Amiri buys into Envestors

VENTURE capitalist, Amin Amiri, has taken a 20% stake in the Manchester franchise of private investor network, Envestors.

Amiri joins managing director, Tom Wilkins, and founding partners Mike Perls, chief executive of public relations firm MC2; entrepreneur, Imran Hakim; and Scott Fletcher chairman of IT firm ANS Group.

Mr Amiri is a former head of corporate finance at Grant Thornton who went on to found Manchester-based venture capital firm, a2e Venture Catalysts, in 2001. According to a2e its portfolio now has a turnover of more than £100m and earnings before tax of £9m.

Envestors said he will spearhead a series of aggressive initiatives that will “broaden and deepen” the services offered by Envestors.

Envestors, a London-based private investor network with operations in Dubai, India, Jersey, London and Manchester, says it has helped some 60 companies to raise more than £22m over the last three years. In August it was acquired for £2.5m by the Braveheart Investment Group.

Mr Amiri said: “With the majority of banks still closed for business and likely to remain so until they have rebuilt their balance sheets, private investment is the only realistic option for private companies of varying sizes. And with interest rates remaining low, many investors are tiring of sitting on cash and opting to reintroduce higher risk investments and higher reward into their portfolios.

“The timing is perfect for Envestors to succeed in the North West, where we have a hotbed of entrepreneurial talent and drive. I have been working with the team for some months now and have seen the progress that it has already made since it launched in January 2010. I look forward to driving forward the development of the network into a powerful and supportive force in the region’s dealmaking community.”