Blackfinch Spring VCT launches £30m subscription offer

The Blackfinch Spring VCT has launched a subscription offer for up to £20m, with an over-allotment facility of up to a further £10m. 

Funds raised will be invested in growth-stage technology-enabled firms, focused on those firms that have already raised funding, gained traction and aim to accelerate the scale-up process.

Companies in the £25.4m portfolio, which is comprised of 23 private firms, use the internet, mobile devices and social media to offer their customers better products and services, and have the potential for higher returns at exit.

Nicholas Hyett, investment manager at Wealth Club, said Blackfinch Spring, which targets an annual dividend of 5% of net asset value, is "among the most successful of a new generation of VCTs". 

Hargreave Hale AIM VCT launches £20m fundraise

"Launched in 2020, the Gloucester based team has built up a promising portfolio of small private businesses covering everything from cookie free digital marketing business Illuma to online tutoring sensation Up Learn," he said. 

"Having raised around £25m in three years, the VCT has crossed the ‘valley of death', where large fixed costs act as a drag on performance for small VCTs, and looks well placed for growth in future. That bodes well for new VCTs and the VCT industry in general." 

The offer opened on Thursday (7 September) and will be closed on 3 April 2024 for the 2023/2024 tax year on 21 August 2024 for the 2024/2025 tax year,  or earlier if the offer is fully subscribed.