Venture capital firm Movac has successfully raised $202m
for its latest venture capital fund, having secured NZ Super
Fund, Fisher Funds, Generate KiwiSaver and Government
Superannuation Fund as key institutional
investors.
This is alongside a number of iwi,
community trusts, family offices and individual investors.
Movac Growth Fund 6 is a $202m venture capital fund which
will provide growth funding to Kiwi technology companies
that have at least $2m in product revenue, coupled with the
ambition and potential to scale globally.
Mark Vivian,
Partner at Movac, comments “Raising capital is incredibly
challenging globally at the moment, for both funds and
companies, so I’m absolutely stoked to have raised a fund
of this scale. Our track record of returning cash to
investors across multiple funds over a number of years has
been a critical evaluation factor. This is underpinned by
our thorough due diligence process, disciplined investment
approach over many years and economic cycles, and the depth
of company support that we provide.”
“Whilst the
capital markets are fairly volatile at the moment it’s
worth noting that historically, venture capital funds
deployed by experienced managers in cycles like this have
had very strong investment returns. With our new fund, we
believe that we’re very well placed to help accelerate
high growth potential Kiwi tech companies across multiple
funding rounds, in order to fuel their
potential.”
The NZ Super Fund announced last
December it would commit up to $70 million to Growth Fund 6,
its third investment in a Movac fund.
Head of External
Investments and Partnerships Del Hart said the NZ Super Fund
was always looking for domestic investment opportunities
that are commercially attractive.
“New Zealand’s
technology sector has performed very strongly over the past
few years. Growth Fund 6 is set up to support local
technology businesses that are high growth, typically
www.movac.co.nz internationally focused, and who will
benefit from the management expertise and connections that
come from an experienced manager like Movac.”
Fisher
Funds Chief Investment Officer Ashley Gardyne says it is
excited to be investing in Growth Fund 6 on behalf of its
KiwiSaver clients.
“Movac is New Zealand’s leading
venture capital manager, with a strong investment track
record and a history helping successful New Zealand
companies like Vend and Unleashed Software succeed on the
global stage. With funding markets currently more
challenging for growth companies, we believe now is an
opportune time to be making this investment, as Movac seeks
to invest in New Zealand’s future success stories.
Investing in private growth companies in New Zealand has the
potential to deliver investment returns over and above
listed markets, while also supporting innovation and
creating high value domestic jobs.”
Generate
KiwiSaver Chief Investment Officer and Executive Director
Sam Goldwater said investing in Movac was a natural fit for
Generate’s first investment in the venture capital
space.
Movac has an enviable track record of venture
capital investment in New Zealand. We see our investment as
an investment in NZ Inc. as Movac employs the cash into the
next generation of Kiwi tech companies.”
Annuitas
Head of Equities and Alternatives, Peter McCaffrey, who
manages the private investments of the Government
Superannuation Fund, says the Movac investment provides
diversification away from the growth and buy-out focus of
the Fund’s New Zealand privates portfolio.
“We
have known Movac for some time and are excited to make our
first investment with them. Movac’s expertise in bringing
international connections to New Zealand technology
businesses is a win-win for both those companies and the
Fund.”
Additionally, Movac is also making excellent
progress raising its fourth early-stage fund, targeting Kiwi
deep tech companies that are pre-revenue or
early-revenue.
Movac Partner Mark Vivian comments
“With our success from making very early-stage investments
in the likes of PowerbyProxi, Aroa Biosurgery and
Greenbutton, our team has skills and experience of
supporting highly-disruptive deep tech companies who are
building solutions for massively valuable problems. We’re
bullish about the early-stage part of the Kiwi tech
ecosystem, and are enthused by the strong investor interest
we’ve had so far in Movac Emerge Fund
4.”
