Introduction

The UK has never had a problem with innovation, punching well above its weight in terms of inventions and university research. However – and this is only slightly facetious – it is also the country that invented both the computer and the world wide web and didn’t commercialise either of them.

Symvan Capital rather immodestly believe they can help to address this tragic imbalance, through investing in and nurturing technology companies that have not been well served by either the tax-efficient market or by the traditional venture capital industry.

Symvan are investment return evangelists, not product evangelists. Yet it is the development of exciting technology products and services that lead to remarkable growth and high exit values, leading to outstanding investor returns. And all of this is provided in an environment characterised by transparency and authenticity.

Background

Symvan Capital has been operating since 2013, but most of the principals have been involved with technology investing since the early 1990s. The Symvan team and the Fund’s Investment Committee have a breadth of experience that is unusual in early stage technology investing in the UK.

Rob Bird is a leading global expert and practitioner in big data science and artificial intelligence. Kealan Doyle and Nicholas Nicolaides each have over 20 years in technology investment and capital markets experience. Julian Sampson is a highly experienced compliance professional with a deep understanding of the regulatory framework. The team brings considerable experience and judgement to the task, with expertise on Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning, company valuations, due diligence and the ability to mentor growth companies.

Proposition

The ‘asset-backed’ EIS market officially dies this week, leading to investors seeking growth managers who know what they are doing. If you have not “done your 10,000 hours”, you have no business running other people’s money.

Symvan intend to return £2.85 for every £1 invested over a 5/6-yeartime period. But they believe this is probably a conservative estimate.

Symvan do not charge investors any fees, meaning that investors receive 100% tax relief on a £100 investment, as opposed to circa 90% tax relief in much of the industry.

Investors will have access to a portfolio of companies who all have the potential to disrupt specific industry verticals and make outsized investment gains.