MTI sells Simulus

High tech fund manager MTI has realised its investment in start-up company Simulus. The software developer has been acquired by a subsidiary of US-based BMC Software, a provider of management software for an undisclosed sum. In aggregate MTI invested just under £2 million in the company. The sale has generated a positive return for the firm. Celtic House who invested in Simulus’ second round of funding has also sold its share in the business.

“Simulus is a classic case of a UK early stage high tech venture capital investment which is attractive to a major US acquirer for its first class software technology,” said Paul Castle, founder and chief executive of MTI.

MTI first invested in Simulus in May 1998 from their £30 million third fund, MTI3. The company has since secured further tranches of investment, culminating in August 2000 when Celtic House invested alongside MTI3 in a syndicated second round deal.

The acquisition has created value for MTI, Simulus shareholders, its employees and BMC Software alike, said Castle. Simulus is a developer and vendor of software for the simulation and performance optimisation of large database and storage system applications. It had been a technology partner of BMC Software for some time prior to the acquisition.

MTI has raised four funds since it was founded in 1983. Its most recent MTI4 closed in 2000 at £104 million. A typical investment for the firm is in the £250,000 to £5 million range in the software & communications sectors, materials technology and life sciences and industrial products companies.