The Symvan Technology EIS Fund is an unapproved Alternative Investment Fund established as a discretionary managed portfolio service, focused on investing in a portfolio of technology companies across a variety of business areas. The target return is £2.85 for each £1 invested in five or more years. There is no income target.

The report goes into details of how the investment process works, sourcing and decision-making, exit strategies, post-investment governance and monitoring, fees and more. It also includes Hardman & Co’s unique fee calculation table, allowing advisors and investors to properly investigate their effect.

Why Invest

Positives

• Strategy:  To invest in a portfolio of technology companies, with an emphasis on B2B SaaS using a Lifecycle investment approach.

Issues

• Track record:  With Symvan only having been invested since 2015, there are a limited number of exits to date.

The Investment Manager

Positives

• Team:  Symvan brings a team with strong corporate finance and investment experience, supported by advisers with technical knowledge.

Issues

• Team size: The investment team size is small, although adequate for its current level of activity.

Nuts & bolts

• Investing: Deployments take place on a quarterly basis, with interim deployments on an ad-hoc basis.
• Diversification: Portfolio of between eight and twelve companies.
• Valuation:  Will be a mixture of last transaction price and a market valuation based on enterprise value and relevant multiples.

Fees

• Fees: All fees charged to the investee companies, with the exception of the performance fee.
• Performance fee: 20% on gains over a return of total capital invested.

Risks

• Risk mitigation: Symvan’s Lifecyle approach aims to mitigate risk by looking to support a company from md-seed to Series A, including direct-company and board support, mapping out and planning its funding requirements and strengthening management teams.
• Target return:  The target return for the fund is £2.85 for each gross £1 invested over five to seven years. Successful companies are likely to yield a return in excess of that figure; however, there is a real risk of loss in any single investment.