Full year trading update and notice of results

23 April 2024

Molten Ventures plc

("Molten Ventures", "Molten", or the “Group”)

Full year trading update and notice of results 

Stable and enhanced platform, in an improving market with greater expectation for realisations

Molten Ventures (LSE: GROW, Euronext Dublin: GRW), a leading venture capital firm investing in and developing high-growth digital technology businesses, today announces an update on its portfolio, NAV (unaudited) and highlights for the year ahead of its full year results for the 12 months ended 31 March 2024, due to be announced on 12 June 2024.

Highlights:

• £55 million capital raise (net of fees) completed in December 2023, providing additional liquidity to pursue follow-on investments and access exceptional secondary investments at attractive valuations.
• Acquisition of a stake in Seedcamp’s Fund III as part of our secondary strategy; with value concentrated in six mature, proven assets in attractive market segments.
• All-share acquisition of Forward Partners completed with integration underway, adding a balanced, well-positioned and well-capitalised portfolio of 40+ assets, enhancing the Group’s access to early-stage deal flow opportunities.
• Gross Portfolio Value (“GPV”) (unaudited) is expected to be circa £1,377 million (31 March 2023: £1,299 million).
• Underlying Gross Portfolio fair value (unaudited) stabilised and broadly flat for the year at constant currency, reflecting a modest increase in the like-for-like portfolio in the second half and positive contribution from the two acquisitions (first half: 3.7% decrease, second half: 4.2% increase at constant currency).
• Uplifts in fair value from the acquisition of Forward Partners and the investment stake in Seedcamp’s Fund III. Currency movements from the weaker US and Euro continued in the second half of the year resulting in larger foreign exchange losses in the second half.
• Core portfolio remains well funded, focused on capital efficiency and continues to trade positively with very limited exceptions: in the calendar year to 31 December 2023, value-weighted revenue growth in our Core portfolio was 63%.
• Invested £65 million (year to 31 March 2023: £138 million), of which £40 million from Molten’s balance sheet for the year ended 31 March 2024, and £25 million representing the Forward Partners share-for-share exchange (net of cash acquired), with a further £37 million from the managed EIS and VCT co-investment strategies.
• Realisations generated cash proceeds for Molten in the year of £39 million (year to 31 March 2023: £48 million).
• NAV per share (unaudited) is expected to be circa 661p (31 March 2023: 780p).
• Disciplined approach to capital allocation through FY24 with cash investments of £40m (excluding Forward Partners) below historical investment rates and aligned to £39m of realisations. Focus on secondary acquisitions to broaden the portfolio at attractive prices.
• Molten balance sheet cash as at 31 March 2024 of £57 million, and a further £66 million available for investment from the managed EIS/VCT funds. Undrawn Molten Revolving Credit Facility of up to £60 million provides further funding flexibility.
• Strengthened Board with two key appointments in Laurence Hollingworth as Non-Executive Chair, and Lara Naqushbandi as Non-Executive Director - adding further capital markets, investment banking, technology, climate technology and leadership experience.

Portfolio performance and fair value movements:

• Portfolio companies continue to maintain revenue growth momentum, demonstrating the underlying resilience of these businesses and the structural demand for their products across their respective end-markets.
• Total fair value movements in the second half of £55 million arose mainly from the Forward Partners and Seedcamp Fund III portfolio acquisitions, offset by adverse FX movements of £19m. These aside, valuations across both our Core and Emerging portfolio assets have held essentially flat in aggregate in the second half.
• Our portfolio remains well funded with over 90% of the Core projecting more than 12 months of cash runway, and over 50% projecting greater than 24 months.

Outlook for FY25 (year to 31 March 2025):

• We have continued to make strategic progress in enhancing our platform and believe Molten is well-positioned to generate returns for our investors. We have the skillset, market positioning and the firepower available to capture opportunities while market valuations remain subdued. 
• FY25 showing promise of delivering a more normalised realisations market with divestment proceeds expected to be meaningfully higher than the last two years.
• A continued focus on our third-party capital strategy to be spearheaded by a newly hired head of third-party funds.

Martin Davis, Chief Executive Officer of Molten Ventures, commented: 

“We are grateful to all our investors who supported us through the period, most notably with our fundraise and with the addition of the Forward Partners portfolio. With £123 million of cash resources across PLC, the managed EIS/VCT funds, as well as a £60 million undrawn debt facility and a stable and enhanced platform, we are in a strong position to deploy capital selectively to maximise returns for our investors in a stabilising but still challenging environment for high-growth companies.  Our portfolio remains in good health, and we expect to see a step up in realisations in the current financial year, with a number of potential exit processes ongoing across our portfolio.” 

Notice of Full Year Results: 

• Molten Ventures Full Year Results are scheduled for release on 12 June 2024. Presentation and conference call details will be confirmed in due course.

Enquiries: 

About Molten Ventures

Molten Ventures is a leading venture capital firm in Europe, developing and investing in disruptive, high growth technology companies. We inject visionary companies with energy to help them transform and grow. This energy comes in many forms - capital, of course, but also knowledge, experience, and relationships. We believe it is our role to support the entrepreneurs who will invent the future, and that future is being built, today, in Europe.

As at 30 September 2023, Molten Ventures had a diverse portfolio with shareholdings in 74 companies, 17 of which represent our Core Portfolio holdings and account for 62% of the Gross Portfolio Value. Our core companies include Thought Machine, Coachhub, Form3, Aiven, Ledger and Aircall. We invest across four sectors: Enterprise Technology, Hardware and Deeptech, Consumer Technology, and Digital Health and Wellness, with highly experienced partners constantly looking for new opportunities in each. We look for high-growth companies operating in new markets, with aspirations for global expansion, strong IP, powerful technology, and strong management teams to deliver success. We also look for businesses with the potential to generate strong margins to ensure rapid, sustainable growth in substantial addressable markets.

Molten Ventures provides a unique opportunity for public market investors to access these fast-growing tech businesses, without having to commit to long term investments with limited liquidity. Since our IPO in June 2016, we have deployed over £1bn capital into fast growing tech companies and have realised £520m to 30 September 2023.