The global economy in 2024 continued to be characterised by geopolitical tensions, with ongoing war in our vicinity. Falling inflation has led to declining market interest rates, but this has not yet been reflected in increased activity in the transaction market, and access to risk capital within venture capital remains challenging. Throughout the year, several European reports have highlighted the need to strengthen European competitiveness in relation to the US and China, with access to capital for innovative companies being a crucial piece of the puzzle. This aligns with our vision; that Saminvest should strengthen Sweden’s competitiveness by investing in privately managed venture capital funds.

I am proud that Saminvest has achieved two important strategic objectives set by its owner at the time of the company’s establishment. The first objective accomplished was the divestment of all 67 directly owned portfolio companies in Fouriertransform and Inlandsinnovation before the end of 2026. The final holding was divested during the year. The capital from these companies and the proceeds from their sales have continuously been transferred to Saminvest’s fund investment operations. Since the divestment process began, liquidity of just over SEK 3 billion has been generated, after deductions for follow-on investments and sales costs, leading to a positive result of just over SEK 1 billion.

The second strategic objective achieved during the year was that the proportion of committed capital should amount to at least 80 per cent of total capital by the end of 2026. By the end of 2024, committed capital had reached just over SEK 5 billion, corresponding to 87 per cent of total capital. Today, the capital is distributed across 26 funds and seven business angel programmes with 14 angel investment companies, collectively covering large parts of Sweden. Since 2017, Saminvest, together with private investors, has contributed to providing risk capital to over 650 innovative companies, enabling approximately 5,500 Swedish jobs.

The challenging global economic situation has resulted in significant difficulties in raising capital for funds and angel investment companies throughout the year, leading to longer times to reach a first closing. This became evident during the year, as Saminvest committed capital to only two funds, which is fewer than in the previous year. Saminvest committed approximately SEK 330 million to these funds, one of which focuses on general tech companies and the other on early-stage climate-oriented tech companies.

During the year, Saminvest conducted two investment indicators, which indicated challenges in raising capital within our three main areas: tech, impact, and life sciences. Saminvest’s role as an anchor investor is therefore crucial in the current market climate.

As part of its mandate, Saminvest aims to contribute to the development of the venture capital market and its ecosystem across the country. During the year, Saminvest invested in the angel investment company Skåne Ventures I, which will become one of Sweden’s largest investment structures for early-stage startups. Furthermore, Saminvest invested in the third generation of angel investment company Arctic Ventures Tre, with the ambition of building a stronger financing ecosystem for innovative companies in Norrbotten and Västerbotten.

Gender equality is an important evaluation parameter both in connection with new investment proposals and in ongoing discussions with fund teams. This work has led to an increase in the proportion of women in investment teams from 34 per cent to 38 per cent during the year. The proportion of female CEOs in the funds’ portfolio companies increased from 19 per cent to 20 per cent. The number of female investors or mixed teams with at least one woman in the angel investment companies is 148, representing 29 per cent of the total number of investors. An increasing share of female business angels, both as investors and CEOs in portfolio companies, will over time have a positive impact on the proportion of women in investment teams.

One of Saminvest’s strategic goals for sustainable value creation is to increase the proportion of funds that quantify the impact of their investments on the global goals set out in the UN’s Agenda 2030. This area is developing rapidly, and this year’s evaluation work has shown encouraging results, with the majority of funds now quantifying the impact of their investments on the global goals.

After my first year as CEO of Saminvest, I am pleased to note that, through our joint efforts, we have achieved two significant milestones in Saminvest’s development, laying a solid foundation for our continued work. Saminvest is well-positioned to continue strengthening the Swedish venture capital ecosystem, thereby ensuring that innovative early-stage companies can access risk capital in the long term. By investing in privately managed venture capital funds, we contribute to enhancing Sweden’s competitiveness.

March 2025,

Magnus Skåninger, CEO