Venture capitalists in the UK have been slow to invest in
semiconductors and photonics in Q1 2005, according to Ascendant,
the technology-focused corporate finance advisers.
Q1 saw only two deals completed, those for Plastic Logic
(£4.3m) and Frontier Silicon (£15m).
These two deals represented 20 per cent of all VC technology
investment in the UK and Ireland, which totalled £121m in the
first three months of the year, according to Ascendant.
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| Stuart McKnight |
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“For reasons only VCs can explain, the first quarter is
always slow. There were 15 and 16 investments in 2004 and 2003
respectively. This year the investment community has behaved in a
similar fashion,” said Stuart McKnight, managing director of
Ascendant.
After the slow start, there was a rash of deals done in April,
including Elixent (£8m), Icera (£5.3m), Intense Photonics
(£2.5m), Microstencil (£1m) and Quantum Filament
Technologies (£0.8m).
Ascendant remains hopeful that, for the first time in years, VCs
will increase the amount they commit to growing semiconductor and
photonics companies which last year totalled just £69m in the
UK and Ireland.
www.ascendant.ltd.uk