Boutique fund manager Global Merces has launched a closed-end fund for media investment opportunities, looking to raise $80-100 million over the next few months. ‘Media Ventures’ has assembled a who’s who of media to advise it.
Holly Grofski, the 31-year-old founder and chief executive of Global Merces, has not only put together an interesting team for the investment strategy, she has also created a technology platform to make it easier for small investors to access the fund.
At a briefing in Sydney last week she said that the ‘Media Ventures’ fund was a “truly unparalleled” offering. The advisory team includes Sander Schwartz, a former president of Warner Brothers and Sony Pictures’ entertainment family group, Jon Penn, a former chief executive of BBC Worldwide, and Ben Grubbs, a former head of ‘global talent’ at YouTube. The portfolio manager for the fund is Adam Schoff.
Grofski said that early stage investment opportunities included an animated children’s television series, commissioned in Australia, a gaming company, a developer of virtual reality content and a social media ‘influencer’ platform.
(Sadly, the fund will not be investing in news content providers.)
She said that she wanted to bring alternative investments, such as new media opportunities, to mum-and-dad investors, and therefore the fund was being marketed to the wholesale/retail sector.
The company had also developed its own technology to allow easy “onboarding” for investors – called ‘Fund ID’.
Schoff said the fund’s aim was to deliver double-digit annual returns, particularly focused on providing an income stream, such as through the purchase of royalties.
Greg Bright is publisher of Investor Strategy News (Australia)