Venture capital firm Molten Ventures has proposed an acquisition of rival investor Forward Partners at a valuation of £41.4m.
It would see Forward Partners’ 43 tech startup portfolio transferred to Molten Ventures, which includes the likes of alternative asset platform Ctrl Alt.
Martin Davis, CEO of Molten Ventures said: “The deal would provide Molten with a broader and more diverse pipeline through access to Forward Partners’ early-stage deal flow opportunities in fast-growing sub-sectors like applied AI and digital marketplaces.”
Alongside the proposed merger, Molten revealed its plans to fundraise approximately £50m via the London Stock Exchange and Euronext Dublin.
British Patient Capital is supplying £10m and Blackrock £25m. Retail investors will be given the chance to invest through PrimaryBid.
The financier later revealed it had raised a total of £55m through a filing.
“Historically, of all vintages, investments made in a downturn have yielded the greatest returns for technology investors, and this fundraise reflects both the scale of our ambition to support innovation and our desire to offer investors exposure to fast-growing privately owned technology assets,” added Davis.
The takeover of Forward Partners by Molten Ventures is still subject to regulatory approval.
Molten Ventures, formerly known as Draper Esprit, counts startups such as employee mental health platform Oliva and privacy firm Valarian among its portfolio.