Robert Dighero

#Hargreaves_Lansdown Hargreaves Lansdown backed the £5.4 billion bid for the FTSE 100 fund manager today from a private equity consortium, a deal that will end its time as a listed company. The Bristol-based finance firm has been listed in London since 2007. It said today that the final offer valued its shares at 1140p in cash and would include a 30p per share dividend for the financial year which ended on 30 June. Compared to the Hargreaves Lansdown share price before the approach was first made in April, the price is at a premium of over 54%. The consortium is made up of CVC, Nordic Capital and ADIA. Hargreaves Lansdown is named after its founders – Peter Hargreaves and Stephen Lansdown – who set it up as an investment tip sheet. It now runs a state-of-the-art trading platform from which clients can run their own portfolios and pensions. https://lnkd.in/dKpizupy

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Do take a read of Jonathan Bean's thoughts as he spoke with MD One Ventures's Kelvin Au regards the fascinating work ongoing at Materials Nexus!

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It was great to get the investment in Stacatruc Limited completed. The first of many to come at YFM Equity Partners from Matt Gordon-Smith, with huge support from Callum Long. It took us longer to convince Matt Gordon-Smith to come and join us than it did for him to complete his first investment with us. Stacatruc is the 4th investment in the last 5 months - with another 6 in diligence across the business. We have a big team now though so plenty of capacity across all of our offices to talk about new opportunities. We can invest between £3m and £15m of equity. Either to fund a Change of Ownership when a business has £1m+ profit (MBO's, partial cash outs, carve outs etc), or Growth Capital to go faster when a business has £1m+ Revenue or ARR.

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The 57th edition of the Alt Goes Mainstream AGM Weekly newsletter is out! Last night, we celebrated my cousin’s 21st birthday in London (Happy Birthday, Sara!). It’s quite remarkable to think how much can change over the course of decades. When I moved to London seventeen years ago, she was just starting kindergarten. Today, she has graduated from Imperial College London. A lot can change in seventeen years. People and industries can see tremendous growth when they think in decades rather than days and months. The power of compounding is often hard to grasp in the short term, but its strength lies in the ability to demonstrate patience and consistency. As private markets reaches a new era, it’s an interesting thought experiment to try to peer into the future about what could come next. Read on for predictions on what private markets could look like 15 years from now👇 🗂️ AGM Index, an index that tracks the leading publicly traded alternative asset managers. 🗞️ AGM News of the Week, this week covering: 📌 Institutional Investor's Michael Thrasher on why institutional allocators don't think infrastructure is overvalued. 📌 PitchBook's Jessica Hamlin on why LPs are allocating to infrastructure funds. 📌 Citywire's William Johnson on allocators' views on private credit. 📌 Bloomberg's David Ramli on Bobby Jain seeing private credit compete with hedge funds for LP dollars. 📌 Bloomberg's Jenny Surane, Francine Lacqua, Todd Gillespie on Lazard looking into private credit acquisitions to boost asset management division. 💻 Who is hiring: Senior-level positions from companies Blackstone, Apollo Global Management, Inc., iCapital, Ultimus Fund Solutions, Blue Owl Capital, Hamilton Lane, LemonEdge. Subscribe 👇 to see the latest trends & navigate this rapidly changing landscape as alts go mainstream. https://lnkd.in/emiTPVQ9

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Mark Advani and I have delved into the ins and outs of our Enterprise Fund, watch our latest video to learn more about our flexible approach to investing.

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"Funding Collapse sends investment in start-ups to six year low" The Times today covering the shocking stats that VenturePath uncovered, with our partner Beauhurst. Great quotes from supporters Michael Moore CEO, BVCA and Julian David CEO, techUK. * UK VC funding at Series A is -44% from last year, and worsening * Q3 24 is down a staggering 57% from Q2, itself down from Q1 * 9 in 10 seed funded startups cannot access Series A VC funding, the next 'rung on the funding ladder' * Just 32 future scaleup companies across the whole of the UK were able to access their first VC funding round in Q3...a 6 year low * Half a billion less capital is going in to UK scaleups at Series A, than just 2 years ago! As the UK scaleup funding gap widens, we are losing ground against other countries, at both startup stage (a position the UK worked hard to achieve, since 2011), and for scaleup support. OECD data: 13th in the world for scaleup support, and that's before Series A funding access dried up. I get that its confusing. Another report (BBB, Nations & Regions) released this week spoke of positive trends in private investment, stating "The data for Q2 2024 shows that investment value has continued to grow". Great, I love to see optimistic data. But under analysis that bundles venture with private equity (later stage), where a few megadeals skew the numbers. Otherwise the exact opposite is true. Our independent research here, for the UK ScaleUp Investment Mission, is laser beam focussed on Series A. The funding round where companies move from the c.1m startups launched each year, through the 2,179 that access seed funding, into the rarefied category of being recognised as future scaleups, attracting Series A funding (£2-10m). The UK venture landscape is currently funding just 248 pa of these companies, and declining. We've been sharing this urgent call for support with the new Government since the day after the election. I've personally met with several Ministers, and spoke to all the relevant Government departments. I will shamelessly repeat loudly what is at stake. UK scaleup funding at Series A has nearly halved in a year, and continues to decline steeply, more than halving in the last quarter. VenturePath developed The UK ScaleUp Investment Mission to convene the scaleup support ecosystem and £7bn of funders to help address this problem, to improve nationwide access to VC investment, and create more venture-backed successes. We have clear support, clear recommendations to reverse this decline in UK scaleup investment, and have made a clear ask of Government for participation in this, to ensure immediate action is taken to create the conditions for success for UK scaleups, ensuring the focus on growth isn't undermined by lack of capital, or equitable access to it. Government decision makers, we'd love your interest, to progress to action. HM Treasury: Rt Hon Rachel Reeves Spencer Livermore James Murray & CC Poppy Gustafsson (welcome to the debate).

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The next Quarterly Apollo meeting is on Monday, December 2, from 18.00 to 20.00 in Central Edinburgh. If you want to pitch your company and fit our criteria, please upload your proposal to our platform. We expect at least one founder/director to be permanently based in Scotland. Our members will vote on which companies they want to see present at our meeting. The two companies with the most votes will be selected. Please upload your investment before Friday, 22 November. We have a strong preference for two types of investment. - Proposals that are too early for most investors but have the potential to build defensible, solid IP (ideally with Grant funding that needs to be matched). The aim is to create enough traction to become attractive for a larger investor with an exit in 7-10 years. -Companies that will become cash-positive after our investment and don't necessarily raise again. The founders can generate returns for the investors via Dividends and/or share buybacks. Apollo is a group of close to 70 UK-based investors who invest together, helping each other with Due Diligence and growing the investee companies. We usually make 3 to 4 new investments a year. Please message me if you'd like to become an Apollo member. #seis #angelinvesting #startupfunding

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💼 Top 10 UK Venture Capital Firms by Deal Count - Plus the Power of NEDs 💼 The UK's venture capital firms are leading the charge in backing high-growth companies, but think abut this..... if each deal also added a non-executive director (and they invariably do) to bring experienced governance and strategy into play, let’s look at the numbers: Let's start with the top 10 most active VCs in the UK in 2024, and the potential impact: 1. SFC Capital - 99 deals   2. Access EIS - 65 deals   3. Octopus Ventures - 54 deals   4. BGF Growth Capital - 47 deals   5. Ascension - 34 deals   6. Fuel Ventures 🚀 Ventures - 31 deals   7. Seedcamp - 28 deals   8. LocalGlobe - 26 deals   9. Par Equity - 25 deals   10. Amadeus Capital Partners - 24 deals If each deal added a NED, and each fund paid an average recruitment fee of £25,000 per hire, the total cost across these deals would be: 😳 SFC Capital: £2.475m   😳 Access EIS: £1.625m   😳 Octopus Ventures: £1.35m   😳 BGF Growth Capital: £1.175m   😳 Ascension: £850k   😳 Fuel Ventures: £775k   😳 Seedcamp: £700k   😳 LocalGlobe: £650k   😳 Par Equity: £625k   😳 Amadeus Capital Partners: £600k  👉 Total cost: £10.825 million 💸 Ps. Many recruitment fees are in excess of double the "average" fee of £25k. At Virtualnonexecs.com, we work with VCs to flatten the cost of recruitment across their portfolios. The VNXD Operator Network is available on a flat annual subscription - for less than the cost of a single hire. You get access to 22,000 non-executive directors, supported by internal headhunters and there's no "per hire" fee. This means ongoing access to the best talent with no extra costs for every deal. If you are interested in accessing this level of support, let’s discuss. You can book a demo with me here: https://lnkd.in/d3na7CEC or simply drop me a DM. 👉 #VentureCapital #Startups #NEDs #Leadership #BusinessGrowth #Investment #UKTech

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My thoughts on the TSF (Token Subscription Facility) Funding It can be a good system for large projects trying to fund Series A where that practice can be leveraged to gain more market % over time the liquid term lasts so it offsets enough price increase that it's at the upper level against the contract and is actually beneficial. To cover some points that are usually used as USPs of TSF: Value Proposition: 1- Preserving Tokenomics: XYZ’s model minimizes dilution and preserves a significant portion of the treasury, ensuring flexibility for future opportunities. 2- Reducing Sell Pressure: Our structured approach and threshold pricing protect the token’s value and reduce downward price pressure, aligning with long-term growth. 3- Pre-Listing Validation: A TSF agreement acts as third-party validation, similar to a cornerstone investor, inspiring confidence and attracting early investors and partnerships. 4- Post-Listing Stability: Unlike OTC deals, XYZ’s model ensures funding is incremental and aligned with the project’s success, avoiding the risks associated with large one-off sales to unknown buyers. 1) Dilution is set up in advance via Market Makers and token advisors to create the optimal vesting release schedule and funding stages that align with the project's targets. 2) As per aforementioned tokenomics, sell pressure is controlled by the pre-determined vesting schedule and the market maker. All the calculations are made in advance accounting for the worst case scenario where everyone offloads assets as the vesting comes to maturity. This is a combat of philosophies, is it better to use funds to advance your project and grow it organically so the shareholder value increases or just take money over time and buy back tokens to uplift the price while the credit line lasts. The first option is better for the long term in my humble opinion. 3) If they are a well known VC then yes, it shows traction and gives some backing to the project's claims, but essentially just a standard investment would do the same. 4) Selling discounted OTC tokens from the Treasury means the project can't raise the new/next round and due to delays or bad financial projections for burn rate and float has drained the funds before time, which however you look at it doesn't bode well for the projects success down the road. To circle back to their claim of long-term approach as a signal of future stability, it works only for well funded projects that will use the liquidity injection for aggressively attacking the market and expanding faster than the competition to try and get the first mover advantage that will hopefully net positive results long term if everything goes well, if not as these tranches are defined with the contract before the TGE, they will probably always be buying with a discount (essentially their interest rate on the credit line) and as long as the token keeps going up will be willing to keep providing assets. #fundraising #VC #Web3 #TSF

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https://lnkd.in/ehEfb6Q8 The UK’s commitment to an 81% emissions reduction by 2035 is ambitious, and will be very challenging to meet, but it is a great target to set. A broad spectrum of technologies are required from wind, solar and storage to hydrogen, SAF and nuclear. Critical to success is all of them is a focus on innovation, skills, and learning so we can bring down costs and minimise the impact on everyday life. Investments in technologies that can reduce the cost of decarbonisation are crucial. Take aviation, for instance: long-haul flights remain critical for connecting people globally, and are also a significant source of emissions. But instead of restricting flights, we should focus on innovations within Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF), such as new Power-to-Liquid (PtL) pathways like we are developing in OXCCU TECH LTD. These fuels can directly replace traditional jet fuels in existing aircraft. As these fuels scale, costs will decrease and aviation can decarbonise without compromising accessibility. This model extends beyond aviation to industries like shipping, heavy industry, and agriculture. With continued support toward innovation and pragmatic climate policy, sectors can balance emissions reductions with affordability. In this way, the government can “tread lightly” on people’s lives while advancing toward net zero. This approach offers a pathway to a secure and sustainable future, where technological progress addresses the emissions challenge without compromising the freedoms and opportunities central to modern life. #COP29 #NetZero #Aviation #ClimateTech

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Maternity in VC in the spotlight. Well done Rachel Drapper, Sophie Winwood & the WVC:E team on getting this important report out there. In VC we’re dealing often with small firms, network & event heavy schedules and FOMO of being left behind if we take time out (I refuse to use the word off as anyone who’s had a child knows that’s the furthest from how it feels). If you’re thinking about having a child or in the throes of the early-stages, navigating how to even try and get some semblance or balance, then hopefully this report can provide some useful tips. Most importantly showcasing that you’re not alone.

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🌱 Looking to Connect with Leading VCs and Early-Stage Investors? 🌱 At Virtualnonexecs, we don;t only work with PE firms - we are also proud to be working with some of the UK’s most active early-stage investors to help them find the top board advisors and chairs who can drive impact. If you're a non-executive or chair looking to connect with the heart of the startup ecosystem, take note of the names below. Here are 10 of the UK's most active early-stage investors and the incredible numbers that back them: 1. Octopus Ventures - Backed 100+ startups, with a portfolio value of over £1.3 billion. 2. Seedcamp - Over 400 startups funded, including unicorns like Revolut and TransferWise 3. LocalGlobe - Invested in 300+ startups across deep tech and fintech. 4. Playfair - Early backer of companies like Stripe and Anduril. 5. Passion Capital - Early investor in Monzo Bank, managing £100M+ in assets. 6. Ascension - Over 100 startups backed with a focus on social impact and fintech. 7. Frontline Ventures - Backed 80+ startups across Europe with a key focus on B2B. 8. MMC Ventures - £500M+ under management, supporting 60+ innovative growth companies. 9. Balderton Capital - Invested in 220+ startups with notable exits like THG. 10. Entrepreneur First - 500+ startups built, including companies now worth over $10 billion collectively. ✅ To join Virtualnonexecs: https://lnkd.in/eXBj687 ✅ If you are a VC or company looking to hire: https://lnkd.in/d3na7CEC #NonExecutiveDirectors #Chairs #VentureCapital #Startups #Virtualnonexecs #BoardRoles #Leadership #BusinessGrowth

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Why UK investors are going to ask you about “SEIS” and “EIS” 🚨 Confused about SEIS and EIS? 🤔 Don't worry, we've got you covered! 💡 Our latest podcast ep with Sam Simpson breaks down these UK government tax incentive schemes for investors, designed to encourage investment in early-stage startups. Think 50% tax relief, CGT exemption, and more! 🤑 But, can you invest in your own company using these schemes? 🤔 The answer might surprise you... 👀 Have you used SEIS or EIS for your startup? Share your experiences in the comments below! 💬 #SEIS #EIS #startups

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It was fantastic to have been a panellist at today’s EntreConf and EntreConf Awards, a vibrant two-day conference for entrepreneurs and advisers. I was joined on the ‘Funding Routes’ panel by Richard Spilsbury of Link Stone Advisory, David Goodall of FW Capital and Paul Duggan of Blake Morgan LLP. Key takeaways from our discussion, which was moderated by Greg Ingham, formerly of Future Publishing LLC, included: 💰 The market is much more positive than headline figures suggest. There are lots of options out there for those seeking funding. 💰From VC and CVC (Corporate Venture Capital), to off balance sheet investments by the big strategics, as well as family offices, HNWs, debt, grants and invoice discounting, there are plenty of routes depending on what stage you are at. 💰A VC will look at your business differently to a CVC. A VC will be assessing your business plan, the expertise of the team and whether they can deliver and scale the business, as well as whether the problem/solution you are addressing is big enough to lead to scalability. They will also look at your routes to market, financial performance and quality of earnings, with recurring revenue being the nirvana. 💰 A CVC wants to see all of the above - but also where your business fits within their strategic roadmap to use their investment to accelerate their innovation. 💰Although there is a cost of raising capital to a business, the benefits of having the right investors on board is vast and a driver for turbo-charging growth. 💰When you're looking to create your target list from the universe of investors, ensure you include sector focus funds who will be targeting businesses within your industry to find the best fit. #fundingroutes #entreconf #investment #capitalraise

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📣 We’ve got a big ESG_VC event planned for Tuesday next week – featuring the latest updates to our measurement framework, news of our 2025 benchmarking with the British Private Equity & Venture Capital Association (BVCA), and an introduction to our new platform partners… 📣 On the afternoon of Tuesday 26 November, we’ll be gathering 200+ VCs for the latest update on the ESG_VC Measurement Framework – from what it covers to how it informs industry-leading research, and how you can now work with our accredited data collection partners. This will be our first event delivered in partnership with our cohort of platform partners: Apiday, Novata, and PortF. I’m excited to share with our members how these partners can support a big step up in your ESG initiatives. Join us for a jam-packed event that will feature: 🟢 An update from Suzi Gillespie of the BVCA on how you can take part in our 2025 research – we analysed ESG performance in c.600 VC-backed companies in 2024 and we’re looking to deliver an even more ambitious piece of research next year… 🟢 Insights from Emily Havers of Fidelity International Strategic Ventures on the updates that have been made to the framework and what it means for our members, their portfolio companies, and the broader ecosystem. 🟢 Perspectives from Emily Matthews of Oxford Science Enterprises and Nina Foote of Volution on how the ESG_VC Measurement Framework has supported their work on ESG. 🟢 Presentations from our platform partners: Edouard Audi of Apiday, Conor O'Laoire’Laoire of Novata, and Alex Lu of PortF. It’s going to be a good one so do register. Link to sign up in the comments! #ESG_VC #sustainability #venturecapital

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Investors must be back from holidays…content has taken a termsheet negotiation lean. — Going to be lots of people putting their opinions out to influence deal terms. Founders need good advice from service providers to seperate BS from Inspo. Two Legals POV’s I’d recommend: Patricia Wing’s SuLe for UK. OR Kristina’s Lawlace for US. Startup specific advice, specialised by geography. Generalists can be good but specialists are best. #fundraising #season #GoGetEm #femalefounders #startuplegals

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Great webinar with FT Live on the Global M&A Outlook in the EMEA Region. There is a feel of the optimism in EMEA’s M&A landscape, with private equity leading the charge and valuations on the rise. Geopolitical certaintly, growth agenda, and interest rates certainly will provide confidence in the market, therefore, the future is looking really good. #wheredealsaremade #privateequity #mergers

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The next Quarterly Apollo meeting is on Monday, September 2, from 18.00 to 20.00 in Central Edinburgh. If you would like to pitch your company and fit our criteria, please upload your proposal to our platform. We expect at least one founder/director to be permanently based in Scotland. Our members will vote on which companies they want to see present at our meeting on 23 August. The two companies with the most votes will be selected. Please upload your investment before Wednesday, 23 August. We have a strong preference for two types of investment. - Proposals that are too early for most investors with the potential to build defensible solid IP (ideally with Grant funding that needs to be matched). The aim is to create enough traction to become attractive for a larger investor with an exit in 7-10 years. -Companies that will become cash-positive after our investment and don't necessarily raise again. The founders can generate returns for the investors via Dividends and/or share buybacks. Apollo is a group of over 60 UK-based investors who invest together, helping each other with Due Diligence and growing the investee companies. We usually make 3 to 4 new investments a year. Please message me if you'd like to become an Apollo member. #seis #angelinvesting #startupfunding https://lnkd.in/eAccNAn

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Not quite sure what to make of my appearance with Chris on stage yesterday at SuperVenture being described as the 'Morecambe and Wise of ESG'... Hopefully we weren't too slapstick, but it was great to represent ESG_VC and the British Private Equity & Venture Capital Association (BVCA), sharing the key findings from our latest research. It was also great to be joined on stage by Giulia and Grace to reflect on these findings and discuss how and where ESG is now being embedded throughout the venture ecosystem, particularly within portfolio companies. A few key takeaways for us all: 1️⃣ Don't let perfection be the enemy of progress... One that applied to both VCs and portfolio companies - quick and efficient solutions will be more impactful than long and detailed processes. Identify your objectives and move quickly to find a good solution, as you can always refine and improve over time. 2️⃣ Think about your 'ESG mindset'... Giulia shared an insight into Sofina's screening process for GPs, which includes an analysis of the firm's ESG mindset - how seriously are you embedding an ESG strategy and translating policies and processes into long-term progress? 3️⃣ The commercial case for ESG is strong, and growing... Grace highlighted the importance of stressing to portfolio companies - particularly those selling into large corporates - that regulation and reporting requirements are making ESG data and carbon accounting critical to winning contracts and customers. Ps: photo credit to Tony Greenham!

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