results to January 2024
IRR (for the 15 positive exits): varies from 4% to 152%, mean 46%, median 32%
Blended multiple (on positive exits only): 8.4X
Blended multiple (including failures): 3.9X
Cash out divided by cash in (DPI - Distribution to Paid-In): 2.36
Living (many thriving, but some are very poorly/dormant) investments in portfolio: 37
Enterprise Value on primary exits: range $20M to $80M, with an average of $35.6M
Note that these are nett of UK gain and loss tax reliefs, which improve these figures by circa 20%, to say a DPI of 2.85
In my dreams, I have a TVPI (Total Value divided by total Paid In) of 4.5, but please remember that I write off my investments, as soon as I make them, Hence any cash out is a bonus.
sixteen Exited, with a return OF at least my invested cash (8 trade sales; 3 secondaries, 2 Private equity, 1 share buyback and 2 IPO)
Neul: Developed innovative and disruptive wireless network technology to enable the use of TV 'white space' spectrum. Sold in 2014 to Huawei for $25M
Ept Computing (board director): Acquired by Redgate Software in November 2009 for a 15+ multiple. Founder went on to co-found Rapportive and sell that to LinkedIn. I missed out on that one!
Frontier Developments: Pre-IPO round, sold down over 4 years at a blended 3.3X multiple.
Cambridge CMOS Sensors (board observer): Sold with a 3X to 5X multiple to AMS (Austria Microsystems)
The Outside View: Sold with a 1X to 2X multiple to Rightmove plc
Vantage Power (board director): Sold for a reasonable multiple to Allison Transmission Inc. Press release.
Spectral Edge: Sold for a good multiple to Apple. Press information announcing the acquisition
James and James Fulfilment (board director and chair): Private Equity transaction with Lloyds Decelopment Capital. I exited for a 107 multiple (IRR 101%) return on my initial investment, returning all my angel invested cash. Press release
Arachnys (board director): Very good exit, after nearly ten years, to AML RightSource, with a 4-5X blended multiple for me. Press Release
Libertine: After 7+ years, floated on AIM, locked in but currently at 4.6X Listing announcement
Flusso: Flow sensor semiconductor spinout from Cambridge University 28 months from investment to exit, 3.2X with an IRR of 70%. Press release
Confidential (a Cambridge University spin-out): A secondary sale to incoming investors, 39 months from my investment at a 3.6X multiple, with an IRR of 49%.
Confidential: A secondary sale to an existing investor, led to positive return but a limited IRR of 9.5% due to the long timeframe.
Audio Analytic (previously board observer): Sound category detection for smart devices. Sale to Meta/Facebook after a nine-year journey with a 15% IRR and 2.5X multiple. Press release
Confidential: A share buy-back by the company at the original share price. Nine year journey, which led to a small profit (after EIS tax relief) which was slightly above inflation.
Confidential: Secondary of 12% of our total shareholding to existing shareholders plus staff at 20X and 22% IRR, although it has taken 14 years since investment.
four Exited, with a return, but less than invested cash (three trade sales and a distribution)
Worksnug (board observer): sold to the management for 70% of my initial investment
Blutick: An Edtech business sold to the AQA examination service provider after 3 years at a 2% loss after tax reliefs. Press release
Cambridge Mask: A face mask company with strong IP, which cycled pollution->pandemic->pollution and then sold, returning some cash to shareholders
Artfinder: One of my few B2C investments - an art marketplace. Sold after 13 years with a tiny return for most shareholders.
twenty one failed (six of which were via a single accelerator programme), with no return for shareholders
I have several investment failures. All companies had had one or more rounds of investment and had not proven a good enough product market fit for investors to support the founders and continue supporting the loss-making businesses (all comments are my own opinions):
Open Frontiers: SaaS front- and back-office software for theme parks. Market adoption stalled. Struggled to raise enough new capital. Insolvent closure
Phase Vision: High-end 3D scanning devices using a binocular camera to replace conventional 3D precision measuring machines. Business model (large capex spend) failed. Solvent closure.
Lumejet: The LumePress printer range delivered significant cost and quality advantages especially where documents are image intensive or where output quality is key. Possibly too disruptive for a conservative industry. Insolvent closure and sale to a team led by a founder, which failed again.
Proxly: Was a platform for businesses and developers to build mobile experiences powered by proximity and contextual relevance. Failed to monetise. Solvent closure, A founder has a new start-up hopefully having learnt many lessons.
Captive Media: Despite building a 100+ portfolio of venues, DOOH (Digital Out of Home) advertising is not yet widely recognised as a medium by the industry. A case of a startup that was too early; spent time/cash in educating the multiple stakeholders between brands and their potential consumers; was probably subscale and thus investors stopped funding. Various exit options were investigated, unsuccessfully. Well run solvent closure
e-Go aeroplanes: Prototype flew in 2013. However, the UK market size was not big enough (very low margins generated by very low volume manufacture) for shareholders to support entry into other markets. The other markets (eg USA) would have increased production to a sufficient level to reduce sales prices and increase margins. Solvent closure and sale to one of the founders.
isotera: Seven year journey, having raised £6.7M from 50+ angel investors plus 8 funds. Patented technology, revenue over the life of the company in the £Ms. However, the route to market is complex, and little/none of the value created is returned to the product specifier. Since formation, isotera had 3 CEOs and 3 chairs. Insolvent closure and sale to their biggest customer.
Gene Adviser: With only 18 months from investment to shutdown, the founders realised that although some sales traction had occurred, the market was changing too rapidly and it was, disappointingly, better to close solvently than seek more funding.
Knowledge Transmission: Six years from first investment to shutdown, achieving limited market traction, but a combination of investor misalignment and founder illness (and one founder leaving) meant the journey was cut short. Insolvent closure and phoenixed by a founder.
Cambridge Temperature Concepts (Sensiia): Despite good technology, educating the market (parents, retail channels and healthcare providers) proved too expensive in terms of time and money. Apparently the company helped parents conceive over 1000 babies - which of course is priceless.
Mellow: Developed and manufacturing innovative “sous vides”. Moved out to California, lost both founders, shipped a few thousand products, but ran out of cash. Phoenixed, then failed again.
Responsive Sports (Boxng): Technology for amateur boxers and televising boxing matches, IoT embedded in the gloves. Never found product market fit
Playground Energy: Motivating children in playgrounds by generating energy and hence illuminating LEDs. Moved to Bulgaria (the founder’s home country) and failed
Bright Move Media: Adverts on Taxi/cab roofs. Good technology and some sales traction, but after 3 or 4 years, all four founders left the business. ~£4.5M capital raised in total, diluting the founders to <7%. Covid-19 has caused a huge drop in “Digital Out of Home” advertising and new investment dried up, hence failure.
Repositive: Accelerating Preclinical Cancer Research. Having raised £8M, and after both founders left, the company has failed insolvently, as product/market fit was not found.
Radio Physics Solutions: Tech business that went through several pivots, several CEOs and chairs. One of the Anglo Scientific portfolio, it raised in excess of £20M equity/loans and consistently under-delivered. Rumour that Anglo Scientific are Phoenixing the company.
Controllis: clean hybrid power solutions. A 13-year journey for very patient founders, who had an excellent technical solution, but could not scale market adoption. Business continues within a larger UK manufacturer.
Undo Software: “Empowering developers to understand complex code and fix bugs faster with time travel debugging”. Despite raising around £10M and having great techology, the companiy didn’t achieve sufficient product market fit to reach breakeven. Angels rescued the company from failure, leaving no value for most of the investors.
Cambridge Communication Systems: “We enable fibre-like Gigabit capable wireless services wherever they are needed“, The market needs moved faster than the company could adapt and despite raising over £30M, the company was sold, via a pre-pack administration, to one of the shareholders.
Kaptivo/Light Blue Optics (board observer): Exited after a 16 year roller-coaster journey to Lifesize (a video collaboration company), with a return for the last round investors, except this was a paper exit and the acquirer was itself acquired and then failed. Press release and 2023 press release showing its demise
Wicastr: “The power of the cloud at the edge”. Created by the Springboard IoT accelerator in 2013, Wicastr pivoted and moved countries (to Armenia) and struggled on, but has now failed. Unfortunately, this means that none of that accelerator programme of seven startups returned any money to shareholders. The life of an angel investor!