Maven VCT 4 Reports Strong Interim Results with Dividend Increase and Major Exit

Maven VCT 4’s half-year: resilient NAV, fatter dividend, and a chunky exit

Maven Income & Growth VCT 4 has delivered a steady first half to 2025. The private company portfolio did the heavy lifting again, offsetting a further drag from AIM, and the board has rewarded investors with a higher interim dividend after completing a material post-period exit.

Here is what stood out, why it matters, and how I’m reading the run rate for the rest of the year.

Headline numbers investors care about

Metric	Value
NAV total return (to 30 June 2025)	153.32p per Ordinary Share
NAV per share (30 June 2025)	56.72p
Net assets	£88.14 million
Interim dividend	2.75p per Ordinary Share (paid 29 August 2025)
Cash on hand	£8.13 million
Investments at fair value	£79.61 million
New money raised (Offer closed 1 April)	£10 million
Investment deployed in H1	£4.8 million
Realisations in H1 (cash proceeds)	£3.16 million

Note: NAV total return is the NAV per share plus all dividends paid since launch – it is the cleanest yardstick of value created for shareholders over time.

Dividend increase tied to Horizon Ceremonies exit

The board has enhanced the dividend policy to target 6% of NAV per year (up from 5%), paid from a mix of income and capital gains. In line with that, an increased interim dividend of 2.75p was paid on 29 August.

Fuel for that cheque came from a post-period exit: Horizon Ceremonies, the VCT’s largest holding, was sold in early July to Railpen at an initial 2.33x cost, realising over £5 million in cash with further deferred proceeds possible if planning approvals land. That is a solid outcome in a still-tricky market for private transactions, and it underlines the strategy of backing asset-backed or recurring-revenue businesses where buyers remain active.

Portfolio mix: private deals doing the graft, AIM kept small

The manager has been deliberately shrinking AIM exposure for several years and it now sits at less than 2% of NAV. That proved wise: AIM fell again in the half, clipping performance. By contrast, most private holdings hit plan, with several valuation uplifts recorded.

Total investments at fair value rose to £79.61 million, spread across 134 holdings. The VCT kept powder dry but still deployed £4.8 million, adding four new companies and supporting 17 existing ones with follow-on capital.

New additions with strong thematic fit

• Blackdot Solutions – investigations software using open-source intelligence to help risk and compliance teams. Funds will expand product and sales in growth markets.
• Digilytics – AI-based loan automation that reads documents, checks affordability and flags fraud. Near-term plan is a US launch.
• Kani Payments – SaaS reconciliation and regulatory reporting for fintechs and payment processors. Capital goes into product features and expansion in Europe and North America.
• PowerPhotonic – designer and manufacturer of precision micro-optics used in lasers, with a strong position in defence and growing life sciences exposure.

Standout progress among existing holdings

• Manufacture 2030 – ARR has more than doubled in two years as large corporates roll out Scope 3 carbon tools; six new blue-chip clients added so far this year and North America is the next leg.
• Summize – AI-powered contracting software; ARR up over 100% in two years and now generating more than half of sales in the US after opening a Boston office.
• Bud Systems – training software with near doubling of ARR and learner numbers since investment; regulatory changes to the Growth and Skills Levy should be supportive.
• Liftango – demand-responsive transport software with live projects across six continents and a push into the Middle East and the Americas.
• CYSIAM – cyber security services and MDR growing against a backdrop of rising attacks; awarded European Rising Star Partner of the Year by Crowdstrike.
• RiskSmart – regtech platform has grown to over 60 clients with ARR up nearly 100% year-on-year.

There were setbacks too. A small number of holdings missed targets and were written down, and Real World Health entered administration in February 2025 after the manager declined further funding.

Financial performance: small capital loss, but liquidity strengthened

For the six months to 30 June, the company recorded a total return of -£1.54 million, or -1.02p per share, driven by a capital loss of £1.89 million as AIM weakened. Revenue income came in at £672,000, and other income added £135,000.

Net assets rose to £88.14 million from £84.23 million at the year end, helped by the fully subscribed £10 million Offer. NAV per share moved to 56.72p from 59.47p, reflecting both share issuance and the capital markdowns, plus dividend payments made in the period. Cash closed the half at £8.13 million and the treasury book continues to generate a blended yield of over 3% across MMFs and permitted listed funds.

Shareholder-friendly moves: buy-backs and capacity management

The VCT aims to keep a secondary market discount of around 5% to last published NAV. In the half, 3,253,441 shares were bought back for £1.82 million. With the latest £10 million raise closed early and a new Offer planned for early Autumn 2025, the board is managing capacity so it can support follow-ons, maintain buy-backs, and keep ongoing charges competitive.

Why this update matters

• Income now and later – the 2.75p interim taps into a 6% of NAV dividend target, and the Horizon exit adds fresh firepower for distributions. Deferred consideration could be a kicker, though not guaranteed.
• Strategy validation – private equity style VCT investing into contracted-revenue niches is working. Several holdings are hitting the £5 million ARR scale point that tends to attract trade and PE buyers.
• Risk control – AIM exposure is down to a rounding error, limiting volatility. The manager also runs a diversified treasury book to satisfy VCT income rules while earning a sensible yield.

The balanced view: positives and watch-outs

What I like

• Material realisation at 2.33x and more than £5 million cash proceeds secured just after period end.
• Four new investments aligned to secular themes: cyber, AI-enabled software, fintech infrastructure and defence-grade photonics.
• Robust pipeline and decent liquidity to keep backing winners and fund buy-backs.
• Dividend policy increased to a 6% target, with an uplift delivered already.

Risks to keep on the radar

• AIM remains fragile and could continue to nick quarterly NAVs, even if exposure is small.
• Some younger holdings are behind plan and required write-downs. That is normal for growth portfolios, but it can make NAV progress lumpy.
• Macro and geopolitical uncertainty persists, and the board has added political change and AI-related risks to the risk register.

What to watch in H2 2025

• Deployment pace – management is targeting a “healthy rate” of new investments; £4.8 million went out in H1.
• Further exits – the team is actively assessing M&A opportunities. Additional realisations would support the 6% dividend target.
• Horizon deferred proceeds – contingent on planning approvals at two sites. Timing and amounts are not disclosed.
• New Offer launch – Prospectus expected in early Autumn 2025.

Bottom line

This is a steady, workmanlike set of interim results from Maven VCT 4. NAV per share dipped as AIM sagged, but the private portfolio is scaling, liquidity is good, buy-backs are active, and the board has already turned a major post-period exit into a higher dividend. If the exit market keeps thawing, this VCT looks well placed to keep compounding that long-run 153.32p NAV total return figure, one realisation at a time.