NetScientific PLC (AIM:NSCI, FRA:NTK1) said it is investing an initial £1mln in Martlet Capital, which has been set up to acquire a portfolio of minority interests in growth companies operating in the Cambridge high-tech cluster.
NetScientific’s subsidiary, EMV Capital, co-led a £12mln fundraiser, alongside private office Saranac Partners, that will allow Martlet to complete the acquisition of over 50 investments currently held by Marshall of Cambridge.
The portfolio includes interests in life science, healthcare, cleantech, sustainability, industrials and semi-conductor companies.
Martlet Capital is targeting a total raise of around £22mln over the next six months, “which would enable significant further investment into selected portfolio companies and new investment opportunities”.
It aims to become the leading early-stage investment house for the Cambridge technology cluster.
NetScientific’s initial stake in Martlet is 6.8%. But EMV will be asked to syndicate the investment, taking NetScientific’s holding down to around 1% of Martlet for an investment of £250,000. This is in line with NetScientfic’s capital-light investment model.
Adding a further dimension to the story, NetScientific, Saranac Partners and Martlet plan to create a follow-on funding vehicle, Cambridge Marquity Investments.
NetScientific will receive a 40% stake for its initial £100,000 investment. “The group expects to make future judicious investments through Marquity, targeting the more advanced portfolio companies, which show the requisite strong performance to add shareholder value and realise returns,” the company added.
NetScientific chief executive, Dr Ilian Iliev, will join the boards of both Martlet and Marquity.
He said: “This investment marks another step in NetScientific’s expansion strategy, and demonstrates the potential of NetScientific’s investment approach to generate continued growth in value.
“We now have proprietary access to top-quality deal flow from one of the world’s leading technology clusters in Cambridge, with a strong scale-up investment partner.
“The detailed work, analysis, due diligence and investment-planning performed by our team, as well as the experience of the Martlet team and our co-investment partners provides us with confidence that we will see significant growth in the value of the underlying assets.”