Woodford gets £800m to fund venture capital
ONCE you’ve raised one record-breaking fund what do you do next? If you’re fund manager Neil Woodford: you raise another.
The fund boss yesterday completed the largest ever UK fundraise for an investment trust on a nominal basis, according to AIC figures, after capturing £800m for a listed fund to make venture capital investments.
The launch comes on the back of Woodford’s flagship income fund, which attracted £1.6bn from retail investors – a record haul for a mutual fund initial offer period.
The new trust, Woodford Patient Capital, was forced to increase the amount from the original target of £200m after high levels of demand.
The trust will trade on London’s main market. Winterfloods is handling the deal.
Woodford’s launch is the biggest in nominal terms but others surpass in real terms. The largest is the Mercury European Privatisation Trust, which raised £549m in 1994, or £999m adjusted for inflation.