New exit for the Maven VCTs: Manchester-based MirrorWeb
The Maven VCTs have just announced the profitable partial exit of portfolio company Mirroweb, which has generated a 4.0x return for the VCTs after four years – past performance is not a guide to the future.
Digital content archiving and compliance platform MirrorWeb was founded in 2012 by a small team above a pub in Manchester.
Its web and software tech specialist co-founders David Clee, Philip Clegg and Karl Stringer have since grown the business to offices on both sides of the Atlantic, serving an impressive roster of clients – including the US Library of Congress, the UK’s National Archives, HM Treasury, HSBC, Standard Life, AXA and the BBC.
What does MirrorWeb do? Why did Maven invest – and continue to invest over several rounds, a total of £3.9 million? How could you invest in similar companies through the Maven VCTs?
Please note: the Maven VCTs are not currently raising capital, however a new share offer is expected to open this Autumn.
Important: The information on this website is for experienced investors. It is not advice nor a research or personal recommendation to invest. If you’re unsure, please seek advice. VCT investments are high risk and you could lose the money you invest.
What does MirrorWeb do?
Every day, companies, government bodies and organisations produce copious amounts of digital content: emails, text messages, social media, website pages and so on.
The larger the enterprise, the more unwieldy its digital footprint – as is the monumental task of archiving and monitoring content to make sure it remains compliant. The job is usually labour-intensive and prone to human error.
This is where digital archiving specialist MirrorWeb can provide a high-tech, more reliable, yet far less costly and resource-hungry alternative.
The cloud-based SaaS platform automates capturing all of an enterprise’s digital communications – creating timestamped, authenticated records that can meet compliance obligations and be retrieved easily. Once captured, archives can be securely replayed and searched through on MirrorWeb’s platform at any time.
Maven’s journey with MirrorWeb
Maven first supported MirrorWeb in 2018, through NPIF Maven Equity Finance, to enable the business to roll out its innovative technology.
Following a strong period of growth, the Maven VCTs made their first investment in the business in 2020 to support its expansion into new markets.
MirrorWeb went on to significantly increase its annual recurring revenues (ARR) and win key customer contracts in the North American market, including the US Library of Congress (the Library is the largest in the world, the main research arm of the US Congress and the home of the US Copyright Office).
During Maven's investment, MirrorWeb’s business grew significantly, largely driven by demand from the increasingly regulated financial services sector in the US.
Why did Maven Capital Partners invest?
Maven Capital Partners is a highly regarded fund manager with a focus on regional unquoted businesses across the UK regions, ranging from Northern and Central Scotland to Bristol, Reading and London. Besides its four long-established VCTs, Maven also manages a regional buyout fund as well as regional funds for the British Business Bank and the Scottish Government.
The Maven VCTs invested in MirrorWeb for three main reasons:
- The management team’s quality, performance and ambition.
- MirrorWeb's progress MirrorWeb with increasing revenues and accelerating growth in the UK and internationally
- Its novel technology, offering the capability to rapidly build market traction.
The exit
On 5 September 2024, Maven announced it had realised a significant majority of its investment in MirrorWeb, one of its top-10 holdings. Mainsail Partners, a US growth equity firm, has made a $63 million growth equity investment in the Manchester software firm, providing Maven with an opportunity to exit its earlier investments.
The profitable realisation has generated a 4.0x return on cost for the Maven VCTs, including the value of a retained minority holding in the business and a 5.1x return on cost for NPIF Maven Equity Finance (which has exited its holding in full). Past performance is not a guide to the future, there have also been failures.
MirrorWeb’s story demonstrates what an ambitious Manchester-based business can achieve when a talented leadership team is provided with the right support and funding. As well as generating significant cash proceeds, the structure of the deal also allows the Maven VCTs to retain an equity stake in MirrorWeb post-transaction, this was a key objective based on our knowledge of the business and the team who we expect to continue to deliver strong growth and shareholder value.
Jeremy Thompson, Partner at Maven
Maven supported us when we were a small start-up business, they believed in us as a management team and could see the potential in what we were trying to build. (...) They continued to support us through multiple follow-on funding rounds which were critical to the development of both our product and our commercial strategy. (...) The relationship between Maven and MirrorWeb has been a true partnership and I’m proud of what we have achieved together.
David Clee, CEO of MirrorWeb
Want to invest in companies like MirrorWeb?
The Maven VCTs should open for investment soon, giving investor exposure to a large and diversified portfolio of companies.
The Maven VCTs typically target companies operating in defensive sectors such as software, data analytics and healthcare – Maven believes this can offer some resilience during periods of market uncertainty. That being said, as with all VCTs, the Maven VCTs should be viewed as a high-risk investment.
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