Braveheart increases Yorkshire stake as it snaps up £48m fund

INVESTMENT group Braveheart took another bite of Britain’s regional growth fund market yesterday, snapping up the firm that runs Yorkshire’s £48 million scheme for £380,000.

In recent months, Perth-based Braveheart has been building on its experience of setting up the Scottish Co-investment Fund to increase its fee-based income.

Its latest acquisition is Neon Capital Partners, bought from NF Holdings. It was established in February 2010 to be the manager of the Finance Yorkshire Equity Fund, but has not yet began trading as it only recently obtained the requisite authorisations from the Financial Services Authority.

Braveheart chief executive Geoffrey Thomson described the acquisition as “an important milestone” for the company. He said the move was motivated by a strategy of growing the fee-earning side of the business and increasing funds under management.

“It brings us long-term visibility of quality earnings and it’s exactly what we are looking for,” he said.

Neon, which employs five staff at offices in Barnsley and Leeds, also consolidates Braveheart’s position in Yorkshire, where it already operates the Viking Fund, the Viking Loan Fund, and the Yorkshire Association of Business Angels.

Thomson said the link to business angels was especially important, because they could co-invest in companies alongside the fund, while Braveheart could use its contacts with young and expanding companies across the UK to bring businesses seeking a base to Yorkshire. Backed by EU money, the funds offers investments of up to £2m.

The Scots firm recently won a contract to run a £50m growth fund for Northern Ireland’s regional development agency.

Shares in Braveheart added more than 4 per cent yesterday as analysts at Seymour Pierce estimated that Neon would add about £1.5m to its annual revenues.