plant used in the secure destruction and recycling of off-specification, or spent aerosols and paints.
“Clearly, the sale of De-Pack provided us with a pretty quick return on our investment.”
Concludes Graham Mold: “East Midlands entrepreneurs looking for funding to take their businesses to the next stage should act now and contact us on 0870 116 1600 or go to our website www.catapult-vm.co.uk for further information.”
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For further information please contact Graham Mold at Catapult Venture Managers on 0870 116 1660 or 07768 148187; or Paul Shrimpton at PSPR Ltd on 0121 354 7311 or 07979 505322.
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