Follow-on investment in Graphcore

RNS Number : 7522K

Draper Esprit PLC

18 December 2018

 

18 December 2018

Draper Esprit plc

("Draper Esprit"or the "Company")

Follow-on investment in Graphcore

Draper Esprit (AIM: GROW, ESM: GRW), a leading venture capital firm investing in and developing high growth digital technology businesses, today announces a further $12 million (£9 million) investment in Graphcore as part of a $200m series D funding round, valuing Graphcore at $1.7 billion. Other strategic investors in the round include Microsoft and BMW.

As a result of the valuation at which this latest funding round was completed, the Fair Value of the Company's investment in Graphcore has increased Net Asset Value (NAV) per share by approximately 29p.*

Graphcore has built a completely new kind of processor and software specifically designed for machine intelligence. It has generated its first revenues this year, just two years after the company was founded. Headquartered in Bristol (UK), with offices in London (UK), Oslo (Norway), Palo Alto (USA) and Beijing (China), Graphcore has raised over $300m in funding to date.

Graphcore is currently in a stage of rapid growth and has tripled the size of its team during 2018. This rate of growth is expected to accelerate significantly driven by the new investment. The series D funding round is a further step towards fulfilling Graphcore's ambition to build a major European technology company, focused on the new and fast-growing machine intelligence market.

The uplift in NAV per share is in addition to the previously announced approximate 9p per share uplift from the secondary acquisition of DFJ Europe X. Here the Company increased its stake in existing core portfolio companies, including Trustpilot, Graze, Sports Pursuit, M-Files, and Lyst. Since Sept 30^th 2018, the NAV has increased by approximately 38p per share, with the implied NAV rising from 454p to 492p per share (Hard NAV 444p to 482p per share).**

Simon Cook, CEO at Draper Esprit, commented:

"We're thrilled to have been able to support Graphcore from seed stage through to this major new series D growth round. Graphcore is a stellar example of Draper Esprit's evergreen model, providing capital throughout the growth cycle of some of the most exciting tech companies and helping them grow into world-leading global companies."

*NAV: The value, at any date, of the assets of the Company after deduction of all liabilities determined in accordance with the accounting policies adopted by the Company from time to time.

**Hard NAV: The value, at any date, of the assets of the Company after deduction of goodwill, and all liabilities determined in accordance with the accounting policies adopted by the Company from time to time.

*ENDS*

For further information, please contact:

Draper Esprit plc Simon Cook (Chief Executive Officer) Ben Wilkinson (Chief Financial Officer)	[phone]
Numis Securities Nominated Adviser & Joint Broker Richard Thomas Jamie Loughborough	[phone]
Goodbody Stockbrokers ESM Adviser & Joint Broker Don Harrington Charlotte Craigie	[phone]
MHP Communications (PR) Reg Hoare Pete Lambie Flo Mayo	[phone]

About Draper Esprit

Draper Esprit is one of the most active venture capital firms in Europe, helping to build and invest in disruptive, high growth technology companies. We believe the best entrepreneurs in Europe are capable of building the global businesses of the future, by partnering with the global Draper Venture Network with VC funds in 22 countries. We fuel their growth with long- term capital, access to international networks and decades of experience building businesses.  Draper Esprit's portfolio includes global technology leaders such as Trustpilot, Ledger, Perkbox, Revolut, and Graphcore.  Recent successful exits include Grapeshot, Clavis Insight, Tails.com, and Movidius. Visit www.draperesprit.com

 

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