Parking services company Adaptis Solutions has been sold for a 2.4x cash-on-cash return for investors by AXM Venture Capital to PayPoint.

The transaction represents the first time The North West Fund for Digital & Creative (managed by AXM Venture Capital) has secured an exit, and is also the maiden cash realisation for the equity side of The North West Fund.

Set up in December 2011, The North West Fund is divided into four pure equity pots (Venture Capital, Biomedical, Energy & Environmental and Digital & Creative) alongside two quasi-equity and debt options (Mezzanine and Loans Plus).

The North West Fund for Venture Capital was the first to complete a deal back in February 2011 when it injected £100,000 into Manchester-based tour operator Glamorous Travel.

Exited business Adaptis was backed by the Digital & Creative arm in June 2012 when it received a £250,000 investment. The company’s services include electronic parking permits, automatic number plat recognition systems for car parks and penalty charge notices.

More on the North West Fund for Digital & Creative:

• First funding deal for Connect Technology Group
• Camiloo and Autology take Digital & Creative Fund finance

Manni Marway, founder and CEO of Adaptis, comments, ‘The North West Fund for Digital & Creative has been a pro-active and supportive shareholder since its involvement in 2012 and I am delighted their investment and advice has been rewarded with a successful exit.’

Adaptis was founded in 2005 by Marway, who then brought in Kuldip Pardesi as chief technology officer and Graham Smith as chief operating officer. With its head office in Liverpool, the company was bootstrapped before securing the backing of the Digital and Creative fund.

David Smith, investment director at AXM Venture Capital, adds, ‘We are delighted to have demonstrated our ability not only to identify and nurture successful growth businesses, but also to achieve a profitable exit: this realisation provides additional finance for the legacy fund which will invest in future generations of North West businesses.’