Preliminary Results

RNS Number : 2188J

Spark Ventures PLC

28 June 2011

 



SPARK Ventures plc

Preliminary Announcement of Unaudited Annual Results for the year ended 31 March 2011

SPARK Ventures plc ('SPARK' or the 'Company'), the investor in early stage digital information and technology companies, is pleased to announce its preliminary results for the year ended 31 March 2011.

Highlights

·     Net asset value per share increased by 23% to 14.5p at 31 March 2011 from 11.8p at 31 March 2010  (after the 2010 published NAV is adjusted for the 1p per share shareholder return in September 2010) and is up by 37% since October 2009 (date of MBO).

·     £4.1m (1p per share) returned to shareholders in the year and intention to distribute a further £4.1m (1p per share) in the autumn subject to shareholder approval.

·     £3.1m received after the balance sheet date from selling part of SPARK's stake in Mindcandy - generating an IRR of 71% to date and a 15x return on cost.

·     Mindcandy valuation increases by 733% in the year - from £0.72m to £6m - following the sale of shares to a third party.

·     £11.0m profit for the year (2009: £2.3m), an increase of 369%, principally due to unrealised investment revaluations for IMImobile and Mindcandy.

·     SPARK's stake in IMImobile increased in value by £7.8m from £15.1m to £22.9m on the basis of strong trading and the provision of a loan facility, net of repayments, of £1.4m.

·     Key asset, IMImobile, records revenue growth of 27% over the prior year for the year to March 2011 to US$ 33.6 million, (excluding growth from the WIN acquisition) on top of 28% growth over the year before.

·     The majority of SPARK's key investments were cash flow positive during the period, and have had positive valuation movements during the year.

·     Kobalt revenue growth of 20% year on year for the nine months to March 2011 with expected revenues around £55m for the full year to June 2011; NPS up 24% for the same period and renewal rates continuing at 98%.

For further information, please contact:

Andrew Betton / David Potter

SPARK Ventures plc

Tel: [phone]

Matt Goode / Seb Jones

Collins Stewart

Tel: [phone]

Chairman's statement

Dear Shareholder,

We are now approaching the halfway point of our five year divestment of the portfolio. I am glad to say that we are making considerable progress both in terms of disposals, preparations for exits and in increases in the value of the remaining portfolio.

When we embarked on this process in the summer of 2009 the portfolio was worth £37.3m (31 March 2009 audited valuation) and we had never paid a dividend. In the following two years we have returned £12.3m to shareholders and the residual portfolio has risen in value to £51.9m. I believe I can confidently say that the strategy and structure we embarked upon has served shareholders well.

As you will see from the manager's report, we have four substantial investments, IMI, Kobalt, Mindcandy and NotOnTheHighStreet.Com. I am very pleased to say that all four companies are doing well and increases in value in both IMI and Mindcandy have been the major contributors to the profit reported in the period of £11.0m compared with £2.3m in the prior year.

We have had a partial realisation from MindCandy after the year end and have also recovered deferred consideration from the sale of IMI Engineering which will enable the Board to propose a further 1p capital repayment / dividend at the forthcoming Annual General Meeting, a return to shareholders of a further £4.1m.

Whilst the Board (like that of many small companies) is disappointed by the low share price and discount to Net Asset Value ("NAV"), currently some 50%, we feel that since the shareholders voted to realise the portfolio most of you will be content with the position of waiting for the results of the investment realisations over the next 3 years. The Board has not therefore proposed any further share buy backs or other measures to narrow the discount.

We remain convinced that the team at our manager, SVMH, has the appropriate knowledge and experience to manage the portfolio and they continue to enjoy our full support. Additionally, because their incentive scheme is based on cash returned to shareholders, they are incentivised to reduce our cost base - the significant reduction in our operating loss indicates that they are doing so. I would like to remind shareholders that our portfolio includes a 30% interest in SVMH and so will be pleased to know that in the last year SVMH has acquired the management contract for a £25m regional development fund in North West England and has signed heads of terms for a Chinese regional fund of a similar size. SVMH has also announced the launch of The Black Sheep EIS Fund for early stage technology and brand investment jointly with BBH, a leading advertising agency. However SVMH no longer manages VCT funds, which will reduce fee income in future periods.

I would like to thank all our stakeholders for their continued support.

Yours faithfully

David Potter, Chairman

28 June 2011

 

Investment Manager's Report

Introduction

We are pleased to report that the Group has made a profit for the period on continuing operations of £11.0m compared with £2.3m in the previous year. This profit is due to net unrealised investment valuation gains of £12.8m being considerably higher than the Group's operating loss of £1.9m. Net Asset Value ("NAV") per share has risen in the period from 12.8p to 14.5p despite paying out 1p per share in the shareholder return approved at the AGM on 22 September 2010. After adjusting for the 1p per share return, NAV per share has risen by 23% in the year and by 37% over the eighteen months following completion of the externalisation of the investment management team in October 2009.

Portfolio valuation performance

In the year to 31 March 2011 the Group has made net unrealised gains of £12.8m. £6.4m of this gain arose from an increase in the valuation of the Group's stake in IMImobile ("IMI"), £5.3m arose from an increase in the valuation of the Group's stake in Mindcandy, £1.2m arose from an increase in the valuation of the Group's stake in OpenX and a net £0.1m reduction arose from seven other valuation changes. Disposals in the period were of Complinet in June 2010 for £3.2m and a partial disposal of Notonthehighstreet.com raising £1m of proceeds for SPARK. Both of these disposals were covered in the 2010 Annual Report of SPARK and were reflected in the 31 March 2010 valuations hence there is no gain/loss in the year. Of the 18 portfolio companies existing at 31 March 2010, six have been valued upwards, four have been valued downwards, one was sold (Complinet) with the rest unchanged except for changes in SPARK's valuation arising from additions or disposals. Only three (IMI, Gambling Compliance and mydeco.com) have received further funding whilst one (DEM Solutions) repaid debt and IMI repaid £1.1m of the £2.5m advanced by SPARK to help fund the acquisition of WIN plc.

With the increases in value reported for IMI and Mindcandy the top 5 investments (IMI, Kobalt, Notonthehighstreet.com, Mindcandy & OpenX) now represent 84% of the portfolio by value compared with 79% for the then top 5 at 31 March 2010. Progress made in the nine portfolio companies valued at £1m or more follows:

IMImobile

IMImobile ('IMI') provides the core technology infrastructure for value-added mobile data, voice and video services to mobile operators, media companies and enterprises. IMI's DaVinci Platform™ powers a wide range of services created, delivered and managed by the group which enhance operator revenues including: social network aggregation, contact management, mobile advertising, mobile marketing, messaging, storefronts, ring back tones and digital music services.

The valuation of IMI has increased in the year by £7.8m from £15.1m to £22.9m. £1.4m of this uplift represents the balance remaining of the £2.5m secured loan provided by SPARK to IMI to help fund the acquisition of WIN plc. £4.0m of the valuation growth relates to the inclusion of IMI's acquisition of WIN (at cost) in the business valuation less the debt issued to part finance this, with the remaining £2.4m of the increase in value due to growth in IMI's earnings. Full year revenues (excluding WIN) to March 2011 are up by 27% and EBITDA is up by 96% compared with the same period in 2010. This earnings growth has then been applied to a PE ratio (20) consistent with that used in the 2010 Annual Report.

IMI completed the 100% acquisition of WIN plc (an AIM listed UK based Mobile Telecoms Service Provider) in October. The strategic rationale for the acquisition is to combine IMI's core strengths in its technology and product offering with WIN's relationships with Tier 1 European telecoms operators and leading UK corporates. The combined group has over 600 employees with offices in Hyderabad, Dubai, Kuala Lumpur, Athens, Panama and Miami and provides services to over 100 operator and blue-chip enterprise customers.

The purchase price of the acquisition (including related costs) of approximately £17m was primarily funded by IMI from banking facilities and a $13m equity investment from FirstMark Capital and Sequoia Capital. As a result of the capital return strategy SPARK did not participate in the equity financing but provided a £2.5m loan which is repayable over 18 months with a coupon of 10% up to December 2010 and 12% thereafter.  As at 28 June 2011 SPARK has received eleven monthly instalments as planned totalling £1.5m leaving £1.0m outstanding.

Kobalt Music

Kobalt is the world's leading independent music publisher offering global copyright administration to music writers, publishers and other rights holders. It uses internally developed unique technology built in house since 2001 which significantly boosts royalty collection timing and amounts. It is headquartered in London but now has a substantial US presence with offices in New York, LA, and Nashville and employs almost 100 people worldwide.

Since the 2008 funding round Kobalt's revenues have grown from £13m in the year ended 30 June 2007 to £48.7m in the year to June 2010 and are on target to significantly exceed that in the current year. We have not changed the valuation of £7.3m in the period. In December 2010, SPARK's convertible loan converted into equity at the price set in the previous funding round in January 2008. Over the same period Net Publisher Share has grown from £1.6m to £5.4m - an annualised growth rate of 50% over the three year period.

Client renewals remain very high at 98%. The music publishing business has continued to grow revenues and Kobalt has been taking a larger share of this market, helped in part by securing talented people from the major music publishers that are suffering from ownership uncertainties. In the most recent music publishers market share statistics (Q1 2011) published by BillBoard, Kobalt had a 12.9% share of the US airplay chart (ahead of Sony, and within half a percent of both Warner and Universal). Kobalt also reported a 6.6% share of the German music publishing market for calendar year 2010. Kobalt retained its crown as the largest UK independent music publisher for a fourth consecutive year.

Notonthehighstreet.com

Notonthehighstreet.com is an internet marketplace for almost 2,000 smaller specialised UK based businesses creating unique products. Unlike most online retailers, Notonthehighstreet.com holds no stock. Notonthehighstreet.com is based in London and employs over 50 people.

The company's performance has been strong enough to avoid possible dilution under the terms of the last funding round so we have increased SPARK's valuation of its stake in the business.

As reported last year, Notonthehighstreet.com secured £7.5m of funding from venture capital investors - Index Ventures and Greylock and SPARK sold some existing shares to these new investors, which had the effect of reducing SPARK's aggregate valuation by £1m and realising £1m of cash.

Notonthehighstreet.com has maintained its impressive growth in 2010 with top-line sales values for the year to December being 131% up on the previous year and beating their own demanding targets.

Mindcandy

Mindcandy has become one of the world's leading developers of social multi-player children's games, helping children around the world to play skill enhancing games and connect with each other safely. Mindcandy is headquartered in London and has around 100 staff including freelancers.

We have increased our valuation of Mindcandy from £0.7m at 31 March 2010 to £6.0m at the year end. This £6m value is derived from the $200m enterprise value a new investor has paid to buy 50% of SPARK's stake and therefore represents a third party valuation. Previously SPARK valued the  business according to a sales multiple.

Moshimonsters (the main product of Mindcandy) has continued its phenomenal growth in the last six months. It now has over 50m registered users worldwide, has successfully launched the sale of physical monsters and launched the Moshimonsters' magazine - becoming the best selling children's magazine in the UK with its first issue. It has a significant American and international client base. The business is profitable and has many more exciting initiatives launching soon.

OpenX

OpenX is a business based on an open source ad-serving platform. It is headquartered in California and employs over 90 staff. The investment in OpenX was originally acquired when the business was spun out of Unanimis in late 2007.

The valuation of £2.5m for SPARK's stake has been increased from £1.3m at 31 March 2010 on the back of the business recently concluding a $20m funding round with SAP Ventures and other investors.

The company's strong financial performance has continued with trailing 12 month revenues roughly three times that of the equivalent period twelve months ago. The business has recently had its first profitable month and is on target to be profitable in its current financial year.

Firebox.com

Firebox is a retail website selling the latest gadgets, toys and games. Firebox is based in London and employs around 60 staff.

We have reduced the valuation of SPARK's stake in Firebox at the level reported for March 2010 (£1.85m) by a small amount to £1.80m. This is due to earnings being substantially below that reported for the previous year due to several one-off factors, despite the company recording record sales (£14.5m for year to January 2011 - 14% ahead of prior year). The Firebox valuation methodology is primarily earnings based but this year, for the first time, we have also recognised Firebox's valuable stake in Mindcandy in coming to our view of the valuation for the whole of the business.

DEM Solutions

DEM is a leading provider of particle simulation (or discrete element modelling) software for simulating and analysing industrial processes. DEM is based in Scotland and employs 20 staff.

The valuation continues to be held at cost but this level is supported by a relatively low business valuation given SPARK's preferred position in the capital structure. Recent financial performance has been very encouraging. The company is beating its revenue and profits forecasts with revenues for the ten months to April 2011 being ahead of the ambitious 19% growth budgeted for the full year.

A loan made in June 2009 to bridge the company through to profitability has been fully repaid now that the company is consistently profitable.

Gambling Compliance

Gambling Compliance provides critical regulatory, legal and market analysis to the gaming industry. It is based in London and employs 30 staff.

We have increased the valuation of SPARK's share in the business to £1.4m as a result of the cash invested in the first half of the year and as a result of the growth in the company's sales. The business is valued on a sales multiple and sales for the year to March 2011 were approximately 20% ahead of the previous year.

Aspex

Aspex is a UK based (High Wycombe) fabless semiconductor chip company and employs 22 staff.

Aspex has been under contract with a major global infrastructure vendor since February 2009 to produce a custom chip and has all its operating costs covered under this contract for as long as milestones towards the successful delivery are met. All targets were hit up to June 2010. Since then some milestones have been delayed by third party suppliers, but not to the extent that the contract has been breached. Significantly, the delivery of a working device now looks likely to happen shortly (Q3 2011) as early test results have been encouraging and acceptance tests with the customer are expected to take place in the autumn.  If the chip is accepted, this will be the earliest likely trigger point for the customer to exercise its option to buy the business. The customer has until the end of 2012 to exercise its option.

SPARK's valuation is at impaired cost and represents the estimated recoverable amount reflecting the risks of both the production of a very complex chip and the uncertainties around the exercise of the option. A successful outcome is likely to be a multiple of the current value.

Capital return and cash balances

During the year to March, SPARK received cash of £3.2m from the sale of Complinet and £1m from the partial sale of Notonthehighstreet. With these receipts, SPARK was able to declare a shareholder return of 1p per share at the AGM on 22 September 2010. This return gave shareholders the choice of receiving income or capital. The Capital return of £1.85m was made in September 2010 with the dividend on the C shares of £2.27m following in October 2010. The process chosen to return cash has been welcomed by shareholders but it does incur considerable professional fees so it is not likely that this process will be carried out more than once a year. At the time of writing the Board is considering decoupling the shareholder return process from the AGM to avoid a possible rush to get the capital return meeting in ahead of the 30 September deadline for the AGM. If the Annual General Meeting planned for early September does not cover the capital return process, a separate General Meeting to approve the proposed return of £4.1m cash to shareholders will be called in due course, probably in late September or in October 2011.

At the time of the change in strategic direction approved by SPARK shareholders in August 2009, £6m of cash balances were retained by the Company specifically to support the existing portfolio as and when required. As at 31 March 2011, £3.3m of this £6m had been utilised with £1.1m of this amount repaid by IMI. It is important for the protection of shareholder interests that SPARK maintains sufficient cash reserves to support its portfolio to ensure that ultimate realisation proceeds are maximised.

Operations

The income statement presented is the first one since the MBO to show a full year of operations under the new arrangements. Operating losses of £1.9m have decreased over that reported for the year to March 2010 (£2.9m) but this is mainly due to the absence of high professional fees from the group re-organisation in the prior year. The performance of the serviced office has improved following a recovery in occupancy rates and the Company has secured an agreement with the landlord that rental costs can not rise again during the remaining period of the lease to 2014. We remain focussed on delivering the Board's wish to minimise operating costs.

Conclusion

We believe that the results presented here demonstrate substantial progress in the SPARK portfolio and in the strategic decisions approved by Spark shareholders in 2009.

Shareholders have already received 3p per share in cash returned to them since the change of strategy was implemented, and it is the Board's intention to return a further 1p per share this autumn. After this, shareholders will hold shares underpinned by net assets currently representing a further 13.5p. Yet at the time of writing the share price is hovering around the 7p mark - a discount in excess of 50% to the current NAV.

Furthermore we remain confident that there is significant value to be gained from holding the portfolio to maturity and that the portfolio as a whole is conservatively valued.

Spark Venture Management Limited

28 June 2011

Group statement of comprehensive income

Year ended 31 March 2011

	Year ended 31 March 2011		Year ended 31 March 2010
	£'000		£'000
	Unaudited		Audited
Continuing operations
Gains/(losses) on investments at fair value through profit and loss
- Realised gains and (losses)	49		(804)
- Net unrealised gains -  note 2	12,806		6,271
	12,855		5,467
Revenue
Bank interest receivable	201		144
Management fee income	1,175		634
Portfolio dividends and interest	27		17
Other income	1,312		1,103
	2,715		1,898
Administrative expenses
Salaries and other staff costs	(208)		(301)
Depreciation of property, plant and equipment	(90)		(99)
Amortisation and impairment of other intangible assets	(360)		(485)
Other costs -  note 3	(3,916)		(3,912)
Total administrative expenses	(4,574)		(4,797)
Profit before taxation	10,996		2,568
Taxation	-		(47)
Profit for the financial year from continuing operations	10,996		2,521
Loss for the year from discontinued operations	-		(178)
Profit and total comprehensive income for the year	10,996		2,343
Attributable to:
- Equity shareholders of the parent	10,996		2,343

 

Group statement of financial position

As at 31 March 2011

	Year ended 31 March 2011		Year ended 31 March 2010
	£'000		£'000
	Unaudited		Audited
Non-current assets
Property, plant and equipment	262		352
Investments at fair value through profit and loss (note 2)	51,875		41,799
Deferred consideration	-		1,133
Intangible assets	360		720
Restricted cash	2,035		2,035
	54,532		46,039
Current Assets
Trade and other receivables	773		959
Deferred consideration	351		-
Cash and cash equivalents	4,742		6,725
	5,866		7,684
Total assets	60,398		53,723
Current liabilities
Trade and other payables	(1,020)		(1,215)
	(1,020)		(1,215)
Net current assets	4,846		6,469
Net assets	59,378		52,508
Equity
Issued capital	2,035		6,857
Share premium	9		9
Revenue reserve	47,716		40,846
Capital Redemption Reserve	9,793		4,971
Own shares	(175)		(175)
Total equity attributable to shareholders of the parent	59,378		52,508
	Number		Number
	'000		'000
Ordinary shares in issue	450,000		450,000
Shares held in Treasury	(39,245)		(39,245)
Shares held by Employee Benefit Trust	(918)		(918)
Shares in issue for net asset value per share calculation	409,837		409,837
NAV per share (p)	14.49		12.81

Statement of changes in equity

Year ended 31 March 2011

	D shares	C Shares/ Deferred shares	B shares	Ordinary share capital	Share Premium	Revenue Reserve	Capital Redemption reserve	Own shares	Total equity
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Balance at 1 April 2009	-	-	-	11,250	26,486	20,802	568	(175)	58,931
Profit for the year	-	-	-	-	-	2,343	-	-	2,343
Share based payments	-	-	-	-	-	(570)	-	-	(570)
Share split into B & C shares	-	4,597	3,618	(9,000)	-	-	785	-	-
Share buy-backs	-	-	(3,618)	-	-	-	-	-	(3,618)
Transfer to capital redemption reserve	-	-	-	-	-	(3,618)	3,618	-	-
Dividend	-	-	-	-	-	(4,597)	-	-	(4,597)
Reduction of share premium	-	-	-	-	(26,486)	26,486	-	-	-
Issue of D shares	10	-	-	-	9	-	-	-	19
Balance at 31 March 2010	10	4,597	-	2,250	9	40,846	4,971	(175)	52,508
Profit for the year	-	-	-	-	-	10,996	-	-	10,996
New B & C shares issued - 2010	-	133	92	(225)	-	-	-	-	-
Share buy-backs - 2010 B Shares	-	-	(92)	-	-	(1,853)	92	-	(1,853)
Dividend - 2010 C shares	-	-	-	-	-	(2,273)	-	-	(2,273)
Cancellation of deferred C Shares	-	(4,730)	-	-	-	-	4,730	-	-
Balance at 31 March 2011	10	-	-	2,025	9	47,716	9,793	(175)	59,378

SPARK Ventures plc holds 39,245,220 shares in treasury. The cost of purchasing these shares (£5.076m) has been offset against the revenue reserve. No shares have been purchased for Treasury in either the current or prior years.

The figures for the year ended 31 March 2011 presented above are unaudited.

There are no other items of comprehensive income other than profit for the year as recorded in the Group Statement of Comprehensive Income.

 

Group statement of cash flows

Year ended 31 March 2011

	Year ended 31 March 2011		Year ended 31 March 2010
	£'000		£'000
	Unaudited		Audited
Cash flows from operating activities
Cash flow from operations	(1,444)		(2,230)
Tax (paid)/received	-		-
Net cash outflow from operating activities	(1,444)		(2,230)
Cash flows from investing activities
Purchase of property, plant and equipment	-		(12)
Disposal of subsidiary	-		800
Purchase of financial investments	(2,691)		(1,125)
Sale of financial investments	5,471		1,901
Receipt of deferred consideration	807		-
Release of restricted cash	-		1,164
Net cash inflow from investing activities	3,587		2,728
Cash flows from financing activities
Dividend paid (C shares)	(2,273)		(4,597)
Share buy-backs (B shares)	(1,853)		(3,618)
Issue of D shares	-		19
Net cash outflow from financing activities	(4,126)		(8,196)
Change in cash and cash equivalents	(1,983)		(7,698)
Opening cash and cash equivalents	6,725		14,423
Closing cash and cash equivalents	4,742		6,725

Reconciliation of operating income to net cash outflow from operating activities

	Year ended 31 March 2011		Year ended 31 March 2010
	£'000		£'000
	Unaudited		Audited
Interest received	201		144
Dividends received	27		17
Other revenue	2,487		1,737
Total revenue	2,715		1,898
Administrative expenses	(4,574)		(4,797)
Operating loss	(1,859)		(2,899)
Profit on discontinued operations	-		622
	(1,859)		(2,277)
Decrease in trade and other receivables	160		1,152
Decrease in trade and other trade payables	(195)		(1,444)
Depreciation of property, plant and equipment	90		99
Amortisation/impairment of other intangible assets	360		810
Share based payment	-		(570)
Net cash outflow from operations	(1,444)		(2,230)

Notes

1.   Basis of preparation

SPARK Ventures plc is a company incorporated in the UK under the Companies Act 1985. The information for the year ended 31st March 2011 and 31st March 2010 does not constitute statutory accounts for the purposes of section 435 of the Companies Act 2006, but is derived from and has been prepared on the same basis as those financial statements.

Statutory accounts for the year ended 31st March 2010, which were prepared under International Financial Reporting Standards, have been delivered to the Registrar of Companies. The auditors' report on those accounts was not qualified and did not contain statements under section 498 (2) or (3) of the Companies Act 2006.

Whilst the financial information included in this unaudited preliminary announcement has been computed in accordance with IFRS, this unaudited preliminary announcement does not itself contain sufficient information to comply with IFRS. The audit of the statutory accounts for the year ended 31 March 2011 is not yet complete. These accounts will be finalised on the basis of the financial information presented by the directors in this unaudited preliminary announcement and will be delivered to the Registrar of Companies following the Company's Annual General Meeting. This unaudited preliminary announcement was approved by the Board on 28 June 2011 for release. This unaudited preliminary announcement has also been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in the 2010 Annual Report and Accounts. There have been no changes in accounting policies since the 2010 Annual Report was published.

The group's business activities, together with the factors likely to affect its future development, performance and position are set out in the Investment Manager's Report. In assessing the group as a going concern, the directors' have considered the forecasts which reflect the directors proposed strategy for portfolio investments and the current uncertain economic outlook. The group's forecasts and projections, taking into account reasonably possible changes in performance, show that the group is able to operate within its available working capital.

After making enquiries, the directors have a reasonable expectation that the company and group have sufficient funds to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Accordingly, they continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the annual report and accounts.

2.   Investments at fair value through profit and loss

Portfolio company name	Value at 31/03/10	Additions	Disposals / Repayments	Revaluations	Value at 31/03/11
	Audited	Unaudited	Unaudited	Unaudited	Unaudited
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
IMI Mobile	15,100	2,500	(1,111)	6,400	22,889
Kobalt Music	7,306	-	-	-	7,306
Mindcandy	720	-	-	5,280	6,000
Notonthehighst	5,600	-	(1,000)	143	4,743
OpenX	1,300	-	-	1,200	2,500
Firebox	1,850	-	-	(50)	1,800
DEM Solutions	1,860	-	(138)	-	1,722
Gambling Compliance	1,250	84	-	83	1,417
Aspex	1,000	-	-	-	1,000
Academia	666	-	-	-	666
MBlox	250	-	-	250	500
				-
Other < £500k	1,725	107	-	(500)	1,332
Investments sold during the year (Complinet)	3,172	-	(3,172)	-	-
	41,799	2,691	(5,421)	12,806	51,875

3. Other expenses

	Year ended 31 March 2011	Year ended 31 March 2010
	£'000	£'000
	Unaudited	Audited
Property costs	1,679	1,772
Professional fees	391	436
Professional fees in connection with MBO, return of capital and corporate finance advice	-	535
Management fee of Quester Venture Partnership	881	456
Management and secretarial fees of SPARK Ventures plc	725	258
Other general overheads	240	455
	3,916	3,912

The management fees in the prior period were for the period 9 October 2009 to 31March 2010 whereas those for the year to 31 March 2011 are for a full year.

 

END

 

 

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