#23 million funding for Snell & Wilcox

Investee Company – Snell & Wilcox Ltd (UK)

Investee Company Business Type – Research-based electronics engineering group

Type of Financing – Expansion

Equity Providers – Advent Venture Partners

Equity Leader (Individual) – Peter Baines, director Advent Venture Partners

Debt Providers – Royal Bank of Scotland

Debt Type – Medium-term loan, revolver facility

Debt Leader (Individual) – Syed Khan, Royal Bank of Scotland

Equity Amount – £13 million

Total Deal Value – £23 million

Other Advisors – Ernst & Young Corporate Finance, Norton Rose and SJ Berwin

Comments – Snell & Wilcox, a research-based electronics engineering group, has secured a financing package totalling £23 million. The deal was led by Advent Venture Partners, which provided £13 million equity funding. The remainder of the deal was financed by the Royal Bank of Scotland, which provided a medium-term loan and a revolver facility.

Established in 1973 and based in Hampshire, England, Snell & Wilcox is a world leader in the design and manufacture of advanced digital image communications technologies with applications in broadcast television, post-production, digital movie-making, cable, satellite, video-streaming and image display. The technology developed by Snell & Wilcox has recently been used for projects including the BBC’s highly acclaimed Blue Planet series and the forthcoming feature film Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones.

The new funding will be used by Snell & Wilcox to accelerate the expansion of the business into new markets and reinforce the sales and marketing infrastructure.

John Spencer, CEO of Snell & Wilcox, commented: “The transition to digital television and the ongoing convergence between information technology and the entertainment industry has created an exciting, dynamic market. This deal provides Snell & Wilcox with funds that will enable us to accelerate the expansion of the business into new markets and consolidate our position as the technological leader within the image communication industry.”

Peter Baines, director of Advent Venture Partners, said: “We believe that Snell & Wilcox has a world-class technology lead in its field, combined with a strong market position and a distinctive brand. This investment provides the company with the funds to play an active role in a fast-changing industry and to exploit new opportunities as it establishes itself as the supplier of choice to the broadcast and post-production world.”