Grant Thornton TMT - early stage support

360° advice: Unlocking your potential for growth

Our dedicated team consists of professionals providing financial and business advisory services to growing, dynamic technology and media companies every day. We combine technical expertise and market understanding with a passion for the sector and an appetite to work with you to achieve your ambitions.

We are Grant Thornton

That relentless pursuit of the new. The hunt for opportunity. A hunger to constantly experiment evolve and expand, while facing up to the challenges that those ambitions can bring. Entrepreneurs face huge pressure and risk on a daily basis, demanding speed, judgement and accuracy. In this environment, business decisions are rarely black and white. Dynamic companies know they need to apply both reason and instinct to decision-making. There will be times when clients need our experience to test whether their instinct is the right one, and other times when they need to consider new options based on our insights.

To help our clients tackle those challenges, it takes a combination of award-winning technical expertise, the insight gained from extensive sector experience and a genuine understanding of your business. We see it as a balance of reason and instinct and, with both of those to hand, we can help unlock the potential for growth.

Our sector team understands the needs of fast growing technology and media businesses – specific and relevant introductions to people that make a difference, access to funding channels and networks, advice around IP and corporate structuring, founder and corporate tax planning, ad hoc accounting and VAT questions, and further down the line, assistance with management incentive schemes and more significant fundraising. It’s all here. In one place.

Grant Thornton has gained an intuitive understanding of our business and it is now a key strategic adviser in our drive to grow revenues and diversify our client portfolio.

Tony Ratcliffe, Financial Director, Brady plc

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Our clients don’t stop. They don’t stand still. So whenever they’re ready to take the next step, we are too.

This constant evolution demands a professional services firm that can keep pace and help a business gather momentum. Our 360º thinking, integrating accounting, tax and advisory services, means you can access joined up advice from day one.

Our structure and culture reflects the dynamic organisations we work with. With shorter decision-making chains, our senior people are not only accessible but are the people who will deliver for you on a daily basis and on whom you can rely. This allows us and our clients to move quickly, respond to changing situations, and spot mistakes and opportunities early.

Founder tax planning• Review of the founders arrangements to

maximise future tax relief on income and capital gains

• Recommendations for action to consider taking now (including non-domicile status where appropriate)

Tax reliefs, VAT and payroll• R&D tax credits and Patent Box• VAT compliance• Ad hoc queries• Monthly payroll service• UK and overseas personal tax service

Financing and investment• Testing business planning• Strategic input and guidance• Introductions to funding networks• Tax considerations for the company, its founders

and its investors – particularly SEIS and EIS

Corporate compliance• Financial statements service• Understanding of technology and media

accounting issues particularly around IP• Adviceonyear-endfilingrequirements

Dynamic organisations don’t sit still. Nor do we.

Financing, investment and exit • Strategic advice to management team• Finding the right VC partner• Maximising shareholder value• Tax considerations for the company, its founders

and its investors• Delivering your exit: trade sale, equity release, IPO

Shareholder and employee incentive planning• Flexiblebenefitsandsalarysacrifice• EMI Scheme setup and valuation• Remuneration planning for the founders• Pension provisions and auto-enrolment

Overseas expansion• Efficientcorporatestructures• Overseas registration and local compliance

service• Incentivisation of local management• Secondment of UK staff

Assurance for stakeholders• Straight forward and pragmatic audit service

when required• Value for money• Global reach when required• Deep sector understanding

Now

Future

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Funding

Rapid Expansion

Exit

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Where do ambitious businesses go to grow? Helping you understand and prepare for your funding journey

• Focusonfastgrowing,dynamicbusinesses• Specialistsectorteams• Strategicadvicebeyondcompliance• Internationalsupport• 360o advice covering Founders & Corporates• Accounting• CorporateFinanceAdvisory,DueDiligenceandbroader

Advisory Services• Taxation

• Personalisedsupport• Growthplanning• Anetworkofover1,000experts• Commercialisinginnovation

• Businessdevelopment• AccesstoFinance• Developingleadershipskills

Grant Thornton is at the heart of the government’s growth agenda. We have been selected by the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills to deliver a premium business growth service to high growth potential businesses registered in England.

How it worksWe work through three stages to ensure our service is matched to the needs of your business:• Discover – one of our Growth Managers will work to understand your

business through the GROWTHmapper™ tool• Define – they will define a growth plan to realise specific strategic goals

and ambitions and crucially overcome obstacles holding you back; together you will select a business growth coach who will act as an advocate and catalyst for change

• Drive – during a period of intensive support, your growth coach will clarify and challenge the status quo, empower your business to reinvent its future and open up new pathways and possibilities.

GrowthAccelerator’s Access to Finance experts have proven track records and experience in helping high growth businesses raise investment and obtain business finance.

Understand Finance:• DifferentsourcesoffundingoptionsfromDebttoAngeltoVC• Howlendersmaketheirdecision-TOlendorNOTtolend• Insightintomethodologyofthefiveprinciplesofunderwriting• Understandlegalandvaluationsideforequityanddebtfunding• Secondroundfinancingandimplications

PrepareyouforFinanceby:• Aidyouinbuildingandpolishingastronglendingproposition• Coachyouonhowtopitchawinningpitch• Critiqueyourfullproposalandadvisehowandwheretoimproveit• Supportpreparationoffullproposalforpaneloflendersandfunders• Accesstoover£100millionoffundingthroughInvestorRelationsteam

£23 million raised through debt/equity since November 2012

Huddle case studyFrom dreaming of investment, to an investors’ dream

Huddle, a pioneer in web collaboration services, worked with Access to Finance expertstoraise£2millionfromanearlystagetechnologyinvestor.Wealsoadvisedthe founder team on personal and corporate tax planning – particularly around the fundraising – and also looked after their accounting and auditing requirements. The company has since expanded from two people working out of a bedroom in 2007toanexpected200employeesgloballybytheendof2012.Huddleistriplingin size every year. We are now looking after their global audit and tax requirements through our extensive international organisation.

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© 2013 Grant Thornton UK LLP. All rights reserved. ‘Grant Thornton’ means Grant Thornton UK LLP, a limited liability partnership. Grant Thornton UK LLP is a member firm within Grant Thornton International Ltd (‘Grant Thornton International’). Grant Thornton International and the member firms are not a worldwide partnership. Services are delivered by the member firms independently. This publication has been prepared only as a guide. No responsibility can be accepted by us for loss occasioned to any person acting or refraining from acting as a result of any material in this publication.

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Contact us

Grant Thornton is a leading financial and business adviser. We provide personalised assurance, tax and specialist advisory services to over 40,000 individuals, privately-held businesses and public interest entities. Our Technology and Media team is made up of experienced sector specialists who provide industry-specific, reliable and candid solutions to the challenges facing today’s businesses.

LizBrionPartner – TaxT +44 (0)20 7728 2326 E [email protected]

Wendy HartPartner – Corporate Finance AdvisoryT +44 (0)1865 799 938E [email protected]

Mark HenshawPartner and Head of MediaT +44 (0)20 7728 2573E [email protected]

Ricky LaneSenior Manager – AssuranceT +44 (0118) 9559 167E [email protected]

Steve LeithDirector – AssuranceT +44 (0)20 7728 2868 E [email protected]

Vasu MajumdarAssociate Director – Corporate Finance AdvisoryT +44 (0)20 7728 3455E [email protected]

Andy MorganPartner and TMT Sector Leader – Corporate Finance AdvisoryT +44 (0)20 7865 2626E [email protected]

JamesPeckManager – TaxT +44 (0)20 7728 2257E [email protected]

HelenePanzarinoGrowth Manager – GrowthAcceleratorT +44 (0)20 7728 3321E [email protected]

Jeremy ReadPartner – AssuranceT +44 (0)1908 359 589E [email protected]

Alison SeekingsPartner – AssuranceT +44 (0)1223 225 603E [email protected]

Nick WatsonPartner – Assurance and Head of TechnologyT +44 (0)1189 559 221E [email protected]

Grant Thornton TMT - early stage support

Economy & Finance

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