The Scotland and Northern Ireland team of BGF, a growth capital investor, reported strong investment activity through 2024, investing close to £50m and announcing three successful exits.
As well as new investment and follow-on activity BGF announced the successful exits of Kick ICT, Keenan Recycling and AFG media – best known for Morphsuits.
New Scottish investments last year include: Sulmara, a leading provider of survey and inspection services to the offshore wind and energy markets; alongside significant investments in Glasgow-headquartered renewables business Glacier Energy; and EV charging specialist Trojan Energy. BGF also completed a minority investment to facilitate the acquisition of Dundee-based JTC Furniture by Woodland Kitchens Group.
In 2024, BGF continued supporting its portfolio companies with their growth journeys by encouraging the appointment of key senior figures and non-exec talent, facilitating acquisitions, as well as providing direct working capital and strengthening balance sheets.
Follow-on investments last year offered further opportunities for growth across the Scottish portfolio, including Forres-headquartered Orbex, Europe’s leading orbital launch services company. Further capital was deployed to Edinburgh-based Hyble, a provider of marketing technology to the global drinks and hospitality sector, to support continued growth into the US.
On the back of continued positive activity, the BGF Scotland team expanded with the hiring of Gregor Steedman as investor and Michael Berger to the portfolio team.
Paddy Graham, Regional Partner at BGF, said: “We’ve continued to back a variety of businesses across several sectors in 2024, all of which are driven by exceptional management teams. Positive exits have continued alongside new deal activity which is testament to the strength and quality of our portfolio.
“Due to the ongoing high level of deal activity, and BGF’s continued focus on growing its presence across Scotland, we have invested further in the Scottish team with the addition of two new team members. This provides us with a strong platform to continue to deliver on our goal of supporting Scottish business to fulfil their growth potential.”
More broadly, it has been a significant year for BGF across the UK and Ireland, as it reached a milestone of £4 billion invested since its inception in 2011. During this period, £400m has been invested in Scotland’s business landscape to foster the growth of ambitious SMEs, reaching from Edinburgh to Inverness.
BGF also joined forces with other major investors and committed £25m to the Invest in Women Taskforce, which has secured £250m of funding to support female entrepreneurs and female-led businesses across the UK.
