Coming soon
In September 2025 the board of the VCT announced its intention to launch a new offer for subscription. Details are expected to be published later this year.
You will be able to download documents and apply online here.
The Foresight Ventures VCT is the product of a series of mergers over the years – most recently Thames Ventures VCT 1 (formerly Downing ONE VCT) with Thames Ventures VCT 2 (formerly Downing FOUR VCT). This is reflected in the current portfolio composition: a mix of asset-backed and growth investments (both quoted and unquoted), acquired under different investment strategies.
The VCT is now focused on early-stage technology companies that are looking to expand internationally, where possible, co-investing alongside other Foresight funds.
The VCT has net assets of £109.6 million (December 2024) – with around 18% held in cash and cash equivalents.
In the five years to June 2025, the VCT delivered a NAV total return of -10.4%, including dividends reinvested. Past performance is not a guide to the future, dividends are variable and not guaranteed.
- Seeking to raise up to £5 million with a £5 million overallotment
- Target dividend of at least 4% of NAV per annum – variable and not guaranteed
- Minimum investment £5,000
Important: The information on this website is for experienced investors. It is not a personal recommendation to invest. If you’re unsure, please seek advice. Investments are for the long term. They are high risk and illiquid and can fall as well as rise in value: you could lose all the money you invest.
The manager
The VCT is now managed by the Foresight Ventures team, a subset of 12 members of the wider 50-strong Foresight Private Equity team, responsible for £1.6 billion across the Foresight VCTs, EIS, and institutional private equity funds (September 2024).
Founded in 1984, Foresight Group started as a specialist technology venture capital manager and now oversees c.£12.4 billion (September 2024).
The Foresight Ventures team is led by Managing Director Richard Lewis. Richard joined Foresight Group in 2022 following its acquisition of Downing’s VCT business. Prior to the acquisition, Richard served as partner at Downing Ventures for five years and previously spent nine years at Japanese bank Mitsui, investing in the US and Israel.
The three venture partners, located in the North America, Dubai, and Israel, can provide access to international deal flow and support international expansion of portfolio companies.
The team will have access to Foresight’s wider resources where appropriate, although it is envisaged that the VCT will offer a distinct alternative to the other Foresight-managed VCTs.
Investment strategy
Because of the VCT’s history of mergers, the portfolio contains a range of assets.
Historically, the portfolio was split between yield-focused unquoted investments (typically asset-backed companies, such as pubs and care homes, and companies with predictable revenue streams, such as renewable energy plants) and quoted investments (typically established, cash-generative businesses quoted on AIM).
Today, the VCT’s strategy is focused on investing £0.5 million - £3 million in early-stage technology businesses. It looks to identify businesses that plan to expand internationally, particularly towards the US, seeing this as both attractive to potential acquirers and as an area where its venture partners can add value.
Portfolio overview
The VCT has net assets of £109.6 million and an investment portfolio of around 70 holdings (December 2024). The 10 largest holdings account for 39.5% of net assets.
Assets are split across Growth investments (48.8% of NAV), Non-qualifying investments (17.0% of NAV), AIM investments (11.9% of NAV) and Legacy investments (4.1% of NAV) – with the remainder in cash and cash equivalents (18.1%).
Asset allocation (%)
Source: Foresight, as a percentage of portfolio as at December 2024.
Examples of portfolio companies
Largest holding
Ayar Labs
AI is transforming every industry. But as AI models grow in size and complexity, a new challenge has emerged: moving data fast and efficiently enough across AI systems.
Traditional interconnects between chips can create data bottlenecks that slow processing and reduce efficiency. Ayar Labs' solution is a new form of connector based on optical technology, using light to transfer data. This enables much higher transfer speeds, greater efficiency, and lower power consumption.
In December 2024, Ayar Labs raised $155 million at a valuation of $1 billion from a consortium of investors, including Intel, AMD, and NVIDIA. Proceeds are expected to support high-volume manufacturing of its optical interconnects.
The Foresight Ventures VCT first backed Ayar Labs in 2020, investing £1.3 million. The combined holding is valued at £8.0 million, accounting for 7.3% of net assets. Past performance is not a guide to the future.
EM Scientific (Inoviv)
Drug development is a complex and lengthy process. One major challenge is identifying the right biomarkers (molecules that indicate the presence of a disease) to monitor how well a treatment is working. Without accurate biomarkers, it's hard to know if a drug is effective, which can slow down clinical trials and delay new treatments.
Inoviv is developing technology that creates custom biomarker panels that help pharmaceutical companies quickly and accurately measure treatment effects. This speeds up clinical trials and helps bring effective drugs to market faster.
The Foresight Ventures VCT first invested £1.5 million in January 2024 alongside Hoxton Ventures.
Exit track record
The VCT recorded exit proceeds of £2.9 million in the six months to September 2024 after exiting Data Centre Response Ltd at a 5.2x return. Past performance is no guide to the future.
Recent exit
e.fundamentals
e.fundamentals (Group) was set up to help retail brands manage their content across their range of online retailers. Its digital shelf analytics platform ensures a brand’s products are consistently listed with the correct pricing, regulatory and packaging information and identifies gaps in content to promote better engagement with consumers.
The business was a beneficiary of the growth within the burgeoning online grocery market, with consumer goods giants PepsiCo, Mars, and Arla integrating its digital shelf analytics platform, supporting revenue growth of more than 300% in 2021.
The VCT’s precursors, Thames Ventures VCTs 1 & 2, first backed the business in December 2017, with subsequent rounds taking the total investment to £3 million.
In July 2022 the VCT sold its stake to CommerceIQ, generating exit proceeds of £8.0 million. The Foresight Ventures team believe the exit is a good example of the value that international expansion can create in piquing the interest of potential acquires. Past performance is not a guide to the future.
Example of previous failure
Distributed
As is to be expected, not all investments work out. One example is Distributed.
Distributed was an online talent marketplace helping connect businesses with software engineers around the world. Initially it showed promise, signing a contract with outsourcing giant Capita and winning a place in the UK’s Deloitte Fast 50 two years in a row.
Thames Ventures VCT 1 first invested in June 2022 as part of an £8 million round. The business failed to secure the additional funding it needed and was sold for £1 to ILX Group in 2024. The VCT’s stake was written down to nil.
Performance and dividends
Over the five years to June 2025, the Foresight Ventures VCT delivered a NAV total return of -10.4% (including dividends). Over the same period, it paid cumulative dividends of 35p, equivalent to 21.9% of the starting net asset value. Past performance is not a guide to the future.
Note, we show VCT returns over a five-year period as a minimum, where possible. Where a VCT has followed the same investment strategy for longer, we also show returns over 10 years.
The negative returns are largely due to poor performance of underlying investments. Another contributing factor is the discovery of an asset shortfall at the VCT’s custodian of quoted assets, IBP Markets, currently undergoing administration. As a result, the VCT estimates exposure to losses and fees of £0.88 million. More details are expected later in the year, after the conclusion of the court proceedings.
Changes to performance incentive
Following the merger, the NAV was reset to 100p per share with a new performance fee hurdle of 110p.
This effectively draws a line under any previous losses and means the manager can be rewarded for any improvements. However, it also means longstanding shareholders may end up paying performance fees despite suffering significant capital losses.
The VCT aims to pay dividends equivalent to at least 4% of its net asset value, paid twice a year, in February/March and August/September. Dividends are variable and not guaranteed.
NAV and cumulative dividends per share over five years (p)
Source: Morningstar. Past performance is no guide to the future. Dividends are variable and not guaranteed. The bar chart shows net asset value and cumulative dividends per share for the period 31/12/2019 – 30/06/2025.
Dividends paid per calendar year
Source: Morningstar. Past performance is not a guide to the future. Dividends are not guaranteed. The graph shows the dividends paid per calendar year to 30/06/2025.
Dividend yield history (% of starting NAV)
| Calendar year | Dividend as % of NAV |
|---|---|
| 2020 | 5.4% |
| 2021 | 4.3% |
| 2022 | 7.1% |
| 2023 | 3.5% |
| 2024 | 2.3% |
| YTD | 2.0% |
Source: Morningstar. Dividend yields are based on the dividends paid over the period divided by the starting NAV of the VCT in each period. Past performance is no guide to the future.
Dividend reinvestment scheme
There is a Dividend Reinvestment Scheme which allows shareholders to reinvest future dividend payments by way of subscription for new shares, if desired. As these are new shares they should be eligible for tax relief (you will need to claim this on your tax return or directly with HMRC) and the shares will count towards the VCT annual subscription limit.
Share buyback policy
The VCT intends to buy back shares at a 2.5% discount to the most recently announced net asset value. This is not guaranteed – please see the offer documents for details.
Discount history
VCT shares are traded on the London Stock Exchange. Similar to investment trusts, the share price can fluctuate and can be different from the VCT’s net asset value (NAV), i.e. the value of the VCT’s underlying investments. The difference between the share price of a VCT, and its net asset value per share, is called a discount.
Based on data from Morningstar, the discount to NAV as at 30 June 2025 was -6.6%. Over the previous five years, the average discount to NAV was -4.8%.
The discount history is based on the closing share price of the VCT at the end of each month, divided by the latest net asset value at the time. Past performance is not a guide to the future. Investors looking to sell their VCT shares may get a better price using the VCTs’ share buyback facilities, although this is not guaranteed.
Risks: important
This, like all investments available through Wealth Club, is only for experienced investors happy to make their own investment decisions without advice.
VCTs are high-risk so should only form part of a balanced portfolio and you should not invest money you cannot afford to lose. They also tend to be illiquid and hard to sell and value. Before you invest, please carefully read the Risks and Commitments and the offer documents to ensure you fully understand the risks.
To retain the tax benefits, VCTs should be held for at least five years. If you sell VCT shares and reinvest in new shares of the same VCT (including any mergers) within six months, tax relief can be restricted. Tax rules can change and benefits depend on circumstances.
Charges and savings
A summary of the main charges and savings is shown below. The net initial charge shown includes the Wealth Club saving and any early bird discount. The investment may have additional charges and expenses: please see the provider documents including the Key Information Document for more details, offer price and share allotment calculation methodology.
Please note, capacity – for the offer or any early bird savings – can be reached early, and we may not be notified of this by the VCT in real time.
The existing investor saving is available to shareholders of other Foresight VCTs.
| Full initial charge | 5.5% |
| Early bird discount | — |
| Wealth Club initial saving | 3% |
| Existing shareholder discount | 2.5% |
| Net initial charge through Wealth Club (new investors) | 2.5% |
| Net initial charge through Wealth Club (existing shareholders) | — |
| Annual management charge | 2% |
| Annual administration charge | See documents |
| Performance fee | 20% |
| Annual rebate from Wealth Club | 0.10% |
More detail on the charges
The full initial charge shown in the table above is before any savings and discounts; the net initial charge is after available savings and discounts. When you invest through us, Wealth Club will receive commission each year (up to 0.5%) and initial commission in the first year (1.25%). Commission is paid by the product provider so there is no additional charge to you.
Please see the offer documents for more information on fees and charges.
Annual rebate when you invest through Wealth Club
This offer includes an annual rebate for Wealth Club investors, payable for the first three years.
This is a rebate of our renewal commission and should be equivalent to a percentage of the Net Asset Value of the Offer Shares issued to you when you invest (shown in the table above). Terms and conditions apply.
Deadlines
- Deadline for 2025/26 allotment – 27 June 2025
Our view
Foresight Ventures VCT’s mixed portfolio is a product of its meandering past – with multiple managers and multiple investment strategies. Today, the VCT portfolio is a mix of mature income-generating assets, both quoted and unquoted, and newer growth-focused venture investments.
The potential turnaround might be appealing to investors. In similar circumstances, one would expect performance fees to be waived until a full recovery of lost capital value. It is therefore disappointing to see the performance fee being reset at a lower level, not least since existing shareholders will endure performance fees despite sitting on substantial capital losses.
The older, more mature investments may help support dividend payments – not guaranteed. However, growth investments in private companies will account for an increasing proportion of the portfolio over time.
This financial promotion has been communicated and approved by Wealth Club Ltd on 19 February 2025
Wealth Club aims to make it easier for experienced investors to find information on – and apply for – investments. You should base your investment decision on the offer documents and ensure you have read and fully understand them before investing. The information on this webpage is a marketing communication. It is not advice or a personal or research recommendation to buy any of the investments mentioned, nor does it include any opinion as to the present or future value or price of these investments. It does not satisfy legal requirements promoting investment research independence and is thus not subject to prohibitions on dealing ahead of its dissemination.