UK capital investor strengthens team in Northern Ireland following 'strong year of investment'

Leading growth capital investor BGF has expanded its team in Belfast with the appointment of investor Matt Jones.

With a growing portfolio in Northern Ireland, BGF is the UK and Ireland’s most active growth capital investor.

Matt will work alongside Chris Nixon, who leads BGF’s investment activities in Northern Ireland, and will be responsible for all aspects of the investment process, including identifying and assessing investment opportunities, managing the transaction process, and supporting existing portfolio companies on their growth journeys.

Joining the team from Gresham House Ventures, Matt was an associate director, investing up to £20million of growth capital into early stage UK technology businesses. Matt is a chartered accountant by background, having previously spent time with EY in their transactional support team advising private equity.

Patrick Graham, head of BGF in Scotland and NI, said: “We have had yet another strong year of investment in Northern Ireland with over £20m of capital invested into two new portfolio companies.

"We have now invested almost £100m into the NI market and the momentum we have built up over the years continues with a number of other deals in the pipeline. The addition of Matt to our team in Belfast strengthens our presence here and will help us continue our track record of successful investments and exits.”

Matt Jones, Investor at BGF, added: “I am delighted to join an established, market leading growth capital investor with strong fundamentals and a growing track record of impressive returns. The BGF focus of sustainable growth and importance placed on the management team being at the heart of business aligns with my experience and investment ethos. I look forward to supporting the team continue to deploy into leading SMEs across Northern Ireland and beyond.”