New capital for growth companies

With the launch of the Gimv-XL fund, Gimv is trying to put the rug back under the feet of Flemish business.

The Gimv-XL fund is looking to make investments of up to 100 million Euros in Flemish mid-cap companies.

The Gimv-XL fund was set up as an answer to the paucity of funding available to SMEs in the wake of credit retraction by banks. Established on the initiative of Gimv, the fund targets mid cap companies on the up and up, that lack the means.

From humble beginnings in the early 80’s, when it was set up to facilitate investment in innovative young start-ups, Gimv is now the largest private equity group in Belgium. The group managed to survive the dotcom sinkhole through a careful and prudent approach to bourgeoning markets; today they’re repudiated for this sustainable growth strategy. On the venture capital side of the group, many of the biotech companies clustered around Ghent (indeed most of the successful high-tech start-ups in Belgium) are in existence thanks to Gimv’s initial funding and participation. More than just a key facilitator in a host of companies, Gimv is itself a successful growth story. Starting out with capital of just 9.9 million Euros, today the company has more than 1.7 billion Euros under management, and plays a significant role in shaping the country’s economy.

Becoming independent in the late 90’s and listing on the Euronext exchange took the company to the next level, and gave it a broader remit: to create opportunities for investment in promising unlisted companies. In this role as a private equity group, Gimv has extended its activities beyond Flanders and Belgium to the European market – where its ‘strong and stable’ character has earned the Group the recognition as a key player in the sector. Whilst Gimv is still innovative in the venture capital market (recently hosting a ‘basement geniuses’ start-up search), it has continued to expand its activities – with the pinnacle of its achievement being the introduction of a new growth fund: Gimv-XL.