Published: November 14th, 2017
Maven Capital Partners, one of the UK’s most active private equity
houses and investor in SMEs, is pleased to announce that it has been
appointed by the Midlands Engine Investment Fund (MEIF) to manage a £50m
MEIF – Maven Debt Finance fund in the West Midlands. This provision is
part of the wider £250million MEIF package, £120million of which is now
available to support growing SMEs, operated by the British Business
Bank.
MEIF – Maven Debt Finance is focused on providing finance to
high-potential businesses located in the West Midlands region, where it
can offer funding of between £100,000 and £1.5 million to each SME.
MEIF was announced in the March 2016 Budget, and is a partnership
between the British Business Bank (BBB) and Midlands LEPs, with the aim
of boosting the region’s economy and supporting the growth ambitions of
its smaller businesses. Maven Capital Partners UK LLP has been appointed
to manage the MEIF Debt Fund across both West Midlands and East & South
East Midlands regions, targeting businesses with an operational trading
base in the region and a strategy for growth.
Across the territory covered by MEIF many viable, dynamic SMEs, with
innovative products and services, strong business plans and highly
capable management teams, are struggling to access the funding that will
allow them to develop their businesses and market offering. MEIF is
looking to address this, with a particular focus on supporting the
growth aspirations of high-potential SMEs that can contribute to
regional economic development, job creation and innovation. Its
objective is to produce greater levels of investment in smaller
businesses, and increased flexibility in the type of funding available
to those businesses.
The Maven team has been one of the UK’s most active SME investors since
2004, on behalf of a range of client funds. With a long-established
regional team already operating across the MEIF areas, and supported by
a UK wide office network, and a number of new investment executive
appointments currently in process, Maven is well resourced to provide
the necessary support to MEIF portfolio companies, both in terms of the
initial investment process and ongoing support as those businesses grow.
Patrick Magee, Chief Commercial Officer at the British Business Bank
said "The Midlands Engine Investment Fund will build relationships with
the region’s diverse small business community, through its appointed
fund managers and its own relationship managers. MEIF will play a
pivotal role in plugging the gaps currently present in the funding
landscape, seeking to ensure that all businesses have access to the
finance they need to grow. Maven will have an instrumental role in the
successful allocation of the fund, and we’re looking forward to working
with the team to mobilise fast-growth businesses across the region."
Andrew Ferguson, Partner, Maven Capital Partners UK LLP, said "Maven has
many years’ experience of investing in and supporting SMEs across the
Midlands. We are one of the UK’s most experienced and active private
equity fund managers, and are delighted to be working with the British
Business Bank to deliver the objectives of the MEIF. The Midlands has a
deserved reputation as being a key driver in UK economic growth and
producing innovative smaller businesses, and there remains a clear need
for this type of funding to help high-growth Midlands SMEs fulfil their
potential. Our MEIF Debt Fund team is very much looking forward to
working in partnership alongside Midlands SMEs."
The Midlands Engine Investment Fund project is supported financially by
the European Union using funding from the European Regional Development
Fund (ERDF) as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds
Growth Programme 2014-2020 and the European Investment Bank. The
initiative is also supported by the Department for Business, Energy and
Industrial Strategy as well as ten Local Enterprise Partnerships across
the region’s geography.
