IP Group, a intellectual property commercialisation company, has completed a second closing of IP Venture Fund, a venture capital fund established in July 2006 in partnership with the Euro
IP Group, a intellectual property commercialisation company, has completed a second closing of IP Venture Fund, a venture capital fund established in July 2006 in partnership with the European Investment Fund, one of the leading venture capital investors in Europe.
The fund, which was over-subscribed, has attracted total commitments of GBP31m with new investors Industriens Pensionsforsikring, FSP Invest F.M.B.A., afdeling Private Equity, Forsikringsaktieselskabet K.a.B International and the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts participating in the second closing. In addition, IP Group has increased its commitment to the fund to GBP3.1m.
The fund is managed by Top Technology Ventures, IP Group’s venture capital fund management subsidiary, and commits in the region of 25 per cent of the amount of post-seed financings of IP Group portfolio companies alongside capital committed by external investors, subject to the terms of the fund. It has completed nine investments in IP Group portfolio companies to date.
Magnus Goodlad, chief operating officer of IP Group, says: ‘We are delighted to have attracted such a high quality group of investors to participate in the second closing of IP Venture Fund and look forward to working together in the future to continue the successful investment of the fund.’
IP Group, which specialises in commercialising university-developed technology, was founded in 2001. The company was listed on London’s Alternative Investment Market in 2003 and moved to the London Stock Exchange’s official list in June 2006.
It has acquired Techtran, a company set up to commercialise university intellectual property under a long-term contract with the University of Leeds, in 2005 and Top Technology Ventures, an investment adviser to early-stage technology venture capital funds, in 2004.
IP Group has formed long-term partnerships with the University of Oxford, King’s College London, CNAP/University of York, University of Leeds, University of Bristol, University of Surrey, University of Southampton, Queen Mary, University of London, the University of Bath and University of Glasgow.
Up to the end of last year, 53 spin-out companies had been created among IP Group’s university partners. Of those, eight have listed on AIM and one on PLUS Markets, and there have been two trade sales. IP Group also has three ‘modern’-themed subsidiaries, Modern Biosciences, Modern Water and Modern Waste, of which Modern Water was the first to float on AIM in June this year.
