Octopus Investments has launched a GBP50 million joint fundraising by the five Octopus Titan Venture Capital Trusts (VCTs).
The latest fundraising, which offers the opportunity to invest into all five Titan VCTs, provides investors with exposure to a portfolio of early stage high growth businesses, helping to meet the demand for access to the new generation of successful entrepreneurial businesses in the UK.
Octopus is offering a two per cent discount on initial management fees for those who invest in the Titan VCTs before 11 November.
The Octopus Titan VCTs invest in early stage companies that have the potential to become global businesses. The ventures team at Octopus focuses on identifying companies with talented teams that they can partner with to grow and scale their businesses in order to help them reach their potential.
The current portfolio of 45 companies includes SwiftKey, the touchscreen keyboard app which was Google Play’s bestselling app in 2012 and 2013, YPlan, the last minute mobile ticketing application which is now live in five cities in the UK and US, and Swoon Editions, a ‘design a day’ online furniture business. The Titan VCTs also invested in Zoopla Property Group, the online property portal, in 2009. In June 2014, the company floated on the London Stock Exchange, listing at a valuation of GBP919 million. This has since grown to more than GBP1 billion.
Alex Macpherson, head of the ventures team at Octopus and fund manager of the Titan VCTs, says: “At Octopus, we look to back management teams with the potential to grow global businesses that can really stand out from the competition. We’ve had some fantastic success stories within the Titan VCT portfolio over the past few years, and we continue to see a strong pipeline of investment opportunities. We’re excited to be able to give more people the chance to access the significant potential that this sector of the economy can offer as well as the tax planning benefits VCTs can deliver.
“VCTs are a vital source of funding for smaller companies and play a critical role in helping to support the next generation of UK businesses. The entrepreneurial landscape is stronger than ever in the UK, and in recent years, we have seen high growth enterprises drive significant growth within the economy. We are seeing increasing numbers of people looking for ways to benefit from the growth potential that these young, dynamic businesses can offer and support the exciting companies of tomorrow.”
