AGM STATEMENT

HarbourVest Global Priv. Equity Ltd

17 July 2024

 

17 July 2024

HVPE AGM STATEMENT

Positive outlook; Confident of distributions improving

HarbourVest Global Private Equity Limited ("HVPE" or the "Company"), a FTSE 250 investment company with global exposure to private companies, managed by HarbourVest Partners, announces a business update ahead of its Annual General Meeting (AGM) at 1:00PM today.

NAV remains resilient; Long-term outperformance of public markets

·    As announced on 24 June 2024, estimated NAV per share was $51.37 (£40.32); representing an increase of 3.4% in US dollar terms year to date¹

·    Introduction of a revised and expedited valuation process with respect to the HarbourVest funds, which improves the timeliness of NAV per share updates

·    Over the 10 years to 31 May 2024, HVPE delivered growth in NAV per share of 248%, while the FTSE All-World Total Return (FTSE AW TR) Index returned 137% (USD)

·    Reflects HVPE's proven investment strategy, the benefits of diversification and the quality of the underlying portfolio.

New and extended credit facility

·    In June, HVPE secured a new and extended revolving credit facility on highly competitive terms

·    Size increase from $800m to $1.2bn, providing additional working capital headroom and enabling greater flexibility in capital allocation decisions, to the benefit of shareholders.

Distribution pool and capital allocation update

·    Distribution Pool initiated 1 February 2024, ring fencing capital for shareholder distributions

·    Total amount of cash allocated to the Distribution Pool across the two calendar years 2024 and 2025 projected to be between $150m and $250m

·    As at 30 June 2024 the balance in the Distribution Pool was $40m. Contributions to the Pool since 1 February totalled $79.1m

·    Since the Board recommenced buybacks in June, HVPE has been active buying back shares on 19 out of 25 trading days²

·    Since share buybacks originally began in September 2022, 3.5m shares have been repurchased for a total consideration of $99m².

Positive outlook

·    Investment and macroeconomic environment continue to improve

·    Exits remains above the 12-month average, with IPOs and M&A activity expected to continue recovering through 2024.

¹ Financial year 31^st January 2024 estimated NAV per share to 31 May 2024 estimated NAV per share.

² As at 10^th July 2024.

Fully Independent Board

·    With effect from the July 2024 AGM, HVPE's Board will become fully independent of the Investment Manager when HarbourVest Managing Director Carolina Espinal steps down as a Director

·    The Company will continue to benefit from Carolina's extensive private equity investment experience as both Carolina Espinal and Richard Hickman joined HVPE's Investment Committee with effect from 1 February 2024.

Ed Warner, Chair of HVPE, said:

"The Board has made significant progress on a number of fronts over the past year, most notably the initiation of our Distribution Pool to improve future returns to shareholders. We are pleased that our Net Asset Value has remained resilient in challenging equity markets and the share price discount has started to narrow.  We hope this trend persists as shareholders benefit from the actions we have taken to optimise returns throughout the cycle.

We are confident that the environment in which we operate will continue to improve, with increasing exit activity and distribution levels as the year progresses."

The HVPE team is here to discuss any questions you may have, so please do not hesitate to contact Richard Hickman or Stephanie Hocking using the contact details below.

- ENDS -

LEI: X

Enquiries:

Shareholders
Richard Hickman	Tel: [phone]	[e-mail]
Stephanie Hocking	Tel: [phone]	[e-mail]
MHP
Tim Rowntree / Robert Collett-Creedy	Tel: [phone] Tel: [phone]	[e-mail]
Media HarbourVest Partners		[e-mail]

Notes to Editors:

About HarbourVest Global Private Equity Limited:

HarbourVest Global Private Equity Limited ("HVPE" or the "Company") is a Guernsey-incorporated, closed-end investment company which is listed on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 index. HVPE is designed to offer shareholders long-term capital appreciation by investing in a private equity portfolio diversified by geography, stage of investment, vintage year, and industry. The Company invests in and alongside HarbourVest-managed funds which focus on primary fund commitments, secondary investments and direct co-investments in operating companies. HVPE's investment manager is HarbourVest Advisers L.P., an affiliate of HarbourVest Partners, LLC, an independent, global private markets asset manager with over 40 years of experience.

About HarbourVest Partners, LLC:

HarbourVest is an independent, global private markets firm with 40 years of experience and more than $125 billion of assets under management as of December 31, 2023. Our interwoven platform provides clients access to global primary funds, secondary transactions, direct co-investments, real assets and infrastructure, and private credit. Our strengths extend across strategies, enabled by our team of more than 1,000 employees, including more than 230 investment professionals across Asia, Europe, and the Americas. Across our private markets platform, our team has committed more than $58 billion to newly-formed funds, completed over $50 billion in secondary purchases, and invested over $37 billion in directly operating companies. We partner strategically and plan our offerings innovatively to provide our clients with access, insight, and global opportunities. 

This announcement is for information purposes only and does not constitute or form part of any offer to issue or sell, or the solicitation of an offer to acquire, purchase or subscribe for, any securities in any jurisdiction and should not be relied upon in connection with any decision to subscribe for or acquire any Shares.  In particular, this announcement does not constitute or form part of any offer to issue or sell, or the solicitation of an offer to acquire, purchase or subscribe for, any securities in the United States or to US Persons (as defined in Regulation S under the US Securities Act of 1933, as amended ("US Persons")).  Neither this announcement nor any copy of it may be taken, released, published or distributed, directly or indirectly to US Persons or in or into the United States (including its territories and possessions), Canada, Australia or Japan, or any jurisdiction where such action would be unlawful. Accordingly, recipients represent that they are able to receive this announcement without contravention of any applicable legal or regulatory restrictions in the jurisdiction in which they reside or conduct business. No recipient may distribute, or make available, this announcement (directly or indirectly) to any other person. Recipients of this announcement should inform themselves about and observe any applicable legal requirements in their jurisdictions.

The Shares have not been and will not be registered under the US Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act") or with any securities regulatory authority of any state or other jurisdiction of the United States and, accordingly, may not be offered, sold, resold, transferred, delivered or distributed, directly or indirectly, within the United States or to US Persons.  In addition, the Company is not registered under the US Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "Investment Company Act") and shareholders of the Company will not have the protections of that act.  There will be no public offer of the Shares in the United States or to US Persons.

This announcement has been prepared by the Company and its investment manager, HarbourVest Advisers L.P. (the "Investment Manager"). No liability whatsoever (whether in negligence or otherwise) arising directly or indirectly from the use of this announcement is accepted and no representation, warranty or undertaking, express or implied, is or will be made by the Company, the Investment Manager or any of their respective directors, officers, employees, advisers, representatives or other agents ("Agents") for any information or any of the opinions contained herein or for any errors, omissions or misstatements. None of the Investment Manager nor any of their respective Agents makes or has been authorised to make any representation or warranties (express or implied) in relation to the Company or as to the truth, accuracy or completeness of this announcement, or any other written or oral statement provided. In particular, no representation or warranty is given as to the achievement or reasonableness of, and no reliance should be placed on any projections, targets, estimates or forecasts contained in this announcement and nothing in this announcement is or should be relied on as a promise or representation as to the future.

Other than as required by applicable laws, the Company gives no undertaking to update this announcement or any additional information, or to correct any inaccuracies in it which may become apparent and the distribution of this announcement. The information contained in this announcement is given at the date of its publication and is subject to updating, revision and amendment. The contents of this announcement have not been approved by any competent regulatory or supervisory authority.

This announcement includes statements that are, or may be deemed to be, "forward looking statements".  These forward looking statements can be identified by the use of forward looking terminology, including the terms "believes", "projects", "estimates", "anticipates", "expects", "intends", "plans", "goal", "target", "aim", "may", "will", "would", "could", "should" or "continue" or, in each case, their negative or other variations or comparable terminology. These forward looking statements include all matters that are not historical facts and include statements regarding the intentions, beliefs or current expectations of the Company.  By their nature, forward looking statements involve risks and uncertainties because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that may or may not occur in the future and may be beyond the Company's ability to control or predict. Forward looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. More detailed information on the potential factors which could affect the financial results of the Company is contained in the Company's public filings and reports.

All investments are subject to risk. Past performance is no guarantee of future returns. Prospective investors are advised to seek expert legal, financial, tax and other professional advice before making any investment decision. The value of investments may fluctuate. Results achieved in the past are no guarantee of future results.

This announcement is issued by the Company, whose registered address is BNP Paribas House, St Julian's Avenue, St Peter Port, Guernsey, GY1 1WA

© 2024 HarbourVest Global Private Equity Limited. All rights reserved.

 

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