News
Capital for Enterprise welcomes the emergency budget, which brings additional funding support for the SME sector
22 June 2010 - The Emergency Budget on 22 June 2010 contained three announcements directly relevant to SME activity:
- The extension of the Enterprise Finance Guarantee from £500m to £700m in the year to 31 March 2010
- The announcement of a new Enterprise Capital Fund, the details of which will be announced by Capital for Enterprise when the private fundraising has been completed by the manager
- The confirmation of the funding for the Growth Capital fund, which is to be established in response to Chris Rowlands’ Growth Capital Review.
This demonstrates the Government’s commitment to ongoing investment in SME Finance.
Second Tranche of the UK Innovation Investment Fund is up and running following first closing of the £200m UK Future Technologies Fund run by the European Investment Fund
22 February 2010 - Capital for Enterprise Limited (CfEL) was appointed by the Government to advise on the development of the landmark £150million UK Innovation and Investment Fund and to lead the process of selecting and appointing the investment fund managers. Commenting today on the appointment of the European Investment Fund to manage a proportion of the UKIIF, Rory Earley, CEO of CfEL, said:
"Following the successful appointment of Hermes Private Equity in January, we are delighted to have now completed negotiations with the European Investment Fund to manage independently a proportion of the UKIIF. Having worked closely with the team at the EIF to bring this contract to completion, we have been impressed with their professionalism and expertise and have confidence that they will continue to grow the capacity of the UKIIF and make an invaluable contribution to the government’s continuing drive to support young British businesses.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown said:
“Our new £325 million Innovation Investment Fund – launched as part of Building Britain’s Future – shows our commitment to the industries and the technologies that will create the skilled jobs of the future.
“This fund, seeded by the Government, is bringing private venture capital to growing enterprises. It is already providing £125 million of funding to high tech, low carbon businesses. From today, a further £200 million will be available for life sciences, digital and advanced manufacturing.”
The Government appointed Capital for Enterprise Limited (CfEL) to advise on the development of the UKIIF and to lead the process of selecting and appointing the investment fund managers. CfEL negotiated the fund with EIF as part of the Government’s continuing drive to support young British businesses.
Click here for the full press release from the Department for Business
Rory Earley, CEO of Capital for Enterprise, profiled by AltAssets
15 February 2010 - Rory Earley met with AltAssets to shed light on bridging the UK’s equity gap, ensuring the newly launched UK Innovation Investment Fund helps businesses in this country, the performance of government-backed venture funding and learning from past investment mistakes.
Read the full article by clicking here
The UK Innovation Investment Fund is off the ground with the first closing of the £125m Hermes Private Equity Environmental Innovation fund.
26 January 2010 - It’s taken only 7 months for UKIIF to launch the first of two funds, the Hermes Environmental Innovation Fund, which has already raised £125m and will continue to seek further funding from investors.
The Environmental Innovation Fund, managed by Hermes Private Equity, will now start investing in low carbon and clean technology funds and co-investing in companies, providing much needed venture capital to help these innovative businesses grow. The Hermes Fund will focus on investment opportunities aimed at increasing the efficient use of resources (both renewable and non renewable) at all stages of production and consumption.
Over the past decade, the UK has emerged as a European frontrunner in alternative energy investment and is well positioned to further develop a sustainable market competitive globally. The Hermes Fund will look to benefit from this attractive market framework and expects to commit its capital over the next 2-3 years.
The Prime Minister, Gordon Brown MP, said
“The UK has a wealth of innovators and entrepreneurs seeking to create the businesses of tomorrow – businesses that will make the UK a world-leader in low carbon innovation and industry, and help to tackle some of the biggest challenges we face around energy and climate change. This fund will provide substantial investment where it is needed and deliver strong returns for investors."
Capital for Enterprise Limited managed the investment process and the negotiations with Hermes on behalf of HM Government.
Click here for the full press release
Capital for Enterprise appoints Richard Hepper as deputy Chief Executive
Monday, 9 November 2009. Capital for Enterprise Ltd (CfEL), the UK Government’s venture capital and loan guarantee business, has appointed Richard Hepper to help with the rapid expansion of its business and to join the team driving its future direction. .
Hepper joins CfEL from Oxford Capital where he was an Executive Director. Oxford Capital is a previous winner of the prestigious “Venture Capital House of the Year” award. His previous venture investing career was at Enterprise Ventures Group and 3i. He also has significant strategic consulting experience from his time at Arthur D Little. He is an FCA and an economics graduate of Emmanuel College Cambridge.
Commenting on the appointment Rory Earley, Chief Executive of Capital for Enterprise Ltd, says: “I am delighted to have Richard on board. He will bring invaluable skills in helping us to grow the business and better serve our clients. “Since its creation Capital for Enterprise has striven to recruit the highest quality professionals from the venture capital sector. Richard will certainly add to our expertise and help drive our strategy over the coming years.”
Richard Hepper says: “At a time when many businesses are looking for new sources of finance in this recession, Capital for Enterprise sits at a pivotal position within SME funding. I am very pleased to be joining a first-class team which is making a significant difference to real businesses around the country.”
Capital for Enterprise announces £42m in support for two new funds
Capital for Enterprise awards £42m to support two new Enterprise Capital Funds with a target fund value of £62.5m.
Monday, 7 September 2009. Capital for Enterprise Ltd (CfEL) has awarded two new Enterprise Capital Fund (ECF) mandates to Panoramic Growth Equity and Beringea, marking a major advance in activity for the government backed fund. The funds are now raising private capital with a target of reaching £32.5m and £30m respectively in the coming months.
The ECF programme was launched in 2006 and now comprises a portfolio of 8 active funds with £215m with which to make investments. £142m of the £215m has been provided by the Government with a further £73m from private investors. To date £40m has been invested through the funds in 45 growing UK businesses.
Edinburgh based Panoramic Growth Equity will look to make investments throughout the UK in businesses with established cash flows which can demonstrate strong growth prospects. They will also look to support earlier stage investments where the management team have a strong track record of prior success. The fund is broadly generalist but with a specific focus on the Energy, Water, Healthcare, Media, Business Services and Communications sectors.
London based Beringea’s new ECF Beringea Digital Ventures will look to make investments in the digital media arena, supporting creative businesses through the inflexion point to bring products to wider national and global markets. The company will use their strong network within media and technology in the UK and US to assist their portfolio businesses in developing to fulfil their potential.
The ECF programme continues to look at prospective teams and funds in order to provide investment for strong businesses across the UK. Potential managers wishing to secure an ECF mandate are advised to make contact with the investment team in CfEL prior to submitting a proposal.
Click here for the full Press Release
Capital for Enterprise Aspire Fund announces deal with Altacor
Specialist Ophthalmic pharmaceutical development company Altacor to receive £400,000 capital funding from CfEL in order to maintain business expansion.
Wednesday, 12 August 2009. Capital for Enterprise Ltd (CfEL) has made an investment of £400,000 from the £12.5m Aspire Fund into Altacor, a leading Ophthalmology development and marketing company.
The Aspire Fund’s £400,000 of equity funding completes a £1,000,000 funding round, alongside Esperante and Beringea, in order to ensure Altacor has access to fresh capital and can sustain its pharmaceutical development, formulation and marketing activities.
Other investors in this round are Netherlands based healthcare specialists Esperante and Beringea’s ProVen Health VCT.
Established in November 2008, the £12.5m Aspire Fund targets support for women-led businesses with an objective to increase the number of successful female entrepreneurs within the UK, ensuring that those with real potential to succeed are not held back through a lack of growth capital. The Fund is able to make investments of between £100k and £1m, providing up to 50% of capital in a funding round alongside other private investors. The Aspire Fund is managed by Capital for Enterprise on behalf of the Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS).
Click here for full Press Release
Capital for Enterprise confirms first Aspire Fund deal
Online charity fundraising site Everyclick receives £350k capital boost from CfEL to maintain impressive growth
Thursday, 23 July 2009. Capital for Enterprise Ltd (CfEL) is pleased to announce an investment of £350k from the £12.5m Aspire Fund to Everyclick, a leading provider of on-line fund raising tools for charities. The investment represents the first investment of the major new fund offered by Capital for Enterprise, an asset management business that designs, implements and manages finance measures to support Small and Medium Size enterprises (‘SMEs’) across the UK.
The Aspire Fund’s £350,000 of equity funding completes a £700,000 funding round which will ensure that Everyclick has access to fresh working capital and can maintain its impressive growth through new business development and contract wins.
Award winning, Gloucestershire based, software company Everyclick provides an on-line platform which enables consumers to make secure donations to any one of the UK’s 200,000 charities. The platform carries an expanding range of tailored services for charities and corporate sponsors. These include donations, sponsorship, appeals, vouchers, eGreetings, shopping and search based giving.
Established in November 2008, the £12.5m Aspire Fund targets support for women-led businesses with an objective to increase the number of successful female entrepreneurs within the UK, ensuring that those with real potential to succeed are not held back through a lack of growth capital. The Fund is able to make equity investments of between £100k and £1m, providing up to 50% of capital in a funding round alongside other private investors.
Click here for full Press Release