Manchester-based VC firm Praetura Ventures has announced its first evergreen fund, the Praetura EIS Growth Fund, with an annual target of £30 million. The Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) is an HMRC-run investment scheme that’s designed to help early-stage, high-risk businesses raise capital by offering investors tax reliefs. Founded in 2011, the firm invests in British companies, focussing on its own region in the north of England. With soft closes twice a year, the new fund will go to early stage and seed investments as well as later stage rounds intended for scale. “Demand is particularly evident in the north of England, and there are some really exciting businesses in sectors as varied as artificial intelligence and healthtech that are looking for support,” said David Foreman, the firm’s managing director.
Praetura has closed two other EIS funds in as many years. The first one, EIS 2019, invested its total £15 million in seven months, and was shortly followed by the close of the £7 million EIS 2020 fund. The firm was the first to invest in AI startup Peak, which recently closed a £9.7 million Series A extension with Praetura at the helm.
Photo: Praetura Ventures managing director, David Foreman
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