Maven delivers profitable exit for iAM Compliant

Maven has successfully exited its investment in iAM Compliant (iAM), following the company's acquisition by The Key Group. The exit has delivered a strong return for Maven-managed funds following a period in which iAM’s annual recurring revenue grew from approximately £0.6 million to £3.2 million.

Maven invested a total of £3.5 million in iAM through a combination of funding from the first Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund, Maven’s VCTs and Maven Investor Partners. Funding from NPIF and the VCTs provided growth capital to support the company's expansion, while a subsequent investment from Maven Investor Partners facilitated a partial 'cash out' in 2024, demonstrating Maven's ability to support ambitious businesses at multiple stages of their growth journey.

iAM has developed a market-leading cloud-based software platform used across the education sector. The business enables schools and multi-academy trusts to manage estates, facilities, statutory compliance, sustainability initiatives and capital planning through a single digital platform. Alongside its core software offering, the company also operates a complementary eLearning and training platform serving education and enterprise customers.

Following a strategic focus on growing its core SaaS offering, iAM delivered significant commercial progress during Maven’s investment. Licensed revenue grew by 88% and average revenue per customer more than doubled over the past 18 months. This growth was supported by an enhanced commercial strategy, continued product innovation and growing demand from schools and trusts for digital compliance and estate management solutions. 

The acquirer, private equity backed The Key Group, is an AI-enabled, cloud-native school management platform serving more than 20,000 schools. The acquisition strengthens the Group's mission to transform the way schools work by adding a specialist estates and compliance management solution to its suite of education software services.

“Maven understood our vision from the outset and shared our belief in the opportunity to build a category-leading software platform for the education sector. Throughout our partnership Maven have provided constructive challenge, strategic support and access to their network that helped us scale the business and deliver value for our clients. 

We are incredibly proud of what the team has achieved and excited about the opportunities that lie ahead as part of The Key Group. The combination brings together complementary strengths and creates a powerful platform to support more schools across the UK.”

Luke Pargeter, CEO at iAM Compliant

"Luke and the team have built an outstanding business with a deep understanding of the challenges facing schools and academy trusts. What has impressed us most has been their willingness to evolve and execute at pace, sharpening the company's focus, strengthening its commercial capabilities and creating a genuinely market-leading solution. 

This investment also demonstrates the breadth of Maven's offering. We were able to support the business through successive stages of its development and enable management to partially de-risk through an equity release when key operational and financial targets had been achieved. We wish the team every success in the next stage of its journey."

Karen de Meza, Partner at Maven