Financial services group GSB has launched the FutureOf Fund I (the fund) to invest in disruptive, early-stage businesses following increasing demand from clients for alternative investment opportunities.
GSB said today (9 December) that its first fund launch marked a "significant step towards establishing itself as the premier ‘one stop shop’ for high-net-worth individuals and private clients".
Investors in the FutureOf Fund will have access to companies that would otherwise be out of scope for them, due to accessibility or minimum investment sizes, it said.
The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) regulated fund, which will be part of the GSB Capital division, is a UK and Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) focused co-investment vehicle and will offer investments in various impactful sectors, particularly those undergoing technological innovation.
The core focus will be on opportunities that are highly disruptive to their respective verticals and will include sectors such as:
• AI & data
• Climate Tech
• FinTech
• Food & Agriculture
• HealthTech
• Gaming & Commerce
The FutureOf Fund is a $50m closed ended fund and will co-invest alongside large institutional global investors, helping to reduce risk and increase liquidity options.
Typical investments will be between $500k-3mn in companies across EMEA (whilst trying to support GCC growth as much as possible) and will target pre- and post- series A fund raises. All companies which the Fund invests in should be revenue generating and showing a clear path to profitability.
The fund will be available to professional high-net-worth clients globally, with at least $1mn in investible assets (excluding those in the US). Minimum investment is $100,000, with an eight-year lock-up.
Using its international network of founders, family offices, funders, investment banks, corporates and its own GSB Advisory deal flow, FutureOf Fund investors will have unrivalled access to institutional grade investment opportunities, the entrepreneurship ecosystem as well as the most exciting and promising growth companies.
As part of the launch, GSB has hired Beth Bell as director of GSB Capital. She has an extensive and global background in finance, spanning numerous CFO roles in family offices, high-growth start-ups and scale-ups, alongside various strategic & financial consulting positions.
She started her career at Mazars LLP, working with a wide range of clients across audit, consulting and advisory service lines.
Bell will run the fund alongside Grant Bergman, Global Head of GSB Capital, and Michanne Steenbergen, Senior Associate at GSB Capital.
Bell said: “Our DFSA-regulated fund reflects our commitment to the highest standards of governance and investor protection. By remaining sector-agnostic with strict investment criteria, we ensure that we are backing only the most promising opportunities.
"As our Fund is a co-investment vehicle, we offer unique access to institutional-grade investments, enabling LPs to co-invest alongside leading global institutional investors - unlocking opportunities that would typically be out of reach.”
Bergman added: “This global fund opens doors for investors worldwide (excluding the US), to access diverse, high-quality opportunities. As GSB’s first of many planned funds, it sets the stage for our vision to create inclusive, world-class investment vehicles that cater to an international clientele.”
