Red Acre Ventures Backs Hilbert’s Fundraising Haul, Secures $2M Loan Facility
Key Takeaways:
- Red Acre Ventures participates in Hilbert’s directed issue by facilitating a $2m loan agreement.
- Hilbert, a Sweden-listed digital asset manager, will use the proceeds to expand operations.
Red Acre Ventures Secures Hilbert’s $2M Loan Facility
Venture capital funding may have slowed this year, but one corner of the industry is a major focus for bargain-hunting dealmakers. Red Acre Ventures, a privately-owned investment vehicle part of the Red Acre Group, participated in the directed issue of Hilbert Group’s shares in show of support to the burgeoning digital-asset space.
Hilbert Group is a Sweden-based publicly traded asset manager with an emphasis on cryptocurrency and disruptive technologies. The firm conducted a directed issue of B-shares totaling SEK 5.7 million ($520,000) in a bid to raise funds, inject fresh liquidity, and expand its operations.
Further, to ensure a smooth and uninterrupted flow of capital, Hilbert Group’s loan facility was secured by Red Acre Ventures. The arrangement amounts to SEK 22.2 million ($2 million) of dry powder, which would be readily available to Hilbert any time it needs fast access to liquidity. An additional SEK 5.5 million ($500,000) would be allocated to the loan facility to bolster the company’s reserves.
A Strategic Partnership Toward Value Creation
“We are very pleased to get the Red Acre team not only as an investor,” said Hilbert CEO Niclas Sandstrom, adding that the VC firm is also a “strategic partner as an engaged and committed owner in the digital asset industry.”
With this fundraising haul, Hilbert is well capitalized to fuel its growth initiatives and carry out its investment plans.
On the other end of the spectrum, Red Acre Ventures’ Principal Stuart Connolly, who was given a board seat at Hilbert, praised the strategic partnership by expressing his trust in the institutional investor. “Hilbert Group has been laser focused on building institutional grade investment solutions for years,” Connolly said, adding that Hilbert has come a long way since the first Red Acre Ventures investment in 2021.
By the Numbers
Red Acre Ventures’ participation in the latest funding round boosted its stake in Hilbert Group to 4.1%. The directed issue – a sale of shares to targeted investors – consisted of roughly 3.5 million shares, each priced at SEK 1.66, bringing the total number of shares in circulation to just over 52 million.
The loan facility – a reserve from which the company recipient can borrow funds – is capped at a 3-year timeframe at a 10% annual interest rate, payable on loan maturity, i.e., end of the three-year period. The loan facility is backed by selected Hilbert assets pledged as collateral.
This funding round is the latest in a string of venture capital injections into the crypto space, aimed at building out the foundations of the Web3 ecosystem.