3i abandons start-up investments


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	News 28-Mar-08 3i abandons start-up investments The UK's biggest private equity firm, 3i, has announced it will no longer invest in early stage start-up businesses Confirming a rumour that has been circulating for some time, the company confirmed it will now focus on buy-outs and growth capital for firms worth at least £78m. 3i suffered losses from investing in several technology start-ups during the 1990s and has been gradually pulling out of the sector over the past few years. "Early-stage has not been an easy place," Philip Yea, 3i chief executive, told the Financial Times. "It is a natural evolution, because there is more value for us in later-stage companies internationally and that is what we have been doing more and more." Yea said 3i's venture capital division will be merged with its growth capital operations. The company invested £65m in venture capital projects in the six months to September last year, just 5% of total investments. By the same point, the value of its venture capital assets had dropped to £734m. Fellow private equity firm Apax Partners also pulled out of the start-up sector last summer. Back to News