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RNS Number : 2789R Draper Esprit PLC 04 November 2021 Draper Esprit Plc 4 November 2021 Draper Esprit ( LSE : GROW , Euronext Dublin : GRW ) , a leading venture capital firm investing in and developing high growth digital technology businesses , today provides an update on its portfolio and NAV ( unaudited ) ahead of its interim results for the period ended 30 September 2021 , which are scheduled for release on 29 November 2021 . Highlights : Draper Esprit Plc ( " Draper Esprit " , the " Group " or the " Company " ) Half year trading update and notice of results NAV per share is expected to be not less than 885p ( 30 September 2020 : 600p ; 31 March 2021 : 743p ) Gross Portfolio Value ( unaudited ) is expected to be not less than £ 1,345 million ( 30 September 2020 : £ 702 million ; 31 March 2021 : £ 984 million ) Gross Portfolio increase in fair value ( unaudited ) is expected to be not less than £ 260 million ( 26 % ) for the six - month period to September 2021 ( six months to 30 September 2020 : £ 73 million , 10 % ) £ 165 million invested by the Group's balance sheet ( " PLC " ) in the first half of the year , with a further £ 4 million invested by EIS and VCT co - investment bringing the total invested for H1 to £ 169 million ( six months to 30 September 2020 : £ 50 million invested by PLC , EIS and VCT ) Cash proceeds from realisations in H1 of £ 67 million ( six months to 30 September 2020 : £ 106 million ) Net proceeds of £ 108 million received from our equity raise in June 2021 Cash on the PLC balance sheet at period - end of £ 156 million ( including restricted cash ) ( 30 September 2020 : £ 62 million ; 31 March 2021 : £ 161 million ) Moved to premium listing segment of the Official List of the Financial Conduct Authority and the secondary listing segment of the official list of the Irish Stock Exchange plc , trading as Euronext Dublin Strengthened board with the appointment of Gervaise Slowey and Sarah Gentleman as non - executive directors Against the backdrop of strong market conditions , the positive momentum experienced in H2 FY2021 has continued over the past six months . Progress has been achieved across all areas of the business . Alongside funds raised in June 2021 and strong realisations during the period , capital deployed has increased in excess of those initially anticipated for the period . This increased investment is attributable to a higher level of follow on opportunities in the existing portfolio , consistently leading rounds in primary investments and the continued expansion of the platform with further additions to the team . The H1 Gross Portfolio Value reflects new financing rounds at increased valuations for a number of our investments , including : Aircall , Revolut , Ledger , Form3 , N26 , Aiven . It also reflects the closing prices at the 30 September 2021 balance sheet date for our publicly listed investments Cazoo , Trustpilot and Ui Path . The Group continues to see growth within its portfolio through revenue increases , financing rounds and exits , combined with a healthy pipeline of new investment opportunities . As a result , trading is ahead of our stated financial objective of 15 % fair value growth for this financial year , and our portfolio continues to perform strongly . We therefore anticipate fair value growth in the region of 35 % for the full year to 31 March 2022 subject to wider market conditions . Martin Davis , CEO Draper Esprit commented : " We've continued to make significant progress over the first six months of the year driven by the strength of our portfolio , our investment team and buoyant market conditions . I am pleased to report realisations have remained strong enabling us to increase our deployment of capital across the portfolio ; underpinned by our expanded platform . I feel excited by our performance going into the second half of the year . " Draper Esprit is undergoing a rebranding process and will shortly be changing its name to better reflect its strategy in its latest phase of growth . We will provide a full update in the next week . Enquiries : Draper Esprit plc Martin Davis ( Chief Executive Officer ) Ben Wilkinson ( Chief Financial Officer ) Numis Securities Joint Financial Adviser and Corporate Broker Simon Willis Richard Thomas Jamie Loughborough +44 ( 0 ) 20 7931 8800 +44 ( 0 ) 20 7260 1000