Mercia EIS Funds

Mercia Fund Management makes gaming sector investments in nDreams and No Yetis Allowed

Mercia Fund Management fuels growth for profitable Virtual Reality games developer and publisher nDreams and separately for Mobile app developer No Yetis Allowed, via Seed EIS and EIS investments

Henley-in-Arden, 7 April 2014. Virtual reality (VR) games developer and publisher nDreams and Mobile app creator No Yetis Allowed have both secured funding from Mercia Fund Management (MFM), a leading provider of investment, accommodation and business support services across the UK.

These businesses are just two of Mercia Fund Management’s growing portfolio of gaming companies benefitting from both finance and also sector expertise from former SEGA CEO Mike Hayes and ex-Codemasters MD Nick Wheelwright.

Mike Hayes, head of Mercia Fund Management’s Digital and E-commerce Division commenting on the investments said: “The expansion of our digital and e-commerce portfolio has allowed us to invest in a number of exciting and innovative ventures in the thriving gaming sector.”

nDreams, which was founded by former Eidos Creative Director, Patrick O’Luanaigh, in 2006 develops and publishes Virtual Reality (VR) games and experiences, an area that is set to grow massively by the end of 2014. Noting the company’s recent developments Patrick O’Luanaigh said: “We have been working on VR prototypes and experiments for eight months and have a number of games and experiences in the pipeline. We have also funded an independent VR gaming website called VRFocus, which launched in February 2014 and is already one of the leading global VR gaming sites in terms of traffic.”

He added: “Mercia Fund Management’s £250,000 investment in nDreams will enable us to expand our existing profitable operation by increasing our team of developers and to increase our focus on enhancing our VR technology. It is a pleasure to work with Mercia Fund Management and the fact that we share a very similar yet ambitious vision proves that the Mercia team is the right partner for us.”

No Yetis Allowed, which was formed in late 2013, and is led by former Blitz Games Studio Project Director Mark Hardistry, builds character focussed mobile apps utilising a host of high profile and universally recognised characters. The company’s apps are aimed at users of all ages and the fun and original products are due to be released on iOS and Android as well as additional mobile and web based platforms following the initial launch.

Mark Hardisty, founder of No Yetis Allowed, commented on the deal: “The £150,000 we have secured through Seed Enterprise Investment will primarily be spent on increasing the functionality of our apps. Alongside increased interactions and gameplay with our existing characters, we will be building upon the gaming engine, enabling us to add further characters in the future as well as expand our repertoire of features and games.”

Mercia Growth Fund 2 was launched in 2012 and the latest incarnation, Mercia Growth Fund 3, is designed to fuel business growth further via Seed Enterprise Investment (SEIS) and EIS.

The closing date for Mercia Growth Fund 3 is set at 31st April 2014.

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About Mercia Fund Management

Mercia Fund Management (MFM) has over £19 million under active management. MFM provides investment capital throughout a company’s journey (from early stage to expansion capital), support services for its portfolio and accommodation at its post-seed incubator at Forward House, Henley-in- Arden, Warwickshire.

Mercia Growth Fund 3, which launched December 2013, is closing for new investment in April 2014 and is targeted to raise circa £5 million.

MFM is an FCA authorised and regulated fund manager under FSMA (FRN: 524856).

www.merciafund.co.uk