Maven Renovar VCT (MRV), the former Amati AIM venture capital trust, has said it will not fund raise in the current financial year following shareholders’ failure to approve a change in the investment policy for Maven Capital Partners which it controversially appointed in May.
In a revolt at the VCT’s decision to sack smaller companies fund manager Amati, shareholders at this year’s annual general meeting refused to approve moving its investment remit away from the junior AIM stock exchange on which Amati’s Dr Paul Jourdan had focused.
“Given the ongoing challenges within the AIM market and the decision by shareholders to vote against a change to the company’s investment policy, the board has decided that your company will not raise funds this year,” said chair Fiona Wollocombe. She suggested shareholders who did want to shelter gains in a VCT consider one of Maven’s four other VCTs.
Maven, a venture capitalist that focuses on unquoted startups, will adapt to the restriction by targeting the VCT’s new investments on qualifying private companies that are likely to seek a flotation on AIM.
The news came in half-year results to 31 July showing a 12% decline in net asset value (NAV) per share to 67.24p down from 76.4p, though the board said after adjusting for dividends the performance was “stable” with a modest increase in shareholders’ total return since July.
The NAV was also weighed down by costs more than trebling to £1m following the £397,000 expense of holding the general meeting in August requisitioned by former fund manager Dr Paul Jourdan and other dissident shareholders, plus the £242,000 spent in the strategic review that culminated in the appointment of Maven.
Shareholders have suffered a 27% loss over five years, a poor return that led to the dismissal of Jourdan’s firm after a challenging period for smaller company stock pickers.
Following the decision to lift the target annual yield from 5% to 6%, the £92m company has declared a 2.5p per share interim dividend and a 2.5p special dividend that will both be paid in November. These will bring the total paid this year to 15p after a 10p special paid in May.
Since launch in 2001, the company will have paid a total of 152.34p in tax-free dividends. Today the shares firmed 0.5p to 64.5p on a 4% discount to the new NAV that falls within the 5% target the board supports through share buybacks.
Wollocombe said the board still intended to consult on a tender offer to allow shareholders who did not want to remain invested under Maven to sell their shares at close to asset value.
