Puma VCTs fast to fill loan space vacated by banks

The chief executive of Puma Investments is confident the latest edition of the firm's VCT funds will match the £28m raised last year as investors continue to show an appetite for the company's asset-backed investment strategy.

David Kaye from Puma said the Puma VCT 11 fund had raised around £20m so far ahead of the deadline of 4 April, but he expected the now traditional last-minute rush to possibly push the fund over last year’s total. “It will all come in in the last 10 days,” he said. “My guess is we might beat last year’s total.” The cash raise is significant given Kaye’s admittance that the strategy followed by the Puma funds is “relatively niche”. “On VCTs we are always looking for downside protection,” he added. “We look at smaller companies that are profitable and importantly that have an asset. It ...