Molten Ventures reports sharp rise in profit, ICEYE valuation uplift

(Sharecast News) - Molten Ventures reported a sharp rise in annual profit and net asset value on Tuesday, alongside a further valuation uplift from portfolio company ICEYE after the satellite intelligence business completed a major funding round.

The FTSE 250 venture capital firm said net asset value per share rose 13% to 760p in the year ended 31 March, from 671p a year earlier, while net assets increased to �1.32bn from �1.24bn.

Gross portfolio value rose to �1.53bn from �1.37bn, supported by a 13% net fair value movement in the portfolio.

Molten said it generated �120m of cash proceeds from realisations during the year, compared with �135m in 2025, at an average 3.0-times multiple on invested capital.

The disposals included partial realisations of Revolut at 21.0 times invested cost and ICEYE at 12.9 times, as well as full realisations of Freetrade at 1.5 times and Lyst at 0.7 times.

The group invested �89m during the year, up from �73m, with a further �22m invested through its managed EIS and VCT funds.

It completed �38m of share buybacks during the period, with a further �1m completed after the year end.

Molten reported a profit after tax of �120.3m, compared with a loss of �0.8m a year earlier, driven by a �141.6m movement on investments held at fair value through profit or loss.

Fee income fell to �17.7m from �20.9m, while general administrative expenses declined to �24.5m from �28.4m.

The company said its core portfolio continued to show strong operating momentum, with average revenue of more than $600m and average gross margins of 70%, excluding pre-revenue companies.

It said 88% of core portfolio companies were funded for at least 12 months, while seven were profitable.

Molten ended the year with �52m of consolidated group cash, down from �89m, and said its �60m revolving credit facility remained undrawn.

Portfolio companies raised $3.75bn during the year, including more than $3.5bn by core companies and more than $200m by emerging companies.

After the year end, Molten said it secured a cornerstone investor for its new Growth Fund and realised a further �63m from Revolut while retaining significant upside.

In a separate announcement, Molten said ICEYE had completed a Series F financing round that would lift the value of Molten's holding in the company to �317m.

The round raised about �450m in primary funding led by General Atlantic, with the total transaction, including a secondary placement, exceeding �1bn and valuing ICEYE at more than �10bn.

Molten said the new ICEYE valuation represented a �238m uplift, or 236%, from its 31 March holding value. It also realised about �22m from ICEYE as part of the round, with the new implied gross portfolio value of �317m stated after the secondary sale proceeds.

The company said the ICEYE uplift would increase its gross portfolio value by about 16% and its net asset value per share by about 117p, from 760p to 877p.

The transaction completed after the balance sheet date and was therefore not reflected in the audited March NAV.

Chief executive officer Ben Wilkinson said FY26 marked 20 years since Molten was founded and 10 years since its IPO, adding that the results showed "strong NAV growth, realisations at compelling multiples, a strengthened team and costs well below target".

"As AI reshapes the technology landscape, demand for European technological sovereignty grows and more domestic institutional capital is directed towards the asset class, we see these trends creating a favourable backdrop for both Molten and the wider European venture capital landscape," he said.

Commenting on ICEYE, Wilkinson said the latest funding round was "a powerful validation" of Molten's original investment thesis when it first backed the company in 2018.

"This is also a milestone for Molten," he said.

"ICEYE becomes our second decacorn to date, which is a great reflection of our long-held belief in backing European technology champions at their earliest stages."

At 0842 BST, shares in Molten Ventures were up 9.06% at 586.75p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.

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