Molten Ventures PLC on Wednesday said its interim net asset value fell amid unfavourable foreign exchange rates, as the company also announces the appointment of a new chief executive officer.

The London-based venture capital investor in high-growth technology companies expects to report that net asset value on September 30 was around 644 pence per share, down 2.7% from 662p on March 31 and falling 12% from 735p on September 30, 2023.

Molten Ventures estimated its gross portfolio value on September 30 to be around £1.34 billion, falling 2.9% from £1.38 billion on March 31 but growing 3.1% from £1.30 billion last year.

The decline in gross portfolio value over the six-month period to September 30 was driven by the ‘combined impact of significant delivery of realisations above the investment level for the period, with a modest uplift in fair value of existing portfolio, offset by adverse foreign currency movements’, Molten Ventures said.

The group also said on Wednesday that Chief Executive Officer Martin Davis will be stepping down, to be succeeded by current Chief Financial Officer Ben Wilkinson with immediate effect. Martin Davis will remain with the company until the end of April 2025, and Finance Director Andrew Zimmerman has assumed the role of Interim CFO.

Incoming CEO Ben Wilkinson said: ‘We’ve seen a good level of activity so far this year, primarily driven by strong realisations, generating cash proceeds to the balance sheet and providing the capital to take advantage of further opportunities. In our full-year results, we spoke about cautious optimism in the stabilising economic climate, and this sentiment still prevails, with attractive entry pricing and an opportunity to deploy capital on the right deals. We remain well-positioned to take advantage of the best opportunities as and when they arrive.’

Shares in Molten Ventures were down 0.8% at 363.00 pence each in London on Wednesday morning.

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