More than £3 million has been invested into 13 Northern Ireland companies by Co-Fund III in the first year since the co-investment fund was launched last December, according to new figures released today.
A key part of Invest Northern Ireland’s Access to Finance suite of loan and equity funds, Co-Fund III is a £39m equity investment fund managed by Clarendon Fund Managers which invests in SME businesses alongside private investors and business angels.
The first-year total of £3.1m invested by Co-Fund III has been matched by £5.4m of private investment, with an additional £1.9m of leveraged funding. The fund makes equity investments of between £150,000 and £500,000 in high-growth businesses and to date, 16 investments have been completed in 13 local SMEs across various sectors, including health sciences, fintech and agriculture.
Among the companies that have received investment, four are female-founded businesses – representing 31% of the total investment portfolio this year alone. It is expected that Co-Fund III will invest in approximately 65 companies over a 10-year period, with average initial investments set at around £250,000. One recipient of funding was Senergy Innovations, a female -founded, Carryduff-based company that specialises in the design, supply and installation of complete solar thermal hot water solutions to homes and businesses.
The company’s innovative Sentherm conductive polymers have tailored filler networks and anisotropic material design and manufacturing process control that achieve hybrid polymers for EVs, batteries and automotive related electronics with 95% of aluminium’s thermal performance and 25-45% reduced component weight.
Senergy received funding of £500,000 from Co-Fund III, as part of a £1.25m round, which has been used by the business to increase sales of their solar solution, build out the team and develop new products for the automotive market. Co-Fund NI invests alongside private investors, including business angels, investment syndicates, venture capital funds, universities, and corporate investors. Co-Fund NI provides up to 50% of an equity investment round alongside a minimum of 50% from private investors, on a deal-by-deal basis, typically investing around 35% of an investment round.
Kathryn Hill, Chief Operating Officer, Invest NI said: “The response to Co-Fund III has been very positive. A combined investment of over £10m in the first year is very encouraging and a strong endorsement of our local companies. The range and spread of businesses receiving investment is also good to see and will support our ambition to see more local high-growth businesses succeed.”
Claudine Owens from Clarendon Fund Managers, said: “We are proud to mark the first anniversary since the launch of Co-Fund III in December 2024. As the third iteration of the Co-Fund suite of investment funds launched as part of Invest NI’s Access to Finance initiative, the figures we are reporting today reflect the quality of local SME businesses here and their strong demand for funding for growth.
“Investment in high growth SMEs across Northern Ireland is key to unlocking further opportunities for the local economy and we are helping some of the region’s best entrepreneurs to realise their ambitions. Co-Fund III has got off to the very positive start.
“Clarendon is pleased to be the manager of Co-Fund NI’s entire equity investment fund portfolio and has supported investments in over 100 investee companies to date since the first iteration of Co-Fund was launched in 2012.”
Clarendon managed the first two Co-Fund NI funds and has invested £51m in 102 investee companies across more than 350 investment rounds. This funding was matched by £113m from private investors, bringing the total direct investment into Co-Fund NI companies to £164m. Portfolio companies have secured an additional £210m in funding, bringing the total raised by these local businesses to £374m throughout their growth journeys.