BGF bolsters Thames Valley team with new appointment

By Nicky Godding

9 October 2020

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BGF (Business Growth Fund), the UK and Ireland’s most active investor in growing businesses, has appointed Liam Pursall as an investor and Georgie Stratton in direct origination as part of its growing Reading team.

Liam joins from Foundation Investment Partners, where he spent four years focusing on UK buy-outs with an enterprise value of between £5 million and £50 million. Prior to this, Liam spent five years in the Corporate Finance team at EY.

Liam’s role at BGF will see him working across all areas of the investment process, from meeting entrepreneurs and management teams seeking funding, to developing new investment opportunities and working to support the growth plans of BGF’s extensive portfolio across the Thames Valley region.

Georgie joins from PwC, where she worked in a business development role for two years having joined from a similar position at law firm Burges Salmon.

Her direct origination role will see her focusing on the sourcing of new investments and bolt-on acquisitions for portfolio companies across Reading, Bristol and Cardiff.

The pair will strengthen the offering of the nine-strong Reading team, led by Ned Dorbin.

BGF’s investments in Reading include: £6.25 million in British watchmaker, Christopher Ward; £11.6 million in Invenio, the global provider of business focussed technology solutions and consulting services; and £11 million in AND Digital, one of Europe’s fastest growing technology companies.

Liam said: “The Thames Valley region holds fantastic opportunity for investment and I’m looking forward to building on BGF’s existing relationships by working with more of the region’s most ambitious entrepreneurs.”

Georgie said: “Due to Covid-19, UK businesses are seeking funding and support more than ever before. I’m passionate about helping businesses to thrive and I’m looking forward to working with entrepreneurs to identify opportunities for growth and discuss how BGF can help them realise their ambitions.”

Ned Dorbin, head of BGF’s investment team in Reading, added: “We’re delighted to welcome Liam and Georgie to BGF as we continue to build our team. This year we have averaged one deal a week through what has been a very challenging time for ambitious companies.

“More and more entrepreneurs are reviewing their funding options, whether that is in consideration of a potential capital gains tax increase, a refinancing of CBILS loans or identifying new growth opportunities. Liam and Georgie both bring highly valuable expertise and will enhance our capacity to meet more business owners and management teams in the Thames Valley region.”

By Nicky Godding

Nicky Godding is editor of The Business Magazine. Before her journalism career, she worked mainly in public relations moving into writing when she was invited to launch Retail Watch, a publication covering retail and real estate across Europe.

After some years of constant travelling, she tucked away her passport and concentrated on business writing, co-founding a successful regional business magazine. She has interviewed some of the UK’s most successful entrepreneurs who have built multi-million-pound businesses and reported on many science and technology firsts.

She reports on the region’s thriving business economy from start-ups, family businesses and multi-million-pound corporations, to the professionals that support their growth and the institutions that educate the next generation of business leaders.