NEW UNICORN AIM VENTURE CAPITAL TRUST (VCT) OFFER – Prospectus now available; Register your interest
Minimum Investment £3,000 – Applications accepted from 6th February 2023; closing date 30th March 2023
The Unicorn AIM VCT new share offer opens at 9 a.m. on Monday 6th February, to raise £10 million (with an over-allotment facility to raise up to a further £5 million) through the issue of new ordinary shares. Applications will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis (which includes receipt of cleared funds) before the closing date of 5.30 p.m. on Thursday 30th March 2023.
This investment is available for the 2022/23 tax year and the minimum investment is £3,000.
Please note that this is a comparatively small offer and can fill quickly. Previous VCT offers with larger capacities have been fully subscribed within days.
With the end of the tax year approaching, we feel that this product is worth considering for experienced investors who have utilised pension and ISA allowances and are looking for a tax-efficient solution for investing surplus cash.
The Unicorn AIM VCT was launched in November 2001 and is now a well-established VCT with unaudited net assets of £221 million as at 31st December 2022. This is one the largest Alternative Investment Market (AIM) VCTs available, offering investors access to an existing and diversified portfolio of investments in over 90 active companies. This means that it has the potential to offer tax-free capital growth and dividends to Qualifying Investors sooner than is likely to be the case with a new VCT.
The Unicorn AIM VCT invests predominantly in AIM stocks across a broad variety of sectors, comprising of a mix of early-stage companies and more mature businesses which are generating cash. The VCT also invests in unquoted companies, representing approx. 10% of the total invested at 31st December 2022. It has been the top performing AIM VCT in the 10 years to 31st December 2022, delivering a total return of 133.6% in this period, but please note that past performance is not a guide to future performance.
The Investment Manager
Unicorn Asset Management Ltd are independent specialist fund managers with a preference for supporting smaller companies. At the 31st December 2022, Unicorn Asset Management Ltd had over £950 million of funds under management, including over £350 million invested in AIM quoted companies. The Senior Fund Manager is Chris Hutchinson, who has spent over 17 years at Unicorn and has over 25 years’ experience of UK equity investing. He is also the lead manager of Unicorn Outstanding British Companies Fund (an OEIC). Chris is supported by a very experienced team of other fund managers and analysts who are responsible for managing Unicorn’s suite of investment funds, as well as its AIM ISA / IHT portfolio service.
Chris and his team focus on being the ‘best not the biggest’ with the aim of delivering long-term outperformance by adhering to a disciplined investment process and concentrating their investments on businesses which have strong profitability and cash generation and are led by strong management teams. Unlike many investment firms, Unicorn Asset Management Ltd is majority owned by its directors and managers, providing added incentive for their funds to produce consistently strong performance.
VCTs are high risk investments and VCT providers recommend that investors to take advice from a regulated professional adviser to ensure suitability of their investment. At Best Price Financial Services Ltd, we offer VCTs on an advised basis, so this is where we can help.
Within our assessment, we will look at your personal tax circumstances, previous investment experience, attitude to risk and capacity for loss to ensure that the product is suitable for your needs. We are fully regulated and authorised by the FCA to provide advice on tax planning products, which means that in the event that the product was not suitable to meet an individual’s needs, the investor has recourse to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) to independently assess the merits of the advice provided. We are required to seek to deliver the best outcomes for our clients and are obliged to carry professional indemnity insurance in this regard. If you were to purchase a VCT from a regulated distributor on a non-advised basis, you would not receive the same level of service or the reassurance of FOS protection.
To help compensate for the higher level of risk involved, the government offers generous tax benefits on VCT investments:
- High annual allowance – invest up to £200,000 per tax year.
- Up to 30% tax relief – Save up to £60,000 on income tax when you invest in newly issued VCT shares, provided they are held for at least five years. Please note that the amount of income tax reclaimed cannot exceed the amount of income tax due.
- Tax-free dividends – No Income Tax is payable on dividends from ordinary shares in VCTs.
- Tax-free growth – No CGT on gains from disposals of ordinary shares in VCTs.
Please note that tax rules can change and benefits depend on individual circumstances.
We are confident that our fees for providing advice on VCT investments are the lowest that you will find anywhere in the UK. Our advice fees are 1% of the amount invested, subject to a minimum of £300, in addition to the provider fees.
For the Unicorn AIM VCT, their initial fee is 2.5% and their annual management fee is 2% pa. Please see the prospectus and accompanying documents for full details of this product and related and ongoing fees. Links are provided below.
Unicorn-AIM-VCT-Prospectus Jan 2023
We believe this is an excellent opportunity to make a compelling addition to a modern, balanced, risk-managed portfolio and invite you to get in touch with us to discuss.
Warmest Regards.
Best Price FS Team