£50 million share offer launched for Baronsmead VCTs

The Baronsmead Venture Trust plc and the Baronsmead Second Venture Trust plc (the Baronsmead VCTs), managed by Gresham House, have launched a £30 million share offer with an over-allotment option of £20 million.

The new funds raised will provide further liquidity for the trusts to take advantage of new investment opportunities across a wide range of innovative early-stage UK businesses and enable additional support for existing portfolio companies.

Baronsmead Venture Trust was one of the first venture capital trusts to launch in 1995, with Baronsmead Second Venture Trust following in 2001. The longstanding VCTs are two of the largest on the market, with combined net assets of £433 million as of 30 November 2024. Taking a hybrid approach that is unique to VCTs at this scale, the portfolios are divided between AIM-quoted companies and unquoted companies, offering investors increased diversification and liquidity which helps to fund regular tax-free dividends.

The share offer builds on a strong year for the Baronsmead VCTs, both in terms of fundraising and deal flow. The trusts successfully completed a £50 million fundraise in 2024, surpassing their initial £30 million target, reflecting continued strong investor demand despite wider headwinds in the fundraising environment.

The trusts have closed a series of promising new deals in the second half of 2024, including a £2 million investment into adventure travel scale-up Much Better Adventures and a £2.4mn investment into cybersecurity business OnSecurity in the unquoted part of the portfolio and a £4.3 million investment into AI consulting and platform business IntelliAM and a £1.4 million investment into energy services company Earnz in the quoted part of the portfolio.

James Hendry, investment director at Gresham House, and manager of the Baronsmead VCTs, said:

“Venture capital trusts play a vital role in supporting the UK’s SME landscape, which is critical to delivering growth for the wider economy. Demand for VCTs remains strong in light of continued support for the vehicles in the recent Budget, so we are excited to be launching this share offer for the proven Baronsmead VCTs at this time.

Our deep expertise, disciplined investment strategy and an extensive network have consistently helped us to uncover and support exciting early-stage companies led by dynamic entrepreneurs across a range of evolving sectors. This fundraise will provide further capital to support more high-growth UK businesses and build on our existing track record of delivering outstanding returns for investors.”