Tughans’ Private Equity, Venture Capital and Funds Team Our specialist private equity, venture capital and funds team has a strong reputation for servicing a high-profile client base which spans investors, growth companies and wider corporates. We act for many venture capital and private equity funds, institutional investors and investee companies throughout the UK and Ireland, offering a multi-jurisdictional service. Our team works closely with clients to gain a deep understanding of their individual needs, which means we are well placed to generate opportunities for potential deals and provide guidance through many successful investments.
Our team advises on all aspects of the funding lifecycle of a company, from early-stage investments, including crowdfunding, subsequent funding rounds, bridging finance, venture debt and equity reorganisation, as well as exits, listings, management and secondary buyouts and asset dispositions. We are sensitive to the commercial and non-commercial issues which underpin deals and are familiar with all current market deal terms, structures and trends, allowing us to focus on issues of commercial consequence during due diligence and contract negotiations. With the increasing sophistication and complexity of private equity and venture capital transactions, the role of specialist advisors has become increasingly important in this field. We structure and negotiate all forms of private equity investments, such as:
MBO/MBI
Growth/Development Capital Investments
Corporate Business Acquisitions and Disposals
Equity and Debt Restructurings
Start-Up Investments
Crowdfunding
Employee Share and Incentive Schemes
Management Equity Teams
Our private equity, venture capital and funds team is supported by other specialist teams including:
TM
R
M&A and Corporate
C
Intellectual Property
Commercial Contracts and Technology
Banking and Finance
Property
Employment
Each client has a client relationship manager who will introduce them to other specialist lawyers if and when required.
Recent Investment Work Investee Companies Investment into MetaCompliance by Tenzing. Investment into further.space by Foresight Group and Invest Northern Ireland. Investment into Elite Electronics by Lonsdale Capital Partners. Investment into Titan IC by Qubis, Techstart and Co-Fund on its sale to NASDAQ listed Mellanox Technologies. Investment into B-Secur Limited by Accelerated Digital Ventures, Kernel Capital and a US venture-capitalist. Investment into Plotbox Inc by Par Equity and others. Investment into Audit Comply by the Business Growth Fund, KX fund of First Derivatives and Clarendon / CoFund NI. Investments into Fusion Antibodies and its subsequent listing on the Alternative Investment Market. Investment into TotalMobile Limited by Lyceum Capital. Investment into Vita Liberata Limited by Broadlake Capital and the subsequent exit. Investment into PathXL Limited by a consortium of funds led by Par Equity, and its subsequent exit to Philips. Investments into Asidua Limited and its subsequent multi-million-pound sale to Civica. Investments into numerous companies by Techstart Ventures.
Investors Investments by MML Growth Capital into (1) Lowe Refrigeration and on its subsequent exit to Perwyn, (2) Ashdale Care and (3) Natural World Products. Investment into further.space by Foresight Group and Invest Northern Ireland. Investments by the Business Growth Fund into (1) Bob and Berts, (2) Uform and (3) Decora Blinds. Investment by Foresight Group into 352 Medical Group. Investments by Cordovan Capital Management into (1) Spanwall Group, (2) TruCorp Limited, (3) further.space, (4) Decorum Vending, (5) Makematic and (6) Kitchenmaster. Investments by Kernel Capital into numerous companies including (1) Automated Intelligence Limited, (2) Causeway Sensors, (3) Datactics and (4) Changeover Technologies. Investments by Techstart Ventures into numerous companies, including (1) Cloudsmith, (2) Overwatch Research, (3) Neurovalens and (4) Brainwavebank. Investments by Qubis into numerous spin-out companies from Queen’s University Belfast.
Our team is also lead legal advisor to several of Northern Ireland’s venture capital funds and institutional investors, including Invest Northern Ireland. Lead legal advisor to Invest Northern Ireland on the structuring of all of its recent investment funds in Northern Ireland, including Development Fund II, Successor Seed Capital Fund, Growth Loan Fund II, Growth Finance Fund and Northern Ireland Small Business Loan Fund. Lead legal advisor to Invest Northern Ireland in respect of its investments through Co Fund NI, a £50 million equity fund and managed by Clarendon Fund Managers. Lead legal advisor to Techstart Ventures LLP in respect of its role as fund manager of the Successor Seed Capital Fund, its SME Fund and two University Funds in Northern Ireland.
Contact Us Private Equity, Venture Capital and Funds Team
John McGuckian Partner | Corporate T: +44 (0) 28 9055 3338 M: +44 (0) 78 2514 7133 E: john.mcguckian@tughans.com
James Donnelly Partner | Corporate T: +44 (0) 28 9055 3384 M: +44 (0) 78 0077 2433 E: james.donnelly@tughans.com
Paul O’Brien Partner | Corporate T: +44 (0) 28 9055 3342 M: +44 (0) 78 2523 7651 E: paul.obrien@tughans.com
Ranked No 1 Experian Deal and Adviser League Table 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 & 2020
Winner Law Firm of the Year 2020 Northern Ireland The Legal 500
Northern Ireland M&A and Real Estate Activity
tughans.com
Winner Dealmaker of the Year 2020 John McGuckian Northern Ireland Dealmaker Awards
Top Ranked Chambers UK