Molten Ventures, a venture capital firm, recently released its final results, revealing a gross portfolio value of £1.379bn, slightly higher than the previous year. The net assets also saw an increase to £1.251bn from £1.194bn. Despite a challenging market environment, the firm made significant investments totaling £65m from its balance sheet and £37m through its managed EIS/VCT funds.
One of the highlights of the year was the acquisition of Forward Partners in a share-for-share exchange in March. The company also diversified its investments by acquiring a stake in Seedcamp Fund III in February, aligning with its strategy of acquiring portfolios poised for near-term realizations. Additionally, Molten Ventures committed to six new seed funds through its ‘Fund of Funds’ program, bringing the total number of funds in its portfolio to 80.
Financially, the firm managed to keep operating costs below the targeted 1% of year-end net asset value, with net operating costs at 0.1%. Molten Ventures reported cash proceeds of £39m from realizations during the year and successfully raised £55m net of fees. The ‘Core’ portfolio is expected to achieve a weighted average revenue growth of over 50% for the calendar year 2024, with more than 85% of companies in the portfolio having at least 18 months of cash runway as of 31 March.
On the ESG front, Molten Ventures made significant progress by launching its inaugural stand-alone sustainability report. The firm conducted climate workshops for its portfolio companies to enhance climate literacy and alignment with the net-zero transition. Molten Ventures also joined various ESG groups and continued its commitment to reporting against external standards.
In a post-period event, Nasdaq-listed Hologic signed a definitive agreement to acquire Endomagnetics, a portfolio company of Molten, in a deal valuing Endomag at $310m. CEO Martin Davis expressed satisfaction with the firm’s performance, highlighting the strong underlying performance of portfolio companies and stable valuations.
Looking ahead, Davis expects to see a step up in realizations, with around £100m of capital expected to be returned to the balance sheet this financial year. The firm plans to deploy these proceeds towards NAV per share accretive opportunities, maximizing value for shareholders.
Shares in Molten Ventures were up 6.71% at 359.5p following the announcement of the results. The firm remains optimistic about the future and is focused on capturing exceptional investment opportunities in high-growth technology firms in the UK and Europe.