Beringea Digital Ventures is a £30 million growth stage venture Enterprise Capital Fund investing in UK companies which utilise digital platforms and technologies to create, distribute and monetise products and services.
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Please contact Beringea for more information or visit www.beringea.co.uk
Contact: Trevor Hope, Chief Investment Officer, Beringea
39 Earlham Street, London, WC2H 9LT // t: 0207 845 7820 // e:
7 September 2009 – London: Beringea, a leading venture capital firm, has been awarded Government backing to establish and manage a new Enterprise Capital Fund. Beringea Digital Ventures will receive £20 million of Government funding, along with a further £10 million from private investors, which will be used to invest in growing UK companies that utilise digital platforms and technologies. The award was one of 2 ECFs announced by Capital for Enterprise today.
Enterprise Capital Funds have been established to increase the availability of growth capital for SMEs affected by ‘equity gaps’. Beringea Digital Ventures will focus on the growing digital sector - targeting growth capital investments of up to £2 million into companies that have the potential to provide a strong commercial return.
Beringea has over 20 years of media investing experience and has invested in nearly 100 UK businesses. The firm’s award-winning investment team currently manages two of the UK’s top performing Venture Capital Trusts –ProVen VCT and ProVen Growth and Income VCT. Beringea has had proven success within the digital sector. Last year its investments in leading digital agency iLG Digital generated great returns for its investors. Portfolio company Espresso Education is the UK’s leading digital curriculum service and has seen exceptional levels of growth since the firm first invested in 2001 with the number of schools subscribing to its service increasing from 250 to over 10,000. In 2006 the firm’s investment in Mergermarket, the financial information provider, generated total returns of 14 times the original investment after the business had been successful in growing internationally.
Trevor Hope, Beringea’s Chief Investment Officer commented:
“We are all aware of the initial impacts of digital media on traditional industries such as music, advertising and education, but we are still in the early stages of fundamental change. Innovation will continue and, importantly, it will encompass not just smarter technology or cool applications but also new consumption, pricing and distribution models. The UK continues to be a strong global force in the creative industries and the mission of the fund is to combine creatively strong UK digital businesses with robust business models which can be developed internationally.
I am delighted the Government has dedicated this funding and support to the commercial development of our UK digital businesses. Beringea has a proven track record in this sector and I am very pleased that we have been chosen to establish and manage this fund.”
Commenting on this new ECF, Rory Earley, CEO and CIO of Capital for Enterprise Limited said:
“We have worked closely with Beringea over the past months and have been attracted by the team’s depth of experience and strong track record in the media and technology sectors. Beringea is a highly successful VCT manager with a long history of supporting SMEs with their growth ambitions. We are delighted to support this fund.”
For more information about Beringea Digital Ventures please contact:
Anna Blacklock, Marketing Manager
+44 (0) 20 7845 7826
+44 (0) 7779 129 221
www.beringeadigitalventures.co.uk / www.beringea.co.uk
For further information on Capital for Enterprise Ltd please contact:
Sam Hardy
+44 (0) 20 7149 3707
+44 (0) 7771 780 946
www.capitalforenterprise.gov.uk
Beringea is an international private equity firm with offices in London, Detroit, Los Angeles, and Shanghai. Beringea’s funds invest in a range of small to medium sized companies with the potential for high growth and strong returns for investors. Beringea is the manager of funds Proven VCT, ProVen Growth & Income VCT, and Global Rights Fund II, amongst others.
Beringea launched its first VCT in 1996, making it one of the most experienced VCT managers in the UK. ProVen VCT and ProVen Growth & Income are the highest performing VCTs of their launch years, according to www.taxefficientreview.com.