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APEF Aberdeen Prv

2.00
0.00 (0.00%)
28 Mar 2024 - Closed
Delayed by 15 minutes
Share Name Share Symbol Market Type Share ISIN Share Description
Aberdeen Prv LSE:APEF London Ordinary Share GG00BFMDJ822 STERLING PART SHS NPV
  Price Change % Change Share Price Bid Price Offer Price High Price Low Price Open Price Shares Traded Last Trade
  0.00 0.00% 2.00 0.00 00:00:00
Industry Sector Turnover Profit EPS - Basic PE Ratio Market Cap
0 0 N/A 0

Aberdeen Private Equity Fund Ltd Annual Financial Report (1994J)

26/06/2017 4:05pm

UK Regulatory


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TIDMAPEF

RNS Number : 1994J

Aberdeen Private Equity Fund Ltd

26 June 2017

ABERDEEN PRIVATE EQUITY FUND LIMITED

AUDITED ANNUAL FINANCIAL REPORT ANNOUNCEMENT

for the year ended 31 March 2017

STRATEGIC REPORT - COMPANY SUMMARY AND FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

 
 Net Asset Value total                      Share price total return{A} 
  return{A} 
 +17.5%                                     +38.5% 
 2016                             +6.6%     2016                    +2.3% 
 {A} Total return represents capital return plus 
  dividends reinvested on the dividend date. 
 Discount to Net                            Ongoing charges (excluding 
  Asset Value                                performance fee) 
 23.1%                                      1.6% 
 2016                             34.1%     2016                     1.9% 
 Source: Aberdeen Asset Management & Morningstar 
 

STRATEGIC REPORT - OVERVIEW OF STRATEGY

Introduction

The Company seeks to attract long term private and institutional investors wanting to benefit from the growth prospects of a diversified portfolio of PE investments. The business of the Company is that of an investment company and the Directors do not envisage any change in this activity in the foreseeable future.

Strategy

Further details on the Company's Strategy can be found under "Outlook" in the Chairman's Statement and in the Manager's Review.

Duration

The Articles of Incorporation require the Company to propose a continuation vote at every third Annual General Meeting and the last triennial continuation resolution was passed at the Annual General Meeting ("AGM") held on 13 September 2016. However, with effect from 13 September 2016, the Directors have undertaken to propose a continuation vote annually at each AGM. Accordingly, the next continuation resolution, proposing that the Company continue its business as a closed-ended investment company, will be proposed at the AGM to be held on 15 September 2017.

Investment Objective and Policy

The investment objective of the Company is to maximise total returns to shareholders, principally through long-term capital gains. The Company seeks to achieve its objective through investment in a diversified portfolio of PE funds and direct co-investments. The Company may also hold direct holdings, as an ancillary part of its portfolio, in hedge funds, other specialty funds, quoted and unquoted companies and securities, including fixed interest securities, cash-equivalent investments and cash.

The Company will not invest more than 10%, in aggregate, of the value of its gross assets in other investment trusts or investment companies admitted to the Official List, provided that this restriction does not apply to investments in any such investment trusts or investment companies which themselves have stated investment policies to invest no more than 15% of their gross assets in other investment trusts or investment companies admitted to the Official List. In any event, the Company will not invest more than 15% of its gross assets in other investment trusts or investment companies admitted to the Official List.

Investment Process and Investment Opportunities

The Manager's key objective is to select PE managers which it believes will produce, over time, superior risk-adjusted returns in their chosen investment strategy and which can demonstrate significant competitive advantages compared with other funds in their peer group. The focus is on the individual merits of investments, but the industry and economic environment in which that manager is operating is also taken into consideration.

The investment process is systematic and disciplined. Due diligence is at its heart and typically around three to four months are spent analysing a potential manager, a process which includes a number of on-site visits with that manager. The process culminates in the provision of a detailed report that is then presented to, and discussed by, the Manager's Investment Committee (the "Investment Committee"), where a selection decision is made on all potential funds. The Investment Committee has to approve an investment before it can be recommended to the Company's Board for approval. The Manager will also conduct operational and legal due diligence on the potential manager and proposed investment.

On-going monitoring is similarly robust, and includes regular reviews of market conditions and their potential effect on the underlying funds and any direct PE investment. In response to the conclusions drawn from this process, the Investment Committee recommends to the Company's Board whether or not to retain an investment.

Asset Allocation

The Company seeks to hold a portfolio of investments which is broadly diversified by industry sector, investment stage and size of investment, as well as by strategy. The Company intends to invest the majority of its portfolio in the buyout, growth capital, distressed and venture capital funds sectors. Up to 25% of the portfolio, calculated at time of investment, may be invested into co-investments.

Risk Diversification

The Manager actively monitors the Company's portfolio and attempts to mitigate risk through diversification. Not more than 20% of the NAV, at the time of investment, is permitted to be invested in any single investment. If the Company acquires a portfolio of investments in a single transaction, this limitation will be applied individually to each of the underlying investments acquired and not to the portfolio as a whole.

Gearing

On 31 March 2016 the Company entered into a secured GBP40 million three year committed revolving credit facility, with Lloyds Bank Plc ("Lloyds"). The credit facility is available for general corporate and working capital purposes including bridging capital contribution commitments in accordance with the investment policy. The Company's gearing policy is to ensure that its aggregate borrowings do not exceed a maximum of 25% of NAV. During the year to 31 March 2017 and up to the date of this report, the Company has not made any drawings under the Lloyds facility. The Company's obligations under the facility are secured against the Company's assets pursuant the terms of a Guernsey security agreement and an English security deed.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

The Board uses a number of financial performance measures to assess the Company's success in achieving its objective and determine the progress of the Company in pursuing its investment policy. The main KPIs identified by the Board in relation to the Company which are considered at each Board meeting are as follows:

 
 KPI                Description 
 NAV and NAV        The Board considers the Company's NAV 
  total return       total return figures to be the best 
                     indicator of performance over time and 
                     these are therefore the main indicators 
                     of performance used by the Board. A 
                     table showing the NAV total return over 
                     one, three and five years is shown in 
                     the Annual Report. 
 Share price        The Board also monitors the price at 
  and Share          which the Company's Shares trade relative 
  price total        to the Company's peer group and a number 
  return             of major indices on a total return basis 
                     over time. Graphs showing the total 
                     share price return against the peer 
                     group and major indices are shown in 
                     the Annual Report. 
 Discount/Premium   The discount/premium relative to the 
  to NAV             NAV per Share represented by the Share 
                     price is closely monitored by the Board. 
                     The objective is to minimise fluctuations 
                     in the discount/premium relative to 
                     similar investment companies and in 
                     seeking to achieve this objective the 
                     Company may, subject to market conditions 
                     and if considered to be in the best 
                     interests of shareholders, use share 
                     buy backs or the issuance of new shares. 
                     A graph showing the share price discount 
                     relative to the NAV is also shown in 
                     the Annual Report. 
 Ongoing Charges    The Board monitors the Company's operating 
  Ratio              costs carefully. Ongoing charges for 
                     the year and previous year are disclosed 
                     under "Strategic Report - Results" below. 
 

Risk Management

There are a number of risks which, if realised, could have a material adverse effect on the Company and its financial condition, performance and prospects. The Board has undertaken a robust review of the principal risks and uncertainties facing the Company including those that would threaten its business model, future performance, solvency or liquidity. Those principal risks are disclosed in the table below together with a description of the mitigating actions taken by the Board. The principal risks associated with an investment in the Company's Shares are published monthly on the Company's factsheet or they can be found in the pre-investment disclosure document published by the Manager, both of which are available on the Company's website. The Board reviews the risks and uncertainties faced by the Company in the form of a risk matrix and heat map at its Audit Committee meetings.

 
 Description                         Mitigating Action 
 Investment strategy and             The Board keeps under review 
  objectives - the setting            the level of discount at 
  of an unattractive strategic        which the Company's Shares 
  proposition to the market           trade, in absolute terms 
  and the failure to adapt            and relative to its peer 
  to changes in investor              group, as well as the investment 
  demand may lead to the              objective and policy. It 
  Company becoming unattractive       regularly reviews the Company's 
  to investors, a decreased           strategy and receives regular 
  demand for shares and               updates from the Manager 
  a widening discount.                and investor relations reports 
                                      from the Broker on the market. 
                                      The Board is updated at 
                                      each Board meeting on the 
                                      make-up of and any movements 
                                      in the shareholder register. 
 Investment portfolio and            The Board sets, and monitors, 
  investment management               its investment restrictions 
  - poor investment selection,        and guidelines, and receives 
  inadequate due diligence,           regular Board reports which 
  lack of effective monitoring        include performance reporting 
  and investing outside               on the implementation of 
  of the investment restrictions      the investment policy, the 
  and guidelines set by               investment process and application 
  the Board could result              of the Board guidelines. 
  in poor performance and             The Manager attends each 
  inability to meet the               quarterly Board meeting. 
  Company's objectives. 
 Gearing - increasing the            The Company has a GBP40 
  level of gearing could              million credit facility 
  result in the Company               that may be used to fund 
  becoming over-geared,               future commitments. The 
  unable to meet its financial        Board sets a gearing limit 
  obligations, or unable              and receives regular updates 
  to take advantage of potential      from the Manager on the 
  opportunities and any               assets and liabilities of 
  of these could result               the Company and reviews 
  in a loss of shareholder            these at each Board meeting. 
  value.                              The Board receives regular 
                                      reports and modelling from 
                                      the Manager on the likely 
                                      pattern of future calls 
                                      and the expected rate of 
                                      realisations from the portfolio. 
 Financial - the financial           The financial risks associated 
  risks associated with               with the Company include 
  the portfolio could result          overcommitment risk, market 
  in losses to the Company.           risk, liquidity risk and 
                                      credit risk, all of which 
                                      are mitigated through regular 
                                      consultation with the Manager. 
                                      The Manager reports to the 
                                      Board using a range of forecast 
                                      scenarios to determine the 
                                      impact of future drawdowns 
                                      and the likely rate at which 
                                      future realisations will 
                                      generate cash. The Manager 
                                      monitors the Company's liquidity 
                                      on a frequent basis and 
                                      provides regular updates 
                                      to the Board. Further details 
                                      of the steps taken to mitigate 
                                      the financial risks associated 
                                      with the portfolio are set 
                                      out in note 20 to the financial 
                                      statements. 
 Operational - the Company           The Board receives annual 
  is dependent on third               reports from the Manager 
  parties for the provision           (ISAE 3402 and six monthly 
  of all systems and services         internal controls reports) 
  (in particular, those               and from Ipes (AAF 01/06) 
  of the Aberdeen Group               on internal controls and 
  and Ipes) and any control           risk management and receives 
  failures and gaps in these          compliance and administration 
  systems and services could          reports at each Board meeting. 
  result in a loss or damage          Further details of the internal 
  to the Company. In addition,        controls which are in place 
  failure to comply with              are set out in the Directors' 
  relevant regulation (including      Report. The Board relies 
  Guernsey Company Law,               upon its third party service 
  the Financial Services              providers to ensure the 
  and Markets Act, the Alternative    Company's compliance with 
  Investment Fund Managers            applicable law and regulations 
  Directive, Accounting               and from time to time employs 
  Standards and the FCA's             external advisers to advise 
  Listing Rules, Disclosure           on specific concerns. 
  Guidance and Transparency 
  Rules and Prospectus Rules) 
  may have an impact on 
  the Company. 
 PE Investment - PE investments      Under its investment policy 
  are long-term in nature             the Company may participate 
  and they may take a considerable    in co-investments and acquire 
  period to be realised.              secondary investments as 
  Unquoted investments are            well as subscribing for 
  less readily realisable             LP interests. The Manager 
  than quoted securities.             reviews the valuations produced 
  Such investments may therefore      by the GPs of LP investments 
  carry a higher degree               and reports to the Board. 
  of risk than quoted securities.     The Manager seeks to mitigate 
  In valuing its investments          performance risk through 
  the Company relies to               effective investment allocation 
  a significant extent on             and the selection of high 
  the accuracy of financial           quality investments whose 
  and other information               managements have strong 
  the funds in its portfolio          track records. 
  provided to the Manager; 
  this information is typically 
  unaudited and updated 
  on a quarterly or six-monthly 
  basis. Furthermore, PE 
  Investments valuations 
  are subject to the economic 
  performance of the countries 
  that the companies are 
  based in or trade with, 
  wider global economic 
  trends and the performance 
  of listed peer multiples 
  which may influence valuations 
  significantly. If public 
  markets decline or economic 
  growth falters then this 
  will impact negatively. 
 

Promoting the Company

The Board recognises the importance of communicating the long-term attractions of your Company to prospective investors both for improving liquidity and enhancing the value and rating of the Company's Shares. The Board believes an effective way to achieve this is through subscription to and participation in the promotional programme run by the Aberdeen Group on behalf of a number of investment companies under its management. The Company supports the Aberdeen Group's investor relations programme which involves regional roadshows, promotional and public relations campaigns. The purpose of these initiatives is both to communicate effectively with existing shareholders and to gain new shareholders with the aim of improving liquidity and enhancing the value and rating of the Company's Shares. The Company's financial contribution to the programmes is matched by the Aberdeen Group. Aberdeen Group's Head of Brand reports at least annually to the Board giving analysis of the promotional activities as well as updates on the shareholder register and any changes in the make-up of that register.

Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive ("AIFMD")

The Company has appointed AFML as its AIFM. The management agreement with AFML complies with the AIFMD regulatory regime and under this arrangement, AFML has been appointed to provide investment management, risk management, administration and promotional services. The Company's portfolio is managed by AAML by way of a group delegation agreement in place between AFML and AAML. In addition, AFML has sub-delegated promotional services to AAML.

AFML has notified the UK Financial Conduct Authority in accordance with the requirements of the UK National Private Placement Regime of its intention to market the Company (as a non-EEA AIF under the Directive) in the UK. The AIFMD requires AFML, as the AIFM of the Company, to make available to investors certain information prior to such investors' investment in the Company. The Company's Pre-investment Disclosure Document ("PIDD") is available for viewing on the Company's website.

Board Diversity

The Board recognises the importance of having a range of skilled, experienced individuals with the right knowledge in order to allow the Board to fulfill its obligations. When Board positions become available as a result of retirement or resignation, the Company ensures that a diverse group of candidates is considered. No new appointments have been made to the Board since 2009, and at 31 March 2017 there were four male Directors. The Board's Statement on diversity is set out in the Annual Report.

Environmental, Social and Human Rights Issues

The Company has no employees as all its executive functions are undertaken by the Manager and other service providers. There are no disclosures to be made in respect of employees. The Company's socially responsible investment policy is set out in the Annual Report.

Global Greenhouse Gas Emissions

The Company has no greenhouse gas emissions to report from the operations of its business, nor does it have direct responsibility for any other emissions producing sources.

Viability Statement

The Company does not have a formal fixed period strategic plan but the Board formally considers risks and strategy at least three times per year. The Board considers the Company to be a long term investment vehicle, but for the purposes of this viability statement has decided that a period of five years is an appropriate period over which to report. The Board considers that this period is more representative of a typical PE cycle and reflects a balance between the desirability of looking out over a long term horizon and the inherent uncertainties involved.

In assessing the viability of the Company over the review period the Directors have focussed upon the following factors:

   -      The principal risks detailed in the Strategic Report; 
   -      The ongoing relevance of the Company's investment objective in the current environment; 
   -      The historical level of demand for the Company's Shares; 

- The flexibility of the Company's GBP40 million loan facility which matures in March 2019; and,

- Financial modelling including the expected future rate of drawdowns versus likely rate of realisations under varying market conditions.

Taking into account the Company's current position and the potential impact of its principal risks and uncertainties, the Directors have a reasonable expectation that the Company will be able to continue in operation and meet its liabilities as they fall due for a period of five years from the date of this Report. In making this assessment, the Board has considered that factors such as significant economic or stock market volatility, a substantial reduction in the liquidity of the portfolio, or changes in investor sentiment could have an impact on its assessment of the Company's prospects and viability in the future. In particular the Board recognises that this assessment makes the assumption that the resolution to continue the Company, which is now put to shareholders annually at each AGM, is passed at the AGM on 15 September 2017 and in the four subsequent years.

Future

Many of the non-performance related trends likely to affect the Company in the future are common across all closed ended investment companies, such as the attractiveness of investment companies as investment vehicles and the impact of regulatory changes (including MiFID II and Packaged Retail Investment and Insurance Products). These factors need to be viewed alongside the outlook for the Company, both generally and specifically, in relation to the portfolio. The Board's view on the general outlook for the Company can be found in the Chairman's Statement, whilst the Manager's views on the outlook for the portfolio are included in the Manager's review.

Howard Myles

Chairman

26 June 2017

STRATEGIC REPORT - CHAIRMAN'S STATEMENT

I am pleased to present to shareholders the Annual Report and financial statements of the Company for the financial year ended 31 March 2017.

Performance and Dividend

During the period under review the Net Asset Value ("NAV") per Share rose by 14.2% to 152.24p. Inclusive of the two dividends, 2.2p and 2.0p (total 4.2 pence) paid respectively in September 2016 and March 2017, shareholders received a sterling NAV total return of 17.5% for the period.

The movement in NAV was driven by positive investment performance and by the exposure in the portfolio to US assets as a result of the strengthening in the US dollar against sterling over the year.

Owing to timing differences in committing to new private equity funds and co-investments, and the varying nature of many of the underlying assets, there is no appropriate benchmark with which to compare the Company's performance.

At the September 2016 Annual General Meeting the Company announced that in the absence of unforeseen circumstances, the Board would expect to pay each year minimum total dividends of 4.0p per share per annum, commencing with two dividends of 2.0p per Share relating to this financial year to 31 March 2017 (2016 - 2.2p). This represents a change from the previous distribution policy whereby the Company would distribute approximately 10% of the received distributions (net of recallable distributions) each year, subject to a minimum of at least 1.0p per share per annum.

Accordingly, the first dividend of 2.0p for the Half Year to September 2016 was paid in March 2017. The Board is therefore recommending a final dividend of 2.0p per Share, making a total payment for the financial year of 4.0p per Share (2016 - 2.2p). Subject to approval of shareholders at the AGM on 15 September 2017, this will be payable on 20 September 2017 to shareholders on the register on 18 August 2017.

Share Capital Management

During the period under review no Shares were purchased in the market. The Board will continue to monitor the level of discount to NAV at which the shares trade, both in absolute terms and against the discounts of comparable companies. The Board has sought approval to buy back Shares and is willing to do so, but will continue to take into account the market capitalisation of the Company and compare potential returns available from new investments.

Discount

On 31 March 2017 the share price discount to NAV stood at 23.1%, a substantial tightening from the 31 March 2016 level of 34.1%. Since the period end the NAV has decreased to 148.23p per Share and the discount has narrowed to 10.6% (based on the NAV as at 30 April 2017 and Share price of 132.5p as at 23 June 2017).

As I discussed in my Half Year review, discounts (to NAV) for most listed private equity vehicles have remained a feature of this Investment Company subset for most of the last decade. I have also discussed in a number of my previous reviews the likely reasons for this and, broadly speaking, these remain the same investor perceptions of private equity valuations' robustness, and also the more constrained share liquidity relative to listed Investment Companies in other sectors.

Nevertheless, more recently the sector has rerated. This appears to be being driven by ongoing strong NAV growth and continued realisations for private equity in general. More fundamentally there appears to be a better understanding across a wide range of listed private equity buyers that the drivers of growth and realisations are solidly in place. These drivers range from simple demand for the asset class (greater cash flows driving more deals, and therefore, realisations) to the clear evidence that operational intervention in privately owned businesses does have measurable impacts on longer term success and the record of achieving realisations at prices above book value.

As noted in my Half Year review I felt that the Company's then discount of 27.4% was unjustified and I believe that this remains the case. As the value in the sector has become more widely recognised, a number of other listed private equity funds have rerated to tighter levels than your Company. Recent history in this sector suggests that these anomalies, in the absence of material NAV performance differences (which do not appear to be the case currently) tend to be short-lived, and that a process of discount equalisation can occur.

Your Board believes that with the high level of engagement of your Manager with existing and potential shareholders, ongoing strong returns and further development of the portfolio, there remains a compelling case for investment in the Company's Shares. Specifically addressing the Share liquidity aspect, the Manager's high level of focus on prospective shareholders, combined with the efforts of the Company's broker, is playing an important role in improving our Share liquidity. Consequently we have seen a material recent improvement in shareholder register turnover and we believe that these efforts may lead to further tightening in the Company's discount.

Gearing

On 31 March 2016 the Company entered into a GBP40m revolving credit facility with Lloyds Banking Group. The facility was renewed and increased to support the higher level of investment that took place throughout 2016, and to ensure efficient capital usage. The Manager does expect to draw on this facility though the timing of that is dependent on the pace of investment, underlying capital calls / distributions and/or any secondary market disposals.

Continuation Vote

In 2011 the Company's Articles of Incorporation were amended to introduce a three-yearly continuation vote with the first vote being passed in 2013. The Company's second three-yearly vote took place in September 2016 and was passed with a high level of Shareholder support. At the Annual General Meeting convened on 13 September 2016 the Company announced that (in addition to the revised Dividend policy, above) it would hold an annual continuation vote (to replace the existing triennial vote) commencing with the AGM in September 2017. At the same time a new, reduced and simplified management fee was introduced.

Your Board believes that it is in all shareholders' interests that the Company continues. Whilst large buyout names command high pricing in the secondary market, they are not all at par valuations. The Company's increased focus on investing in smaller deal size GPs is expected to deliver better performance (relative to large buyout) in the longer term, however secondary valuations can be wider. Any forced disposal programme could be to shareholders' disadvantage through crystallisation of those wider discounts on disposal. Likewise, whilst co-investing can also help with longer term fee mitigation, co-investments tend to have lower liquidity in the secondary market and higher discounts. Any forced divestiture would, we believe, be to shareholders' disadvantage.

Having taken soundings from our larger shareholders your Board believes that the majority of shareholders support continuation. Consequently, and combined with the outlook for the Company and the secondary pricing referred to above, your Board recommends that shareholders vote in favour of the Company's continuation.

Aberdeen Asset Management

The Board notes the merger between the parent company of the Company's Manager, Aberdeen Asset Management PLC, and Standard Life PLC which, subject to regulatory approvals, is expected to complete in August this year. In the interim, the Board will continue to monitor developments closely to ensure that the management team remains focused upon the interests of the Company and its shareholders.

Activity Levels

Your Manager has continued to be active over the year, completing the following transactions:

Primary Fund Commitments:

   -    MTS Health Investors VI, a US lower mid-market healthcare focused fund; 
   -    Northzone VIII, a Nordic venture capital fund; 
   -    Nazca IV, a Spanish lower-mid market fund; and, 
   -    Summa Equity I, a first time Nordic regional fund. 

Co-investments:

   -    Imprima, an Italian digital textile printing business; 
   -    Source Photonics, a global communications and data connectivity business; and, 

- Indecomm Global Services, an IT services business with operations in SE Asia, India and the US.

Secondary Market Transactions:

   -    The purchase of Sagard 3, a 2013 vintage French lower mid-market fund; and, 
   -    The sale of Thomas H Lee Parallel Fund VI, a 2006 vintage Primary US buyout fund. 

Subsequent to the financial year-end your Manager completed one further co-investment which was TWMA, a UK headquartered business focused on waste disposal for the oil and gas industry.

Portfolio Performance

I am pleased to report that strong investment performance has been generated from a wide range of investments from GPs such as Thoma Bravo and Silverlake (relating to their 2008 and 2007 vintages funds, respectively), and also more recent GP additions such as The Jordan Company and CCMP, which relate to 2013 and 2014 vintage fund commitments. I also note that this has been achieved over a period where your Manager has continued to make new investments, which has added a more recent 'J-curve' element to the portfolio, therefore acting as a shorter term drag on overall performance. The most material negative performance from a mature fund was from Lion Capital III, a consumer focused fund, which saw mark downs across a range of its portfolio companies. Whilst some of these adjustments relate to specific Lion portfolio company issues, we are seeing challenges across a range of consumer names, partly as this sector continues to adjust to the ongoing transition from physical to digital models. Further details of performance are given in the Manager's Review below.

Outlook

In my 2016 Half Yearly Report I expressed some concern over the uncertain policy direction in the US given the then imminent US election and also noted our caution on the Eurozone, due to continued growth issues in this region.

The outcome of the US election is now known, though uncertainty remains in a number of areas. Despite initial setbacks on dismantling 'Obamacare', the House of Representatives has now voted to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, with potential sweeping changes to the US Healthcare system. However, it remains to be seen whether the President will secure sufficient support in Congress to carry out other parts of his programme.

In Europe, political volatility seemed to ease after the May 2017 French Presidential vote and the calling of a snap UK general election for June 2017, where it was widely expected that Prime Minister May would prevail with an increased majority. The subsequent 'hung-parliament'([i]) result will probably lead to a change of approach to UK/EU Brexit negotiations (from both sides), increased volatility for sterling in the shorter term, and almost certainly further change in the UK political landscape. Slightly tempering this volatility, and looking further afield, the failure of Italy's main parties to agree on a new election law, could mean that Italian elections are now pushed out further to 2018.

Private Equity as an asset class has continued its strong post Global Financial Crisis run with further buoyant fund raising. With the substantial capital raised by PE funds in 2016 it is of little surprise to see the value of older, unspent private equity commitments ('dry powder') continue. In 2016 the value of these unspent commitments was estimated at $821bn. Much of this relates to mega sized LBO funds. Purchase multiples have remained at historically high levels, and while they appear to have decreased from their recent highs in 2015 and 2016, they remain expensive at 9.4x EBITDA.

Accordingly the Company's strategy is to continue to focus on those opportunities in the market that are differentiated in some respect, but also can access relatively attractive valuations. These are mainly to be found in smaller sized funds that are targeting smaller deals. Our 2016 investments in US manager MTS Health Investors and Spanish manager Nazca are typical of this strategy. The latter manager, by way of example, has a demonstrable track record in acquiring smaller, family owned businesses that may have experienced generational succession problems. It is these opportunities in more inefficient deal sourcing markets which your Manager continues to find attractive.

I noted in the Half Year review that the residual value in older vintage investments is reducing following continued exit activity. This remains the case, and as we indicated, your Manager is accelerating that process through opportunistic engagement with the private equity secondary market. The sale of 2006 vintage investment Thomas H Lee Parallel Fund VI is a good example of this.

Primary fund investment activity for this portfolio is likely to remain more muted for the remainder of 2017, with a greater focus on co-investments and investments that have a low proportion of unfunded commitments. These will typically be primary funds which have already made investments and where those deals remain carried at cost, or 'early secondaries', (like the recent Sagard 3 transaction, a 2013 vintage) that are no longer Primary funds due to time elapsed, but for specific reasons may have opened up the fund to new investors.

Finally, your Manager notes in its investment report that the largest funds being raised are accounting for an ever greater proportion of overall fund raising. There are important implications for the alignment of interests between General Partners (the private equity managers we invest in) and Limited Partners (investors into funds). Your Board is pleased that your Manager continues to push GPs hard on all manner of alignment issues. In a maturing market it remains vital that end investors' interests are as closely aligned to the originators of performance as possible.

Howard Myles

Chairman

26 June 2017

STRATEGIC REPORT - MANAGER'S REVIEW

At the end of March 2017, 84.9% of the Company's NAV was invested in 33 private equity funds and 10.3% in nine co-investments. 4.8% was held in cash([ii]) .

Performance Commentary

The 33 private equity funds in the Company's portfolio invest across a wide range of sectors, geographies and market capitalisations, providing exposure in aggregate to 370 underlying companies([iii]) .

In local currency terms the portfolio generated a total return of 8.8%([iv]) for the period under review. Thoma Bravo IX Fund LP, a 2008 commitment, was the single largest contributor to performance. Silver Lake Partners III LP and Resolute Fund III LP, respectively 2007 and 2013 investments also delivered strong returns. The investment portfolio's performance was helped by a considerable number (23([v]) ) of company exit events, whether by IPO, trade or secondary sale([vi]) from funds. The majority of these exits (18) were at a premium to held value. Further investment performance was delivered via uplifts in carrying value for ongoing investments.

We show below the movement of the Company's investment portfolio from the opening value to the closing value([vii]) :

Largest Positive Performance by Fund([viii])

 
 Fund                                Performance ($m) 
 Thoma Bravo IX Fund L.P.            +3.7 
 Silver Lake Partners III L.P.       +2.3 
 Resolute Fund III L.P.              +2.1 
 Pine Brook Capital Partners L.P.    +1.8 
 CCMP Capital Investors III L.P.     +1.8 
 Rest of the portfolio               +8.1 
 Total                               +19.8 
 

Thoma Bravo Fund IX, a US growth and buyout fund, saw Deltek and LANDesk Software produce the largest uplifts following their sales to Roper Technologies and Clearlake Capital respectively. This consistently strong performing fund is now drawing to the end of its life.

The remaining investments in Silver Lake III increased by 21% over 2016. Throughout the year the fund also provided liquidity for investors by selling shares of its positions in NYSE([ix]) listed Alibaba Group Holding Ltd and Godaddy Inc.

Transcendia (formerly Transilwrap Company) and DiversiTech Corporation were the main drivers for the performance of Resolute Fund III. The former manufactures plastic film for a range of end industries, and the latter provide parts for the HVAC([x]) trade.

Pine Brook Capital Partners' valuation uplift was driven by uplifts for Essent Group (NYSE listed), Forge Energy, Origin Bancorp and Green Bancorp (NASDAQ([xi]) listed).

The performance produced by CCMP Capital Investors III resulted from their investments in Jetro Cash & Carry, PQ Corporation and Jamieson Laboratories. PQ Corporation is a producer of speciality inorganic chemicals, and Jamieson Laboratories is a manufacturer and distributor of vitamins.

Largest Negative Performance by Fund([xii])

 
 Fund                             Performance ($m) 
 Lion Capital Fund III L.P.       -1.6 
 Hg Capital 5 Co-Invest 1 L.P.    -0.9 
 Northzone Ventures VI L.P.       -0.7 
 APEF Investments (Europe) 
  S.a.r.l.                        -0.2 
 Lion Seneca Cayman 3 L.P.        -0.2 
 Total                            -3.6 
 

Lion Capital Fund III's portfolio experienced decreases in value across a range of portfolio holdings including Bumble Bee, All Saints and John Varvatos. Lion had previously agreed a sale for Bumble Bee in 2015 which failed to complete.

HgCapital 5 Co-Invest1 LP, the holding partnership for our co-investment in Achilles, was marked down due to weaker growth at a time of increasing expenditure on technology and customer service. The business has some sensitivity to declining spending in the Oil and Gas industry.

Northzone VI, a venture capital fund, saw valuation declines in portfolio companies Widespace, Sticky and eProspects. Despite this, the fund remains a top performer, having already seen exits at significant multiples of cost. The fund's DPI([xiii]) ratio is greater than 1, meaning that all our original capital has been returned via these distributions.

The decline for APEF Investments (Europe) S.a.r.l., the holding vehicle for our recent investment in the Spanish lower mid-market fund Nazca IV, relates to the set-up costs for this holding structure. Nazca IV had a marginally positive year.

The small decrease in Lion Seneca Cayman 3, the holding partnership for our co-investment in French optical retailer Alain Afflelou, reflects a narrow miss on their budgeted EBITDA targets. Despite this, the business is performing well and developing a range of additional businesses and product lines.

Portfolio Activity

The Company was active over the financial year, completing a series of fund commitments, secondary transactions and co-investments.

New fund commitments were made to Northzone VIII (May 2016, EUR12m), MTS Health Investors IV (May 2016, $15m), Nazca Fund IV (October 2016, EUR10m) and Summa Equity Fund I (No.2) AB (November 2016, SEK145.5m).

A EUR10m "early secondary" investment in Sagard 3, a French mid-market fund was completed in December 2016.

Further information on all fund investments is provided in the "Private Equity Portfolio" section.

Three co-investments were also completed during the financial year. These were: Imprima, a consolidation play in European digital textile printing; Source Photonics, a global provider of communications and data connectivity components; and Indecomm Global Services([xiv]) , a cross-border IT services and outsourcing company with principal businesses centres in Singapore and Bangalore.

We also sold the Company's commitment in Thomas H Lee Parallel Fund VI LP in March 2017 through the private equity secondary market. This transaction (at a small discount) was part of an ongoing review of older portfolio vintages where there may be opportunities to exit in full, and subsequently reinvest into investments offering higher potential returns.

Calls for new investments

The Company paid calls of $48.4m over the year ($26.4m the previous year)([xv]) funding over 30 new investments and a number of follow-on investments.

 
 Five Largest Aggregate Fund Calls([xvi])    US$m 
 Sagard 3 FPCI                               5.2 
 Wisequity IV                                4.1 
 Resolute Fund III L.P.                      3.4 
 Exponent Private Equity Partners 
  III L.P.                                   3.1 
 MML Capital Partners Fund VI L.P.           3.0 
 

As discussed above, the Company committed EUR10m to an early secondary investment opportunity in Sagard 3 FPCI. This fund had already completed six investments, with a seventh signed shortly after the Company's commitment. As such Sagard 3 is 44% drawn as at March 2017 with a strong pipeline of new acquisitions.

The Company committed EUR10m to Wisequity IV in the previous financial year. This Italian lower mid-market fund has been particularly active acquiring Corob Group, Tapi Group and Taatus. It also merged two additional acquisitions, KBC Group and Guarisco Group into Imprima. This is a digital textile printing business into which we have also co-invested.

Resolute Fund III completed three new acquisitions during the period, Borchers Group Limited, Parts Authority and Dimora Brands. Follow-on acquisitions were also added for existing businesses, Vertical Bridge Holdings and Gulfstream Services.

Exponent III continued with its investment programme during the year, completing three investments. Following these acquisitions (Racing Post, Leisure Pass Group and The ENRA Group) the fund is now over 50% called.

Following the commitment to MML Capital Partners VI in December 2015, this fund has invested in seven companies to date. Two of these were acquired during this financial year, Universal Plant Services and SVP Groupe. With the exception of Learning Curve, all portfolio companies completed add-on acquisitions during the year.

Distributions

The Company received cash distributions of $39m during the period under review (2016: $42.8m).

 
 Five Largest Aggregate Fund Distributions([xvii])    US$m 
 Thoma Bravo IX Fund L.P.                             9.2 
 Silver Lake Partners III L.P.                        4.3 
 Gores Capital Partners III L.P.                      1.8 
 Lion Capital Fund III L.P.                           1.6 
 Coller International Partners V 
  L.P.                                                1.6 
 

The Thoma Bravo Fund IX was successful in securing exits for most remaining portfolio companies. Proceeds were received for the sales of InfoVista, The Attachmate Group, Deltek and LANDesk Software. Only one company remains in the portfolio.

The distributions from Silver Lake Partners III relate to numerous share sales of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd during the year. Proceeds were also received from the sale of Vantage Data Centers and the partial sale of shares in NYSE listed Godaddy Inc.

Proceeds received from Gores Capital III related to the fund's sale of Hay Group to Musashi Simitsu, a Japan-based manufacturer of automotive components for a total enterprise value of EUR495m. There were also two significant recapitalisations([xviii]) for Tweddle and US Farathane.

Proceeds received from Lion Capital Fund III during the period relate to the fund's trade sale of ghd to Coty at an enterprise value of GBP420m.

Coller International Partners V received proceeds from numerous underlying funds and investments. These included proceeds from CAPE investments, RBS Special Opportunities Fund, PDSOF (Series C), SVG Capital plc and the sale of Penton Business Media.

Market News and Private Equity Environment

More recently global markets have been characterised by lower volatility driven by a variety of factors, the most significant is likely to be the combined 'relief-trades' post the recent US and French elections, with the belief that there was some certainty that Brexit would happen. As the Chairman notes in his review, the unforeseen 'hung-parliament' result from June's UK General Election has significant implications for not only the timetable for the UK's exit from the European Union, but also the 'soft' vs. 'hard' nature of that exit. In addition to this, and the inevitable change we are likely to see in UK politics, we expect greater shorter term volatility on key sterling currency pairs and some impact on UK and European public equity indices.

Specifically in the US, we have seen the VIX([xix]) volatility index trading at historically low levels. These levels incorporate the 'pro-domestic' sentiment after Donald Trump's election (and of course all ongoing talk of extra-normal Russia relations and impeachment). During this period we have seen renewed levels of US equity buying, much of that seemingly from US retail investors.

We counsel some caution given these horizon risks (particularly on changes to the nature and timing of Brexit), but it is clear that US consumer and business sentiment has improved since the Presidential election, allowing the Federal Reserve to tighten with a 25bp hike in in interest rates in March 2017. President Trump has brought a unique style to the Presidency, much of it highly controversial. Looking through that, and as we highlighted in our Half Yearly Report, we are optimistic on our investments in the US, and our bias towards the US lower mid-market (in respect of our more recent US investments) should benefit from any pro-domestic corporate stance that is increasingly likely from this US Administration.

In emerging markets, Chinese GDP growth has edged up (to 6.8% in Q4 2016), but non-financial corporate leverage remains high and efforts continue by Chinese authorities to contain and reduce these levels. Asian markets and their private equity opportunities remain interesting to us and we are as focused on the macro issues as we are on GP due diligence, given the many risks.

Private equity valuations remain high, in absolute terms, though they continue to ease relative to aggregate highs recorded in 2015 (10.3x). Based on data from S&P LCD([xx]) this level had fallen to10x in 2016, and has slipped further to 9.4x (Q1 2017 data). Across our global investment programme we see a spread of valuations, but with our increased focus on smaller funds in more regional markets, we tend to see transaction multiples come in at below this level.

Calendar year 2016 has proved to be an extraordinary year for this asset class both in portfolio activity levels, investor interest and fund raising, the latter being a key litmus test for near term sentiment (but not necessarily for longer term returns). With $347bn([xxi]) raised by 830 private equity funds closing in 2016 there is no shortage of capital in the sector. We note with interest the ongoing polarisation in the sector i.e. more dollars being raised by fewer funds. Relative to the above statistics, in 2015, 945 funds raised $329bn. As this continues it is inevitable that dry powder levels will rise if the industry wants to keep valuations in some degree of check. Restraint and sensible paced deployment of LPs' commitments is to be lauded, though too great a delay will inevitably hurt headline IRRs over time.

With this polarisation, our greater concern comes with the levels of investor alignment and governance in larger funds. Good GPs (across all size brackets) are offering appropriate alignment, but it is by no means universal. We test alignment through monitoring levels of GP commitment, assessing performance fee structures, looking at the wording around 'key man' events and many other soft factors, all in addition of course to base management fee levels, hurdle rates and fee offsets. Picking two of these, we have seen relative (to fund size) levels of GP commitment fall, and for a number of high profile funds, the removal of hurdle rates, the latter creating some negative headlines for the industry, though we and many other LPs have worked hard behind the scenes to lobby for greater LP alignment via these other factors.

As we have shown through our investment programme in recent years, our focus and strategy has been on smaller funds where many of these alignment issues are not so prevalent. We continue to work with managers, often long before their formal fund raising, on best practice and see that being reflected in the LPAs([xxii]) that we are signatories to.

Portfolio Strategy and Outlook

In our Half Yearly Report last year we re-iterated our desire to increase the portfolio's exposure to co-investments. Including post year-end allocations we now have exposure to ten names, with half of that number sourced via GP relationships that sit outside of this portfolio. We have been keen to diversify sponsor exposure, capitalising on the investment and relationship programme we have across our broader private equity business. These co-investments carry materially lower fees and thus the longer term performance impact, should that portfolio achieve its objectives, is likely to be substantial.

We are maintaining our overall co-investment exposure target of around 20-25% of the portfolio, and also continuing with our review of older vintage investments. As such we seek to take advantage of strong pricing where we believe we can better deploy the proceeds elsewhere. This exercise is not necessarily limited to our pre-GFC([xxiii]) investments, and in certain situations where the original purchase or commitment 'buy-case' has changed, either for portfolio construction reasons, stock specific events, or team changes (at GP or PFC([xxiv]) level), our intention is to continue to be active private equity managers.

In the absence of any fund sales this financial year we had anticipated in our last Half Year Report that we might draw on our increased credit facility of GBP40m([xxv]) . Following the sale of our holding in Thomas H Lee Parallel Fund VI LP and possible further portfolio sales, the immediacy of this drawdown has been pushed further out though we do not rule this out during the remainder of the current financial year. Our investment pipeline remains more focused on investments that will continue to bring a lower relative level of unfunded commitments ("UFCs") into the portfolio. Accordingly the focus remains on co-investments and secondary fund purchases, with a more muted Primary fund programme. We do have several GPs that we are actively monitoring and it is likely that we will make a small number of primary fund commitments in the remainder of 2017.

In summary, we are focused on opportunistic secondary transactions, where we feel there is upside due to the information advantage that we get through our knowledge of many of these funds. Our co-investment pipeline is strong and is continuing to generate highly differentiated deal flow for the Company. Despite the huge amounts of capital that will continue to be deployed into this asset class over the coming years, the many pockets of opportunity that exist in US and European regional markets continue to offer compelling investment opportunities.

We remain positive and are delighted to see strong returns continuing to be being delivered from both earlier and more recent vintage investments.

Alexander Barr & Colin Burrow

Aberdeen Asset Managers Limited

26 June 2017

STRATEGIC REPORT - RESULTS

As at 31 March 2017

Financial Highlights

 
                                  31 March   31 March   % change 
                                      2017       2016 
 Total assets{A} (US$'000)         207,751    209,135       -0.7 
 Total equity shareholders' 
  funds (net assets) (US$'000)     207,751    209,135       -0.7 
 Share price (mid market) 
  (pence)                           117.13      87.88      +33.3 
 Net asset value per Share 
  (pence)                           152.24     133.33      +14.2 
 Discount to net asset 
  value                              23.1%      34.1% 
 
 Dividend and earnings 
 Return per Share{B} (pence)          3.52       4.53 
 Dividend per Share (pence)           4.00       2.20 
 
 Ongoing charges{C} 
 Excluding performance 
  fee                                1.55%      1.87% 
 Including performance 
  fee                                2.47%      1.87% 
 {A} Total Assets less current liabilities (before 
  deducting prior charges). 
 {B} Measures the relevant earnings for the year 
  divided by the weighted average number of shares 
  in issue. 
 {C} Ongoing charges ratio calculated in accordance 
  with guidance issued by the AIC as the total of 
  the investment management fee and administrative 
  expenses divided by the average cum income NAV 
  throughout the year. 
 
 
 Performance (total return{A}) 
                         1 year      3 year      5 year 
                       % return    % return    % return 
 Share price             +38.5%      +63.6%     +142.6% 
 Net asset value         +17.5%      +48.1%      +59.5% 
 Source: Aberdeen Asset Management & Morningstar 
 {A} Total return represents capital return plus 
  dividends reinvested on the dividend date. 
 

Dividends

 
 2017                 Rate   Ex dividend   Record date        Payment 
                                    date                         date 
 Interim dividend    2.00p   23 February   24 February       17 March 
                                    2017          2017           2017 
 Proposed final      2.00p     17 August     18 August   20 September 
  dividend                          2017          2017           2017 
                     _____ 
 Total dividend      4.00p 
                     _____ 
 2016 
 Dividend            2.20p     18 August     19 August   16 September 
                                    2016          2016           2016 
                     _____ 
 

Private Equity Portfolio

As at 31 March 2017

 
                                                                                   Vintage         NAV 
                                                Strategy    Geography       Fund      Year   Weighting 
                                                                            Size 
 Apax 8 (A8-A (feeder))                                                   EUR5.8 
  L.P.                                            Buyout       Global    billion      2012        6.2% 
 Apax Partners is a large 
  global private equity 
  partnership investing 
  in growth companies across 
  four key sectors: Consumer, 
  Healthcare, Services 
  and Technology and Telecommunications. 
  The firm has a strong 
  operational intervention 
  capability and actively 
  uses this resource to 
  help improve operational 
  efficiencies in their 
  portfolio companies. 
  This fund will now only 
  call for follow-on investments. 
 CCMP Capital Investors                                                   US$3.6 
  III L.P.                                        Buyout           US    billion      2013        5.0% 
 CCMP is a US (and London) 
  based private equity 
  business focusing on 
  predominantly US mid-market 
  buyout transactions. 
  They invest across four 
  sectors: Consumer / Retail, 
  Industrial, Healthcare 
  and Energy. The fund 
  is currently in its investment 
  period. 
 Coller International                                                     US$4.8 
  Partners V L.P.                            Secondaries       Global    billion      2006        1.1% 
 Coller Capital is a leading 
  global investor in the 
  private equity secondary 
  market where they seek 
  to make investments in 
  both Limited Partnership 
  interests and portfolios 
  of private companies. 
  Coller have also bought 
  listed private equity 
  funds at deep discounts 
  to NAV. This fund was 
  originally selected for 
  the portfolio to provide 
  the Company with vintage 
  year diversification 
  and a degree of j-curve 
  mitigation. The fund 
  has completed its investment 
  period but continues 
  to make follow on investments. 
 CVC Capital Partners                                                     US$3.2 
  Asia Pacific IV L.P.                            Buyout         Asia    billion      2013        1.6% 
 CVC Asia is one of the 
  more established private 
  equity partnerships in 
  the Asia-Pacific region. 
  Founded in 1999, CVC 
  Asia has now raised four 
  funds. This, their fourth 
  fund, will invest in 
  15-20 control or significant 
  minority positions across 
  the Asian region, equally 
  split between South East 
  Asia, China, Japan, Korea, 
  and other regional markets. 
  The fund is currently 
  in its investment period. 
 Exponent Private Equity                          Buyout                    US$1 
  Partners III L.P.                             & Growth           UK    billion      2015        3.2% 
 Exponent is a London 
  based GP, focusing on 
  UK upper mid-market deals 
  with an enterprise value 
  ("EV") of GBP75m to GBP300m. 
  Most of its transactions 
  will involve buying UK 
  domiciled businesses, 
  though such is the EV 
  range, many of these 
  businesses could have 
  significant overseas 
  elements of manufacturing 
  and/or sales. The fund 
  is currently in its investment 
  period. 
 FFL Parallel Fund IV                                                     US$1.5 
  L.P.                                            Buyout           US    billion      2014        1.9% 
 FFL was established in 
  1997 to undertake buyout 
  and growth investments 
  in US-middle market companies 
  incorporating top down 
  macro analysis and industry 
  themes within their four 
  core sectors: Business 
  Services, Consumer, Financial 
  Services and Healthcare. 
  The fund is currently 
  in its investment period. 
 Goldman Sachs Capital                                                   US$20.3 
  Partners VI L.P.                                Buyout       Global    billion      2006        2.0% 
 Goldman Sachs Capital 
  Partners make private 
  equity investments globally 
  across all market capitalisations. 
  This fund did not focus 
  on any particular sector 
  and invested in buy-outs, 
  minority stakes, listed 
  and unlisted companies 
  and across a variety 
  of industries. It also 
  allocated a proportion 
  of the portfolio to stressed 
  and distressed opportunities. 
  The fund has completed 
  its investment period 
  and remains in distribution 
  mode. 
 Gores Capital Partners                                                   GBP2.0 
  III L.P.                                        Buyout       Global    billion      2009        2.0% 
 Gores is a Los Angeles 
  based global private 
  equity business which 
  invests in both mature 
  and growing businesses. 
  Its approach combines 
  experienced merger and 
  acquisition transaction 
  capability with a strong 
  operational angle. It 
  aims to improve the operating 
  performance of its portfolio 
  companies, many of which 
  are mature or have encountered 
  growth problems. It typically 
  sells its investments 
  to strategic buyers once 
  the businesses have regained 
  a sound footing. This 
  fund has completed its 
  investment period and 
  remains in distribution 
  mode. 
 HIG Bayside Debt & LBO                                                   US$3.0 
  Fund II L.P.                                Distressed           US    billion      2008        5.8% 
 HIG Capital is a global 
  private equity firm with 
  a number of distinct 
  businesses, including 
  Bayside Capital which 
  invests across several 
  segments of the primary 
  and secondary debt capital 
  markets. Bayside focuses 
  upon three types of transactions: 
  1) Debt-for-control investments 
  in companies' debt obligations 
  with the intention to 
  take control; 2) Leveraged 
  buy-outs of underperforming, 
  stressed or distressed 
  companies; and 3) Non-control 
  distressed debt opportunistic 
  investments. The fund's 
  investment period finished 
  in May 2014 and the fund 
  is now in divestment 
  mode. 
                                                  Buyout                  EUR300 
 Latour Capital II                              & Growth       France    million      2015        0.9% 
 Latour Capital is a Paris-based 
  private equity firm operating 
  in the small/lower mid-market 
  in France and neighbouring 
  French-speaking countries. 
  It has a strong focus 
  on business services 
  and companies that are 
  either undermanaged or 
  have a specific competitive 
  advantage. Investments 
  are typically in the 
  Enterprise Value range 
  of EUR30m-EUR200m. This 
  fund is currently in 
  its investment period. 
 Lion Capital Fund III                                         Europe     EUR1.5 
  L.P.                                            Buyout         & US    billion      2010        5.1% 
 Lion Capital is a buyout 
  manager focused on the 
  consumer sector, with 
  a historical bias to 
  Europe although it has 
  also invested in the 
  US. We committed to Lion 
  in order to provide greater 
  exposure to an eventual 
  European consumer recovery, 
  and at a time of competitive 
  European transaction 
  valuations. The fund 
  is now effectively fully 
  invested and is now in 
  divestment mode. 
                                                               Japan, 
 Longreach Capital Partners                                     North     US$750 
  Ireland 1, L.P.                                 Buyout         Asia    million      2006        1.9% 
 Longreach is based in 
  Hong Kong and invests 
  in Northern Asia with 
  a particular focus on 
  Japan. Its core strategy 
  is to buy non-core businesses 
  from Japanese conglomerates 
  before selling them subsequently 
  as operationally improved 
  businesses. It also looks 
  at investment opportunities 
  elsewhere in the region 
  and not necessarily with 
  Japan connections. The 
  fund is now past its 
  investment period, in 
  an approved formal extension 
  period and is actively 
  seeking to divest its 
  remaining holdings. 
                                                               Japan, 
 Longreach Capital Partners                                     North     US$220 
  2 - USD, L.P.                                   Buyout         Asia    million      2012        4.4% 
 Longreach is based in 
  Hong Kong and invests 
  in Northern Asia with 
  a particular focus on 
  Japan. Its core strategy 
  is to buy non-core businesses 
  from Japanese conglomerates 
  before selling them subsequently 
  as operationally improved 
  businesses. It also looks 
  at investment opportunities 
  elsewhere in the region 
  and not necessarily with 
  Japan connections. The 
  fund is currently at 
  the end of its investment 
  period. 
 MatlinPatterson Global 
  Opportunities Partners                                                  US$5.0 
  III L.P.                                    Distressed       Global    billion      2007        3.4% 
 MatlinPatterson is a 
  "distressed for control" 
  manager investing on 
  a global basis. The fund 
  invested in companies 
  in distressed situations 
  with the aim of controlling 
  the financial and operational 
  restructuring of the 
  company, and also took 
  minority positions in 
  stressed and distressed 
  situations. The fund 
  has completed its investment 
  period although it is 
  still calling capital 
  for follow on investments. 
 MML Capital Partners                                          Europe     EUR382 
  Fund VI L.P.                                    Buyout         & US    million      2014        3.0% 
 MML Capital operates 
  in an attractive niche 
  within the lower mid-market 
  in the UK, US and France. 
  It has a flexible approach, 
  partnering with management 
  teams often on a minority 
  basis. It uses creative 
  structuring using junior 
  debt instruments providing 
  downside protection whilst 
  ensuring potential for 
  strong equity upside 
  through significant equity 
  stakes. The fund is currently 
  in its investment period. 
 Montagu V L.P.                                   Buyout       Europe    EUR2.75      2015           - 
                                                & Growth                 billion 
 Montagu is a prominent 
  European manager focusing 
  on growth and buyout 
  deals in the UK, France, 
  Benelux, DACH, Nordics 
  and Poland. Their strategy 
  is to back mid-size market 
  leading businesses, often 
  in more defensive sectors. 
  It has a proven, long-term 
  origination model based 
  on relationships which 
  frequently makes them 
  management's preferred 
  bidder. The fund is currently 
  in its investment period 
  and has made its first 
  investments. 
 MTS Health Investors                                                       $365 
  IV L.P.                                         Buyout           US    million      2016        0.9% 
 MTS Health Partners is 
  a private equity firm 
  based out of New York 
  focused on small buyouts 
  in the healthcare services 
  arena. 
                                                  Buyout                  EUR275 
 Nazca Fund IV FCR                              & Growth        Spain    million      2016        0.8% 
 Nazca IV is a EUR275m 
  fund focused on the Spanish 
  lower mid-market. Nazca's 
  vast networks and strong 
  reputation has allowed 
  the company to unlock 
  investment opportunities 
  in family-owned businesses 
  with limited or no competition 
  in the past. 
 Northzone Ventures VI                           Venture                EUR130.0 
  L.P.                                           capital      Nordics    million      2010        3.1% 
 Northzone primarily invests 
  in technology companies 
  either in the Nordic 
  region or with strong 
  Nordic components that 
  have global potential. 
  The management team looks 
  for opportunities arising 
  from major market transformation. 
  It particularly concentrates 
  on consumer focused internet 
  services, new delivery 
  platforms and network 
  infrastructure. The fund 
  is now in divestment 
  mode and will now only 
  call capital to fund 
  follow-on investments. 
 Northzone Ventures VIII                         Venture                  EUR350 
  L.P.                                           capital      Nordics    million      2016        1.0% 
 Northzone VIII will focus 
  on early stage and expansion 
  stage investments in 
  technology companies 
  in the Nordics, London, 
  Berlin and New York. 
 Oaktree OCM Opportunities                    Distressed                 US$10.9 
  Fund VIIb L.P.                                    debt       Global    billion      2007        0.6% 
 Oaktree is a distressed 
  debt manager and focuses 
  on acquiring debt securities 
  at discounted prices 
  during stressed and distressed 
  cycles. The manager is 
  capable of taking control 
  and driving the financial 
  and operational restructuring 
  if it does not feel that 
  it is getting the right 
  value from a transaction. 
  The fund has now completed 
  its investment period 
  and is in active divestment 
  mode. 
 Pangaea Two Parallel                                                     US$910 
  L.P.                                            Growth       Global    million      2011        1.8% 
 The manager of this fund 
  is Cartesian Capital, 
  which was founded in 
  2006 by Peter Yu and 
  the former senior management 
  team from AIG Capital 
  Partners. The firm is 
  a global, opportunistic 
  growth capital investor, 
  with a focus on emerging 
  markets. This fund is 
  still in its investment 
  period. 
 Pine Brook Capital Partners                                             US$1.15 
  L.P.                                            Growth       Global    billion      2007        3.0% 
 Pine Brook is a manager 
  focusing on mid-to-large-cap 
  growth equity investments 
  in the Energy and Financial 
  Services sectors. The 
  fund's strategy was to 
  invest ahead of current 
  industry practices and 
  trends and to then take 
  advantage of under-served 
  markets. It is a differentiated 
  model in as much as it 
  is willing to invest 
  in start-up entities 
  albeit with established 
  management teams. The 
  fund has now completed 
  its investment period 
  and is in active divestment 
  mode; however, it will 
  still make selective 
  follow-on equity injections 
  to underlying businesses. 
                                                                          US$3.2 
 Resolute Fund III L.P.                       Specialist           US    billion      2013        4.6% 
 Resolute Fund III is 
  managed by The Jordan 
  Company, a US mid-market 
  private equity business. 
  Its investment focus 
  covers a wide array of 
  industries including 
  Industrial Products and 
  Services, Energy, Chemical, 
  Healthcare and Financial 
  Services. It aims to 
  invest in companies with 
  an enterprise value of 
  between $100m and $2bn 
  and help drive growth 
  via operational improvements. 
  The Company committed 
  to this Fund in 2014 
  and it is within its 
  investment period. 
                                                 Venture                  US$510 
 RHO Ventures VI L.P.                            capital           US    million      2008        4.3% 
 RHO Ventures takes minority 
  positions in start-up 
  entities, principally 
  in the Technology and 
  Life Sciences sectors. 
  The manager takes a top-down 
  view as to which sectors 
  have the most favourable 
  conditions and has taken 
  a pragmatic approach 
  to changing investment 
  focus. The fund has now 
  completed its investment 
  period and, although 
  it is still making follow 
  on investments, will 
  divest where appropriate. 
                                                                          EUR808 
 Sagard 3 FCPI                                    Buyout       France    million      2013        2.4% 
 Sagard is a French mid-market 
  investor based in Paris. 
  The experienced team 
  focuses on selecting 
  strong, profitable, well 
  established French based 
  firms across several 
  industry sectors that 
  can be aggressively developed 
  through strong organic 
  / inorganic growth, margin 
  improvements and more 
  efficient use of capital. 
 Silver Lake Partners                             Buyout                  US$9.4 
  III L.P.                                      & Growth       Global    billion      2007        4.4% 
 Silver Lake is a prominent 
  large cap technology 
  investor. The firm invests 
  globally in established, 
  cash-flow generative 
  businesses which are 
  leaders in their respective 
  industries. Silver Lake 
  acts as a partner to 
  management teams, investing 
  with experienced participants 
  to take advantage of 
  opportunities in technology 
  and technology-enabled 
  industries. The fund 
  has now completed its 
  investment period but 
  can still call for capital 
  to fund follow on investments. 
 StepStone International                                                  EUR732 
  Investors III L.P.                         Secondaries       Europe    million      2006        1.6% 
 StepStone is a global 
  private markets firm 
  which took over the management 
  of this fund from Greenpark 
  Capital in 2013. Greenpark's 
  focus had been on purchasing 
  limited partnership interests 
  in private equity funds 
  on the secondary market 
  with a focus on Europe. 
  The holding in this fund 
  was originally acquired 
  by the Company to provide 
  vintage diversification 
  and some j-curve mitigation. 
  The fund has now completed 
  its investment period, 
  but continues to make 
  follow on investments 
  (as capital calls are 
  made from underlying 
  funds). 
 Summa Equity Fund 1 (No.2)                                              SEK 4.5 
  AB                                              Buyout       Sweden    billion      2016        1.0% 
 Summa is a newly established 
  Nordic firm that will 
  focus on lower mid-market 
  businesses with leading 
  niche market positions. 
  The investments will 
  tend to be focused around 
  sectors that are fuelled 
  by 'megatrends'. 
                                                 Venture                  US$365 
 Tenaya Capital V L.P.                           capital           US    million      2007        3.6% 
 The manager co-invests 
  in the mid to late stage 
  rounds of venture financing 
  of revenue positive, 
  privately held technology 
  companies alongside many 
  of the top-tier venture 
  capital firms in the 
  US. Its aim is to diversify 
  across the technology 
  spectrum, and to actively 
  manage those companies 
  in which it is invested. 
  The fund has now completed 
  its investment period. 
                                                 Venture                  US$200 
 Tenaya Capital VI L.P.                          capital           US    million      2012        2.0% 
 The manager co-invests 
  in the mid to late stage 
  rounds of venture financing 
  of revenue positive, 
  privately held technology 
  companies alongside many 
  of the top-tier venture 
  capital firms in the 
  US. Its aim is to diversify 
  across the technology 
  spectrum, and to actively 
  manage those companies 
  in which it is invested. 
  This fund is currently 
  in its investment period. 
                                                  Buyout                  US$823 
 Thoma Bravo Fund IX L.P.                       & Growth           US    million      2008        0.5% 
 Thoma Bravo is a long-established 
  US equity private equity 
  business with a focus 
  on investing in Software, 
  Services and other Consolidating 
  Industries. It does this 
  by identifying talented 
  management teams operating 
  in a niche industry segment 
  upon which additional 
  acquisitions can be added, 
  in combination with organic 
  growth. The fund has 
  completed its investment 
  period and is in divestment 
  mode. 
                                                                          EUR215 
 Wisequity IV                                     Buyout        Italy    million      2016        1.8% 
 Milan-based Wise is an 
  established lower mid-market 
  Italian GP. It invests 
  in Italian-headquartered 
  global market leaders 
  with scope for further 
  rapid growth both organically 
  and through acquisitions. 
  The firm looks to take 
  a hands-on approach to 
  value creation working 
  closely with management 
  teams, taking on short 
  term roles within management 
  if required. The fund 
  is at the beginning of 
  its investment period. 
 

Investment Portfolio - Schedule of Investments

As at 31 March 2017

 
                                Total         Investment 
 Investments                    Commitments   called/cost   Fair Value   % of 
                                               {B} 
 Private Equity Funds           US$'000       US$'000       US$'000      NAV 
  Portfolio                      {A} 
-----------------------------  ------------  ------------  -----------  ----- 
 Apax 8 (A8-A(feeder)) 
  L.P.                          EUR 10,000    10,274        12,906       6.2 
 CCMP Capital Investors 
  III L.P.                      15,000        7,453         10,413       5.0 
 Coller International 
  Partners V L.P. {B}           15,000        -             2,279        1.1 
 CVC Capital Partners 
  Asia Pacific IV L.P.          10,000        2,601         3,265        1.6 
 Exponent Private Equity 
  Partners III L.P.             GBP10,000     6,350         6,608        3.2 
 FFL Parallel Fund IV 
  L.P.                          10,000        3,726         3,942        1.9 
 Goldman Sachs Capital 
  Partners VI L.P.              15,000        5,086         4,200        2.0 
 Gores Capital Partners 
  III L.P.                      10,000        5,062         4,165        2.0 
 HIG Bayside Debt & LBO 
  Fund II L.P.                  15,000        9,005         11,951       5.8 
 Latour Capital II              EUR 10,000    1,769         1,782        0.9 
 Lion Capital Fund III 
  L.P.                          EUR 10,000    8,558         10,625       5.1 
 Longreach Capital Partners 
  Ireland 1, L.P.               7,425         8,213         3,938        1.9 
 Longreach Capital Partners 
  2 - USD, L.P.                 7,500         4,688         9,076        4.4 
 MatlinPatterson Global 
  Opportunities Partners 
  III L.P.                      10,000        7,350         7,018        3.4 
 MML Capital Partners 
  Fund VI L.P.                  EUR 13,000    5,924         6,232        3.0 
 Montagu V L.P.                 EUR 8,000     -             17           - 
 MTS Health Investors 
  IV L.P.                       15,000        1,846         1,846        0.9 
 Nazca Fund IV FCR(D)           EUR 10,000    1,947         1,636        0.8 
 Northzone Ventures VI 
  L.P.                          EUR 10,000    5,660         6,475        3.1 
 Northzone Ventures VIII 
  L.P.                          EUR 12,000    1,832         2,061        1.0 
 Oaktree OCM Opportunities 
  Fund VIIb L.P. {B}            15,000        -             1,205        0.6 
 Pangaea Two Parallel 
  L.P.                          5,000         2,690         3,732        1.8 
 Pine Brook Capital Partners 
  L.P.                          10,000        5,992         6,300        3.0 
 Resolute Fund III L.P.         15,000        6,653         9,640        4.6 
 RHO Ventures VI L.P.           10,000        9,466         9,012        4.3 
 Sagard 3 FCPI                  EUR 10,000    4,373         5,047        2.4 
 Silver Lake Partners 
  III L.P.                      15,000        5,884         9,114        4.4 
 StepStone International 
  Investors III L.P.            EUR 14,600    6,477         3,359        1.6 
 Summa Equity Fund 1 
  (No.2) AB                     SEK 145,500   1,777         1,998        1.0 
 Tenaya Capital V L.P.          12,500        7,143         7,576        3.6 
 Tenaya Capital VI L.P.         5,000         3,738         4,187        2.0 
 Thoma Bravo IX Fund 
  L.P.                          10,000        704           1,041        0.5 
 Wisequity IV                   EUR 10,000    3,781         3,762        1.8 
-----------------------------  ------------  ------------  -----------  ----- 
                                              156,022       176,408      84.9 
 Co-investments 
-----------------------------  ------------  ------------  -----------  ----- 
 CCMP Co-Invest III A 
  L.P.                          1,500         1,500         1,500        0.7 
 Color Wind S.p.A.              EUR 2,000     2,148         2,139        1.0 
 CSP Ergon Investment 
  L.P.                          2,500         2,087         2,087        1.0 
 Diamond Hill L.P.              3,000         3,000         3,000        1.4 
 Finvest L.P.                   GBP2,900      2,644         2,264        1.1 
 Hg Capital 5 Co-Invest 
  1 L.P.                        GBP3,000      4,638         2,829        1.4 
 Lion Seneca Cayman 3 
  L.P.                          EUR 810       988           985          0.5 
 LVM LP Co-Investment 
  L.P.                          1,500         625           2,800        1.4 
 SLP Denali Co-Invest 
  L.P.                          2,080         2,074         3,792        1.8 
-----------------------------  ------------  ------------  -----------  ----- 
                                              19,704        21,396       10.3 
-----------------------------  ------------  ------------  -----------  ----- 
 Total investments                            175,726       197,804      95.2 
-----------------------------  ------------  ------------  -----------  ----- 
 
 
 
                                    Fair Value   % of 
                                    US$'000      NAV 
-------------------------------    -----------  ------ 
 Aberdeen Liquidity Funds 
 Sterling Fund                      234          0.1 
 US Dollar Fund                     1,803        0.9 
---------------------------------  -----------  ------ 
                                    2,037        1.0 
 
 Cash at bank                       12,295       5.9 
---------------------------------  -----------  ------ 
 Cash and cash equivalents 
  {D}                               14,332       6.9 
 
 Other assets less liabilities      (4,385)      (2.1) 
---------------------------------  -----------  ------ 
 Net current assets                 9,947        4.8 
---------------------------------  -----------  ------ 
 Net assets                         207,751      100.0 
---------------------------------  -----------  ------ 
 
 
 
 ({A}) All commitments are in US$ unless otherwise 
  stated. 
 ({B}) Investments called/cost represents commitments 
  drawn down less net distributions. Where net distributions 
  exceed drawdowns a nil amount is shown. 
 ({C}) Held via a 100% 
  owned subsidiary. 
 

({D}) Represents sum of fixed term deposits, Aberdeen liquidity funds and cash.

Co-investments

 
                    Original     Acquisition 
                    Commitment   Date          Sponsor GP          Domicile 
                     (m) 
-----------------  -----------  ------------  ------------------  ------------ 
 Achilles           $4.4         05/10/2015    HgCapital           Global 
-----------------  -----------  ------------  ------------------  ------------ 
 Achilles is a UK-headquartered business founded 
  in 1990 which has developed to become a world leader 
  in collaborative supply chain networks. The company 
  uses SaaS-based technology to allow multinationals 
  to manage risk in their supply chains. 
------------------------------------------------------------------  ---------- 
 Alain Afflelou     EUR 0.8      12/07/2012    Lion Capital        Europe 
-----------------  -----------  ------------  ------------------  ------------ 
 Alain Afflelou is the third-largest branded optical 
  chain in Europe, selling optical lenses, optical 
  frames, sunglasses, and contact lenses. The company 
  is strong in France but also has a presence in 
  countries including Spain, Portugal and Belgium. 
  The company is able to generate revenue from a 
  diverse range of sources given its franchise model. 
------------------------------------------------------------------  ---------- 
 Imprima            EUR 3.0      11/11/2016    Wisequity           Italy 
-----------------  -----------  ------------  ------------------  ------------ 
 Project Color Wind is a consolidation play in the 
  European textile converting industry, significantly 
  upgrading technology at an operational level and 
  promoting international expansion. In October 2016, 
  Wisequity IV completed the acquisition of KBC Fashion 
  GmbH &Co., a EUR60m turnover German textile company, 
  and in November the Wise signed a definitive agreement 
  to buy the Italian group Guarisco Class and its 
  subsidiaries. 
------------------------------------------------------------------  ---------- 
 Dell               $1.2         22/10/2013    Silver Lake         Global 
                                                Partners 
-----------------  -----------  ------------  ------------------  ------------ 
 Dell is a leading global IT infrastructure vendor 
  with an increasingly diversified product offering 
  of end-user computing devices and enterprise solutions. 
  Dell was taken private by Michael Dell and Silver 
  Lake to accelerate their solutions business though 
  they remain a significant global PC manufacturer. 
------------------------------------------------------------------  ---------- 
 Hampshire Trust    GBP2.9       18/02/2016    Alchemy Partners    Europe 
  Bank 
-----------------  -----------  ------------  ------------------  ------------ 
 Headquartered in London, Hampshire Trust is a specialist 
  lender targeting the UK SME market using an efficient 
  deposit-funding base and a scalable technology 
  platform and banking system. 
------------------------------------------------------------------  ---------- 
 The Hillman        $1.5         21/07/2014    CCMP Capital        North 
  Group                                         Investors           America 
-----------------  -----------  ------------  ------------------  ------------ 
 Operating primarily in the US, Hillman is a leading 
  value-added distributor of fasteners, key duplication 
  systems, engraved tags and related hardware items 
  to over 26,000 retail customers. The company sells 
  to home improvement centres, as well as mass merchants, 
  hardware stores and pet supply stores. 
------------------------------------------------------------------  ---------- 
 Indecomm Global    $2.5         31/03/2017    Capital Square      Singapore 
  Services                                      Partners 
 Indecomm is a cross-border IT services and outsourcing 
  company headquartered in Singapore and Bangalore. 
------------------------------------------------------------------  ---------- 
 Source Photonics   $3.0         12/12/2016    Redview Capital     China 
-----------------  -----------  ------------  ------------------  ------------ 
 Source Photonics is a global provider of communications 
  and data connectivity components and modules in 
  next-generation data centers, mobile and fixed-line 
  networks. 
------------------------------------------------------------------  ---------- 
 Via Mechanics      $1.5         22/10/2013    Longreach Capital   Asia 
                                                Partners 
-----------------  -----------  ------------  ------------------  ------------ 
 Headquartered in Japan, with operations in China, 
  Via Mechanics ("VIA") is a leading manufacturer 
  of micro-drilling machines for printed circuit 
  boards (PCBs). The business was acquired from Hitachi. 
  VIA is one of very few global players with ultrafine 
  and high precision drilling technology that can 
  meet the requirements for the latest smart phones 
  and other mobile devices. 
------------------------------------------------------------------ 
 
 

TOP TEN HOLDINGS

As at 31 March 2017

 
                                                   Fair 
                                          Book   Market         NAV 
                                          Cost    Value   Weighting 
 Holding                   Strategy       US$m     US$m           % 
 Apax 8 (A8-A(feeder)) 
  L.P.                     Buyout         10.3     12.9         6.2 
 HIG Bayside Debt 
  & LBO Fund II L.P.       Distressed      9.0     12.0         5.8 
 Lion Capital Fund 
  III L.P.                 Buyout          8.6     10.6         5.1 
 CCMP Capital Investors 
  III L.P.                 Buyout          7.5     10.4         5.0 
 Resolute Fund III 
  L.P.                     Specialist      6.7      9.6         4.6 
 Silver Lake Partners      Buyout & 
  III L.P.                  Growth         5.9      9.1         4.4 
 Longreach Capital 
  Partners 2 - USD, 
  L.P.                     Buyout          4.7      9.1         4.4 
 RHO Ventures VI           Venture 
  L.P.                      capital        9.5      9.0         4.3 
 Tenaya Capital V          Venture 
  L.P.                      capital        7.1      7.6         3.6 
 MatlinPatterson 
  Global Opportunities 
  Partners III L.P.        Distressed      7.4      7.0         3.4 
                                         _____    _____       _____ 
 Top 10 Holdings                          76.7     97.3        46.8 
                                         _____    _____       _____ 
 

EXTRACTS FROM THE DIRECTORS' REPORT

The Directors present their report and the audited financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2017.

Results and Dividend

Details of the Company's results are shown above. During the year the Company adopted a new distribution policy and in the absence of unforeseen circumstances, the Company expects to pay minimum total dividends of 4.0p per Share per annum (2016 - one dividend of 2.2p), commencing with two dividends of 2.0p per Share relating to the financial year to 31 March 2017. An interim dividend of 2.0p was paid on 17 March 2017 (2016: n/a). The Directors are now recommending the payment of a final dividend of 2.0p per Share in respect of the year ended 31 March 2017 which, subject to shareholder approval at the AGM on 15 September 2017, will be payable on 20 September 2017 to shareholders on the register on 18 August 2017. In the absence of unforeseen circumstances, the Company expects to pay at least the same level of dividends for the financial year to 31 March 2018.

Status

The Company is a Guernsey authorised closed-ended investment company listed on the London Stock Exchange. The Company was incorporated on 5 January 2007 in Guernsey, Channel Islands with registered number 46192. Trading in the Company's Shares commenced on 9 July 2007.

The Company is a member of the Association of Investment Companies ("AIC").

Individual Savings Accounts

The Company intends to manage its affairs so as to be a qualifying investment for inclusion in the stocks and shares component of an Individual Savings Account ('ISA') and it is the Directors' intention that the Company should continue to be a qualifying investment.

The Company currently conducts its affairs so that its securities can be recommended by financial advisers to ordinary retail investors in accordance with the Financial Conduct Authority's rules in relation to non-mainstream investment products and intends to continue to do so for the foreseeable future. The Company's securities are excluded from the Financial Conduct Authority's restrictions which apply to non-mainstream pooled investments (NMPIs) because the Company would qualify as an investment trust if it were incorporated in the UK.

Share Capital

As at 31 March 2017 there were 109,131,199 Shares in issue. During the year no Shares were issued and no Shares were purchased in the market for cancellation or treasury.

Voting Rights

Each Share holds one voting right and shareholders are entitled to vote on all resolutions which are proposed at general meetings of the Company. The Shares carry a right to receive dividends. On a winding up or other return of capital, after meeting the liabilities of the Company, the surplus assets will be paid to shareholders in proportion to their shareholdings. There are no restrictions on the transfer of Shares in the Company other than certain restrictions which may be applied from time to time by law.

Management Agreement

Following a review, a revision of the management fee arrangements was agreed during the year by the Company and the Manager. From 1 October 2016, the Manager has been paid a monthly fee of 1/12 of 0.9% per annum of the NAV of the Company after deducting liabilities but excluding long-term structured debt (the "Fee"). In the period up to and including 30 September 2016 the Manager was entitled to a monthly fee of 1/12 of 1.5% of the NAV of the Company before deduction of any performance fee but after deducting liabilities (excluding from such liabilities the amount of any long-term structured bank debt approved by the Board) and deducting cash at bank, short-term deposits and the value of holdings in money market funds; plus 1/12 of 0.75% of the value of all cash at bank, short-term deposits and holdings in money market funds.

The Fee is calculated and accrued as at the last business day of each month and is paid monthly in arrears. Arrangements relating to the conditions under which a performance fee may be payable by the Company were unchanged following the review.

The performance fee incorporates a three year 8% per annum compound return hurdle rate. In order to earn a performance fee all of the following criteria must be met in a performance fee year:

   -       The NAV must have risen by more than 8% in the performance fee year; 
   -       The NAV must exceed the high watermark (at which a fee was last paid); and, 

- The NAV must have risen by more than 8% per annum compound over the previous three performance fee years.

The NAV is adjusted to add back the payment of dividends during the year. The performance fee itself is calculated at 10% of the NAV gain above the hurdle rate in the latest performance fee year. The total fees payable to the Manager in any performance period are capped at 3% of NAV. The NAV high watermark in relation to any future performance fee is 152.24p per Share.

The Directors review the terms of the Agreement on a regular basis and have confirmed that, owing to the investment skills, experience and commitment of the Manager, in their opinion the continuing appointment of AAML, on the terms agreed, is in the interests of shareholders as a whole.

The Agreement will continue in force until the Company is wound-up unless and until terminated earlier by either party giving to the other not less than 12 months' written notice. In certain circumstances the Agreement may be terminated forthwith by notice in writing by a party to the other party, including where key persons depart from the Manager or the Manager is no longer authorised to carry on investment business in the United Kingdom.

The Agreement contains indemnities from the Company in favour of the Manager and its associates which are restricted to exclude matters arising by reason of the negligence, wilful default, fraud or breach of the Agreement of or by the Manager or any of its associates. Furthermore, neither the Manager nor any of its associates will be liable to the Company for any loss suffered by the Company in connection with the Agreement, unless the Company has suffered such loss due to the negligence, wilful default, fraud or breach of the Agreement of or by the Manager or any of its associates.

Risk Management

Details of the financial risk management policies and objectives relative to the use of financial instruments by the Company are set out in note 20 to the financial statements.

Substantial Interests

The Board has been advised that the following shareholders owned 3% or more of the issued Share capital of the Company at 31 March 2017:

 
 Shareholder                              Number of Shares held   % held 
 ReAssure Limited                                    28,470,818     26.1 
 Hampshire County Council Pension Fund               21,500,000     19.7 
 Merseyside Pension Fund                             18,695,076     17.1 
 Old Mutual Global Investors                          4,705,978      4.3 
 Seneca Investment Managers                           3,650,000      3.3 
 

Subsequent to the year-end the Company has been advised that (i) Hampshire County Council Pension Fund no longer holds Shares in the Company; (ii) Old Mutual Global Investors no longer holds Shares in the Company; and, (iii) Asset Value Investors is interested in 27,489,407 Shares (25.2%).

Corporate Governance

The Company is committed to high standards of corporate governance. The Board is accountable to the Company's shareholders for good governance and this statement describes how the Company applies the principles identified in the UK Corporate Governance Code ("UK Code") which is available on the Financial Reporting Council's website: frc.org.uk.

The Board has also considered the principles and recommendations of the AIC Code of Corporate Governance for Guernsey Domiciled Investment Companies which was published in February 2015 ("AIC Guernsey Code") by reference to the AIC Corporate Governance Guide for Investment Companies ("AIC Guide"). The AIC Guernsey Code, as explained by the AIC Guide, addresses all the principles set out in the UK Code, as well as setting out additional principles and recommendations on issues that are of specific relevance to the Company. The AIC Guernsey Code also explains that Guernsey-domiciled investment companies which report against the AIC Guernsey Code are not required to report separately against the Guernsey Financial Services Commission ("GFSC") Finance Sector Code of Corporate Governance ("Guernsey Code").

The Board considers that reporting against the principles and recommendations of the AIC Guernsey Code, and by reference to the AIC Guide (which incorporates the UK Code), will provide better information to shareholders.

The Company has complied with the recommendations of the AIC Guernsey Code and the relevant provisions of the UK Corporate Governance Code, except as set out below.

The UK Corporate Governance Code includes provisions relating to:

   -     the role of the chief executive; 
   -     the appointment of a senior independent director; 
   -     executive directors' remuneration; and, 
   -     and the need for an internal audit function. 

For the reasons set out in the AIC Code, and as explained in the UK Code, the Board considers that these provisions are not relevant to the position of the Company, being an externally-managed investment company. In particular, all of the Company's day-to-day management and administrative functions are outsourced to third parties. As a result, the Company has no executive Directors, employees or internal operations. The Company has therefore not reported further in respect of these provisions. The full text of the Company's Corporate Governance Statement can be found on the Company's website, aberdeenprivateequity.co.uk.

Directors

The current Directors are Messrs H Myles, D Copperwaite, P Hebson and D Staples. Mr Copperwaite will retire by rotation at the Annual General Meeting and, being eligible, will offer himself for re-election.

The Directors submit themselves for re-election every three years. All Directors are considered to be free from any business or other relationship that could materially interfere with the exercise of their independent judgement. Mr Staples was, until 2003, a partner of PwC LLP in the UK ("PwC"). The Board notes that PwC is a separate partnership to PwC CI LLP which acts as auditor to the Company and Mr Staples has no financial or other interest in PwC CI LLP. In view of this the Directors are completely satisfied that Mr Staples is independent notwithstanding the fact that he is a former partner of PwC. Mr Staples is also a non executive director of the General Partner of Apax 8 (A8-A (feeder)) LP ("Apax 8") in which the Company has an investment. In accordance with the Company's policy on the management of possible conflicts of interest, Mr Staples did not take any part in the Board's consideration of the decision to invest in Apax 8 and Mr Staples does not participate in any specific Board discussions relating to the on-going investment in Apax 8.

Each Director has the requisite high level and range of business and financial experience which enables the Board to provide clear and effective leadership and proper stewardship of the Company. The Board considers that there is a balance of skills and experience within the Board relevant to the leadership and direction of the Company and that all Directors contribute effectively.

The Board is committed to improving the opportunities for people from a diverse range of backgrounds to understand and prepare for membership of corporate boards. During the period under review an apprentice was appointed from Board Apprentice Limited, which is a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to creating a wider pool of board-ready candidates. For a period of one year, the Board appointed Katie Hutchins as a Board apprentice, and in that capacity, she attended all Board and Committee meetings as an observer for educational purposes. Ms Hutchins received no expenses or remuneration from the Company and her twelve month term of appointment came to an end on 1 May 2016.

The Board meets quarterly, with ad hoc meetings in between to deal with issues as they arise. Mr Hebson is a UK resident. In order to be eligible to attend a Board meeting a UK resident Director must be situated outside the UK at the time of the meeting. The Directors attended the following meetings during the year ended 31 March 2017 (with their eligibility to attend the relevant meetings in brackets):

 
                  Scheduled   Other Board    Audit     AGM   Other 
                      Board                                    Com 
 H Myles              4 (4)         3 (3)    4 (4)   1 (1)   4 (4) 
 D Staples            4 (4)         3 (3)    4 (4)   1 (1)   4 (4) 
 D Copperwaite        4 (4)         3 (3)    3 (4)   1 (1)   4 (4) 
 P Hebson             4 (4)        3 (1)*   4 (3)*   1 (1)   4 (4) 
 

* Mr Hebson attended a number of meetings from the UK but did not count in the quorum of those meetings

The Board has a schedule of matters reserved to it for decision and the requirement for Board approval on these matters is communicated directly to the senior staff of the Manager. Such matters include strategy, gearing, treasury and dividend policy. Full and timely information is provided to the Board to enable the Directors to function effectively and to discharge their responsibilities. The Board also reviews the financial statements, performance and revenue budgets.

Board Committees

The Directors have appointed a number of Committees as set out below. Copies of their terms of reference, which clearly define the responsibilities and duties of each Committee, are available on the website. The terms of reference of each of the Committees are reviewed and re-assessed by the Board for their adequacy on an ongoing basis.

Audit Committee

The Audit Committee Report is on pages 43 and 44 of the Annual Report.

Management Engagement Committee

The Management Engagement Committee comprises all of the Directors and is chaired by Mr Copperwaite. The Committee reviews the performance of the Manager and the investment management and secretarial agreements and compliance with their terms. The Committee also reviews the engagement terms of all other material third party service providers. The terms and conditions of the Manager's appointment, including an evaluation of fees, are reviewed by the Committee on an annual basis. The Committee believes that the continuing appointment of the Manager on the terms agreed is in the interests of shareholders as a whole.

Nomination Committee

All appointments to the Board of Directors are considered by the Nomination Committee which comprises the entire Board and is chaired by Mr Myles. When searching for new independent non executive Directors, candidates are identified against the requirements of the Company's business and the need to have a balanced Board. Every Director is required to receive appropriate training as deemed necessary. A Director appointed during the year is required, under the provisions of the Company's Articles of Incorporation, to retire and seek election by shareholders at the next Annual General Meeting. The Articles of Incorporation require that one third of the Directors retire by rotation at each Annual General Meeting. The Board's policy is that Directors who have served more than nine years will submit themselves for annual re-election on a voluntary basis. The Board's overriding priority in appointing new Directors to the Board is to identify the candidate with the best range of skills and experience to complement existing Directors. The Board recognises the benefits of diversity in the composition of the Board. When Board positions become available as a result of retirement or resignation, the Company will ensure that a diverse group of candidates is considered.

The Company has put in place the necessary procedures to conduct, on an annual basis, an appraisal of the Chairman of the Board, Directors' individual self-evaluation and an evaluation of the Board as a whole. Following formal performance evaluations, it was concluded that the performance of each Director, including those seeking re-election continues to be effective and demonstrates commitment to the role. Accordingly, the Board has no hesitation in recommending the re-election of Mr Copperwaite at the forthcoming AGM.

Remuneration Committee

A Remuneration Committee has been established comprising the entire Board and which is chaired by Mr Hebson. The remuneration of the Directors has been set in order to attract and retain individuals of a calibre appropriate to the future development of the Company. The Company's policy on Directors' remuneration, together with details of the remuneration of each Director, is detailed in the Directors' Remuneration Report on pages 45 to 47 of the Annual Report.

Management of Conflicts of Interests

The Board has a procedure in place to deal with a situation where a Director has a conflict of interest. As part of this process, the Directors are required to disclose other positions held and all other conflict situations that may need to be authorised either in relation to the Director concerned or his or her connected persons. The Board considers each Director's situation and decides whether to approve any conflict, taking into consideration what is in the best interests of the Company and whether the Director's ability to act in accordance with his or her wider duties is affected. Each Director is required to notify the Company Secretary of any potential or actual conflict situations that will need authorising by the Board. Authorisations given by the Board are reviewed at each Board meeting.

The Company has a policy of conducting its business in an honest and ethical manner. The Company takes a zero tolerance approach to bribery and corruption and has procedures in place that are proportionate to the Company's circumstances to prevent them. The Aberdeen Group also adopts a group-wide zero tolerance approach and has its own detailed policy and procedures in place to prevent bribery and corruption. Copies of the Aberdeen Group's anti-bribery and corruption policies are available on its website aberdeen-asset.com.

Internal Control

The Board is ultimately responsible for the Company's system of internal control and risk management and for reviewing its effectiveness. The Board confirms that as at 31 March 2017 there was an ongoing process for identifying, evaluating and managing the Company's significant business and operational risks, that it was in place for the year ended 31 March 2017 and up to the date of approval of the Annual Report, that it is regularly reviewed by the Board and accords with the internal control guidance for directors in the UK Code.

The design, implementation and maintenance of controls and procedures to safeguard the assets of the Company and to manage its affairs properly extends to operational and compliance controls and risk management. The Directors have delegated the investment management of the Company's assets to the Manager within overall guidelines, and this embraces implementation of the system of internal control, including financial, operational and compliance controls and risk management. Internal control systems are monitored and supported by the Manager's internal audit function which undertakes periodic examination of business processes, including compliance with the terms of the management agreement, and ensures that recommendations to improve controls are implemented.

Risks are identified and documented through a risk management framework by each function within the Manager's activities. Risk is considered in the context of the FRC and the UK Code guidance, and includes financial, regulatory, market, operational and reputational risk. This helps the Manager's internal audit risk assessment model identify those functions for review. Any weaknesses identified are reported to the Board, and timetables are agreed for implementing improvements to systems. The implementation of any remedial action required is monitored and feedback provided to the Board. The principal risks and uncertainties facing the Company are identified on in the Strategic Report.

The key components designed to provide effective internal control are outlined as follows:

- the Board and Manager have agreed clearly defined investment criteria, specified levels of authority and exposure limits. Reports on these issues, including performance statistics and investment valuations, are regularly submitted to the Board;

- the Manager prepares forecasts and management accounts which allow the Board to assess the Company's activities and review its performance;

- the administrator is responsible for independently preparing NAV calculations and controlling functions such as cash payments;

- internal controls reports (ISAE3402 and AAF 01/06) are reviewed from all key service providers;

- as a matter of course, the Manager's compliance department continually reviews the Manager's operations; and

- written agreements are in place which specifically define the roles and responsibilities of the Manager and other third party service providers.

The Board has considered the need for an internal audit function but, because of the compliance and internal control systems in place at the Manager, has decided to place reliance on the Manager's systems and internal audit procedures. At its meeting in June 2017, the Audit Committee carried out an annual assessment of internal controls for the year ended 31 March 2017 by considering documentation from the Manager, including the internal audit and compliance functions and taking account of events since 31 March 2017. The results of the assessment were then reported to the Board at the next Board meeting.

The system of internal control and risk management is designed to meet the Company's particular needs and the risks to which it is exposed. The system of internal control and risk is designed to manage rather than eliminate the risk of failure to achieve business objectives and by its nature can only provide reasonable and not absolute assurance against misstatement and loss.

Relations with Shareholders

The Directors place a great deal of importance on communication with shareholders. The Manager and the Company's stockbroker aim to meet larger shareholders at least annually. The Annual Report and financial statements are widely distributed to other parties who have an interest in the Company's performance. Shareholders and investors may obtain up to date information on the Company through the Manager's freephone information service and the Company's website (aberdeenprivateequity.co.uk).

The Notice of AGM included within the Annual Report and financial statements is sent out at least 20 working days in advance of the meeting. All shareholders have the opportunity to put questions to the Board or Manager, either formally at the Company's Annual General Meeting, informally following the meeting or in writing at any time during the year via the Company Secretary. The Company Secretary is available to answer general shareholder queries at any time throughout the year.

The Board recognises and supports the Manager's investor relations programme which includes active engagement with substantial shareholders. The Directors make themselves available to meet substantial shareholders on an ad hoc basis. The Board receives regular detailed reports and updates on investor relations from the Manager.

Socially Responsible Investment Policy

The Board is aware of its duty to act in the interests of the Company and its shareholders. The Board acknowledges that there are risks associated with investments into privately held companies, via Limited Partnerships ("LPs"), or direct investment, which fail to conduct business in a responsible manner. The Directors, through the Company's Manager, therefore encourage PE General Partners ("GPs") to adhere to best practice across the spectrum of Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance ("ESG") issues.

The Manager considers a range of material social, environmental and governance factors in the evaluation of investments into PE funds and direct investments. Specifically, the investment team considers these factors in line with the Principles for Responsible Investment ("PRI"). Aberdeen Asset Management signed the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment in 2007. The guide is now known simply as PRI, which has been specifically designed for PE. These are used within the diligence process for new fund investments and in the on-going monitoring of these commitments. The Manager requests specific information on the process that a GP uses in its own due diligence to assess the Company's potential exposure to environmental, social, human capital and governance risks, as well as financial factors. This helps to ensure a holistic approach is taken to risk assessment and that these issues are fully considered within that GP's investment approval process. Where a particular GP lacks transparency on ESG issues, this will be taken into account when making an investment recommendation.

Prior to recommending a commitment, the investment team also undertake due diligence on how the General Partner approaches the reporting of ESG issues to investors and other stakeholders, to ensure that LPs will receive adequate disclosure of any material risks or issues arising during a fund's life.

The Manager also requests information on how GPs address ESG issues in their portfolio companies during their period of ownership. Where material issues arise, the Manager will aim to become fully involved in LP decision making where appropriate, and will track the progress of these issues through to resolution.

Annual General Meeting

The Company's Annual General Meeting is convened for 10.30 a.m. on 15 September 2017 at the offices of Ipes (Guernsey) Limited, 1 Royal Plaza, Royal Avenue, St Peter Port, Guernsey, GY1 2HL.

Continuation of the Company

The Directors have undertaken to offer an annual opportunity to shareholders to vote on the continuation of the Company. Accordingly Resolution 7 will be proposed at the Annual General Meeting convened for 15 September 2017 as an ordinary resolution requiring a simple majority of votes cast in order for the Company to continue its business as a closed ended investment company.

Accountability and Audit

The respective responsibilities of the Directors and the auditor in connection with the financial statements are set out in the Annual Report.

Independent Auditor

Our independent auditor, PricewaterhouseCoopers CI LLP ("PwC CI LLP"), has indicated its willingness to remain in office. Resolution 6 will be proposed as an ordinary resolution at the AGM to re-appoint PwC CI LLP as independent auditor for the ensuing year, and to authorise the Directors to determine their remuneration.

Disapplication of Pre-emption Rights

Resolution 8 will be proposed as a special resolution at the AGM to provide the Directors with an annual authority to disapply pre-emption rights in respect of up to 10% of the Share capital when issuing Shares and/or selling Shares from treasury. This authority will expire at the conclusion of the AGM in 2018. Any future issues, or sales of Shares from treasury, will only be undertaken at a premium to the prevailing NAV per Share.

Purchase of the Company's Securities

As part of the discount control mechanisms, the Board may consider implementing a Share buy-back (subject to the limitations to be set out in Resolution 9 in the Notice of the Annual General Meeting of the Company and all other applicable laws and regulations) at each quarterly Board meeting should the Shares have been trading at a discount to NAV of 10% or greater for more than 90 days. The Company has the authority to manage demand flows for its Shares by purchasing up to 14.99% of the issued Share capital. Up to 10% may be held within treasury and resold. The remainder will be cancelled. Annual shareholder approval will be sought to renew this authority.

Purchases of Shares will only be made through the market for cash at prices below the prevailing NAV per Share (as last calculated) when the Directors believe that it would be in the interests of shareholders generally to do so. No Shares were repurchased in the year ended 31 March 2017.

At the Annual General Meeting to be held on 15 September 2017, Resolution 9, a special resolution, will be proposed to renew the Directors' authority to make market purchases of the Company's Shares in accordance with the provisions of the Listing Rules of the Financial Services Authority. Accordingly, the Company will seek authority to purchase up to 14.99% of the current issued Share capital. The authority being sought shall expire at the conclusion of the Annual General Meeting in 2018 unless such authority is renewed prior to such time. Any Shares purchased in this way will either be cancelled and the number of Shares will be reduced accordingly, or the Shares will be held in treasury.

Recommendation

Your Board considers each of the AGM resolutions to be in the best interests of the Company and its members as a whole. Accordingly, your Board recommends that shareholders should vote in favour of each of the resolutions to be proposed at the Annual General Meeting, as they intend to do in respect of their own beneficial shareholdings amounting to 108,870 Shares.

Going Concern

The Directors have undertaken a rigorous review of the Company's ability to continue as a going concern including reviewing the level of the Company's assets and significant areas of financial risk including the level of liquidity, the estimated draw down of commitments and timing of realisations from the portfolio. Note 20 to the financial statements includes the Company's objectives, policies and processes for managing its capital; its financial risk management objectives; details of its financial instruments and its exposure to credit risk and liquidity risk. The Directors believe that it is appropriate to prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis, as explained in the Basis of Preparation paragraph in note 2 and of the financial statements.

Accordingly, the Directors are recommending shareholders to vote in favour of the continuation vote and, based upon initial discussions with the larger shareholders, they believe that the resolution to continue will be passed. Thus they continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements. Nevertheless, the Directors are making full disclosure, as required by accounting standards, to indicate the existence of a material uncertainty (the continuation vote referred to above), which may cast doubt on the Company's ability to continue as a going concern. The financial statements do not include the adjustments that would result if the Company were unable to continue as a going concern.

By order of the Board

David Staples

Director

Registered Office:

1 Royal Plaza, Royal Avenue

St Peter Port, Guernsey

GY1 2HL

26 June 2017

STATEMENT OF DIRECTORS' RESPONSIBILITIES

The Directors are responsible for preparing financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view in accordance with applicable Guernsey law and International Financial Reporting Standards, of the state of affairs of the Company and of the profit or loss of the Company for that year. In preparing the financial statements, the Directors are required to:

   -    select suitable accounting policies and apply them consistently; 
   -    make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent; 

- state whether applicable accounting standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements;

- prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Company will continue in business; and

- assess whether the Annual Report and financial statements, taken as a whole, is 'fair, balanced and understandable'.

The Directors confirm to the best of their knowledge that:

   -    they have complied with the above requirements in preparing the financial statements; 
   -    there is no relevant audit information of which the Company's auditor is unaware. 

In accordance with Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rule 4.1.12:

The Directors confirm to the best of their knowledge that:

- the financial statements, prepared in accordance with the applicable set of accounting standards, give a true and fair view of the assets, liabilities, financial position and profit or loss of the Company; and

- that in the opinion of the Directors, the Annual Report and financial statements taken as a whole, is fair, balanced and understandable and it provides the information necessary to assess the Company's performance, business model and strategy; and

- the Strategic Report, including the Chairman's Statement and the Manager's Review, includes a fair review of the development and performance of the business and the position of the Company together with a description of the principal risks and uncertainties that the Company faces.

The Directors are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Company and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with The Companies (Guernsey) Law, 2008. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

Each Director confirms that, so far as he is aware, there is no relevant audit information of which the Company's auditor is unaware, and he has taken all the steps that he ought to have taken as a Director in order to make himself aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the Company's auditor is aware of that information. Additionally, all important events since the year end are properly disclosed in the financial statements.

The maintenance and integrity of the Company's website is the responsibility of the Directors; the work carried out by the auditor does not involve consideration of the maintenance and integrity of this website and, accordingly, the auditor accepts no responsibility for any changes that may have occurred to the financial statements since they were initially presented on the website. Legislation in Guernsey governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.

For Aberdeen Private Equity Fund Limited

David Staples

Director

26 June 2017

STATEMENT OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME

For the year ended 31 March 2017

 
                                          Year ended      Year ended 
                                            31 March   31 March 2016 
                                                2017 
                                 Notes       US$'000         US$'000 
 Net changes in fair 
  value of financial assets 
  at fair value through 
  profit or loss                    13        10,641          11,180 
 Income                              4           117              78 
 Currency gains                                   45              40 
 Investment management 
  fee                                5       (2,361)         (2,833) 
 Performance fee                     5       (1,887)               - 
 Other operating expenses            6       (1,492)         (1,211) 
 Tax incurred on distribution 
  income                             7         (263)           (142) 
                                            ________        ________ 
 Profit attributable 
  to equity shareholders                       4,800           7,112 
                                            ________        ________ 
 Earnings per share                  9 
 US Dollar (cents)                              4.40            6.52 
 Sterling (pence)                               3.52            4.53 
                                            ________        ________ 
 
 The Company does not have any income or expense 
  that is not included in profit for the year, and 
  therefore the "Profit attributable to equity shareholders" 
  is also the "Total comprehensive income for the 
  year", as defined in International Accounting Standard 
  1 (revised). 
 All items in the above statement derive from continuing 
  operations. 
 The accompanying notes are an integral part of 
  the financial statements. 
 

BALANCE SHEET

As at 31 March 2017

 
                                             As at      As at 
                                          31 March   31 March 
                                              2017       2016 
                                  Notes    US$'000    US$'000 
 Non-current assets 
 Financial assets held at 
  fair value through profit 
  or loss                            10    197,804    173,104 
 
 Current assets 
 Cash and cash equivalents                  14,332     36,574 
 Other receivables                   14        594        666 
                                          ________   ________ 
                                            14,926     37,240 
                                          ________   ________ 
 Creditors: amounts falling 
  due within one year 
 Other payables                      15    (4,979)    (1,050) 
                                          ________   ________ 
 Net current assets                          9,947     36,190 
                                          ________   ________ 
 Creditors: amounts falling 
  due after more than one year 
 Trade and other payables            15          -      (159) 
                                          ________   ________ 
 Net assets                                207,751    209,135 
                                          ________   ________ 
 Share capital and reserves 
 Share capital                       16    229,199    229,199 
 Revenue reserves                    17   (21,448)   (20,064) 
                                          ________   ________ 
 Equity shareholders' funds                207,751    209,135 
                                          ________   ________ 
 Net asset value per share           18 
 US Dollar (cents)                          190.37     191.64 
                                          ________   ________ 
 Sterling (pence)                           152.24     133.33 
                                          ________   ________ 
 

STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN EQUITY

 
 For the year ended 31 March 
  2017 
                                     Share    Revenue 
                                   capital   reserves      Total 
                                   US$'000    US$'000    US$'000 
 Balance at 31 March 2016          229,199   (20,064)    209,135 
 Dividend paid                           -    (6,184)    (6,184) 
 Profit attributable to equity 
  shareholders                           -      4,800      4,800 
                                  ________   ________   ________ 
 Balance at 31 March 2017          229,199   (21,448)    207,751 
                                  ________   ________   ________ 
 For the year ended 31 March 
  2016 
                                     Share    Revenue 
                                   capital   reserves      Total 
                                   US$'000    US$'000    US$'000 
 Balance at 31 March 2015          229,199   (23,414)    205,785 
 Dividend paid                           -    (3,762)    (3,762) 
 Profit attributable to equity 
  shareholders                           -      7,112      7,112 
                                  ________   ________   ________ 
 Balance at 31 March 2016          229,199   (20,064)    209,135 
                                  ________   ________   ________ 
 

STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS

 
                                             Year ended   Year ended 
                                               31 March     31 March 
                                                   2017         2016 
                                                US$'000      US$'000 
 Cash flows from operating activities 
 Profit for the year                              4,800        7,112 
 Net interest income from cash 
  and cash equivalents                            (117)         (78) 
 Net changes in fair value of 
  financial assets at fair value 
  through profit or loss                       (10,641)     (11,180) 
 Distribution income from investments             3,866        2,497 
 Realised gains on investee distributions        16,778       28,125 
 Realised currency gains on investment 
  distributions                                   (764)      (2,925) 
 Capital calls in relation to 
  investee expenses                             (4,647)      (3,260) 
 Purchases of investments including 
  calls                                        (48,386)     (26,402) 
 Sales of investments and returns 
  of capital                                     19,094       15,166 
 Increase/(decrease) in trade 
  and other payables                              3,770        (844) 
 Decrease/(increase) in trade 
  and other receivables                              72        (602) 
                                               ________     ________ 
 Net cash (outflow)/inflow from 
  operating activities                         (16,175)        7,609 
 
 Cash flows from investing activities 
 Net interest income from cash 
  and cash equivalents                              117           78 
                                               ________     ________ 
 Net cash inflow from investing 
  activities                                        117           78 
 
 Cash flows from financing activities 
 Equity dividends paid                          (6,184)      (3,762) 
                                               ________     ________ 
 Net cash outflow from financing 
  activities                                    (6,184)      (3,762) 
                                               ________     ________ 
 Net change in cash and cash 
  equivalents for the year                     (22,242)        3,925 
                                               ________     ________ 
 Cash and cash equivalents at 
  beginning of the year                          36,574       32,649 
                                               ________     ________ 
 Cash and cash equivalents at 
  the end of the year                            14,332       36,574 
                                               ________     ________ 
 

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS:

For the year ended 31 March 2017

 
 1.   General information 
      Aberdeen Private Equity Fund Limited (the "Company") 
       was incorporated with limited liability and registered 
       in Guernsey on 5 January 2007. The Company's 
       shares were listed on 9 July 2007 whereupon the 
       Company became a closed-ended investment company, 
       domiciled in Guernsey. The Company is authorised 
       by the Guernsey Financial Services Commission. 
       The principal activity of its subsidiary, APEF 
       Investments (Europe) S.a.r.l. which was incorporated 
       with limited liability and registered in Luxembourg 
       on 30 September 2016, is similar in all relevant 
       respects to that of its Guernsey parent. 
 
 
 2.   Accounting policies 
      The accounting policies which are considered 
       material in relation to the Company's financial 
       statements, all of which have been applied consistently, 
       are as follows; 
 
      (a)   Basis of preparation 
            The financial statements are prepared on a 
             going concern basis under the historical cost 
             convention, as modified by the revaluation 
             of financial assets and financial liabilities 
             at fair value through profit or loss. 
 
            Note 20 includes the Company's objectives, 
             policies and processes for managing its capital, 
             its financial risk management objectives, details 
             of financial instruments and exposure to financial 
             risks and liquidity risk. The Directors have 
             undertaken a rigorous review of the Company's 
             ability to continue as a going concern including 
             reviewing the on-going cash flows and the level 
             of cash balances and available liquidity facilities 
             as of the reporting date as well as taking 
             forecasts of future cash flows into consideration 
             and consideration of the continuation vote. 
             After making enquiries of the Investment Manager 
             and the Administrator, the Directors have a 
             reasonable expectation that the Company has 
             adequate resources to continue in operational 
             existence for at least one year from the date 
             the financial statements were signed. Accordingly, 
             the Directors continue to adopt a going concern 
             basis in preparing these financial statements. 
             Thus they have continued to adopt the going 
             concern basis of accounting in preparing the 
             financial statements. 
 
            The financial statements are prepared in accordance 
             with International Financial Reporting Standards 
             ("IFRS") issued by the International Accounting 
             Standards Board ("IASB"), and interpretations 
             issued by the International Financial Reporting 
             Interpretations Committee ("IFRIC"). 
 
            The preparation of financial statements in 
             conformity with IFRS requires the use of certain 
             critical accounting estimates which requires 
             management to exercise its judgement in the 
             process of applying the accounting policies. 
             Actual results may differ from these estimates. 
             It is in the area of valuation of investments 
             where management are required to exercise judgement 
             in the adoption of critical estimates which 
             can impact the carrying values of investments. 
 
            At the date of authorisation of these financial 
             statements, the following Standards and Interpretations 
             were in issue but not yet effective; 
            -      IAS 7 Amendment - Disclosure Initiative 
            -      IAS 12 Amendment - Recognition of Deferred 
                    Tax Assets for Unrealised Losses 
            -      IFRS 12 Amendment (AI 2014 -16) - Clarification 
                    of the scope of the Standard 
            -      IFRS 9 - Financial Instruments 
            -      IFRIC 22 - Foreign Currency Transactions 
                    and Advance Consideration 
 
            In addition, under the Annual Improvements 
             to IFRSs 2012 - 2014 Cycle, a number of Standards 
             are included for annual periods beginning on 
             or after 1 January 2017. 
 
            The Company intends to adopt the Standards 
             and Interpretations in the reporting period 
             when they become effective and the Board does 
             not anticipate that the adoption of these Standards 
             and Interpretations in future periods will 
             materially impact the Company's financial results 
             in the period of initial application although 
             there will be revised presentations to the 
             financial statements and additional disclosures. 
             In forming this opinion the Board specifically 
             notes the fundamental rewrite of accounting 
             rules for financial instruments under IFRS 
             9 and introduces a new classification model 
             for financial assets that is more principles-based 
             than the current requirements under IAS 39 
             Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement. 
             Financial assets are classified according to 
             their contractual cash flow characteristics 
             and the business models under which they are 
             held. Instruments will be classified either 
             at amortised cost, the newly established measurement 
             category fair value through other comprehensive 
             income or fair value through profit of loss. 
             The Company's portfolio does not include any 
             holdings which have contractual cash flows 
             and the Board have determined it will be appropriate 
             to continue to classify these investments at 
             fair value through profit or loss. In further 
             considering the Company's business model, the 
             Board is mindful that the Manager manages and 
             evaluates the performance of the Company on 
             a fair value basis and is compensated based 
             on the fair value of assets managed. 
 
      (b)   Financial assets 
            i)     Classification 
                   A financial asset or financial liability 
                    at fair value through profit or loss is 
                    a financial asset or liability that is classified 
                    as held-for-trading or designated at fair 
                    value through profit or loss on inception. 
 
                   Financial assets that are not held at fair 
                    value through profit or loss include certain 
                    balances due from brokers and accounts receivable. 
                    Financial liabilities that are not at fair 
                    value through profit or loss include certain 
                    balances due to brokers and accounts payable. 
 
            ii)    Recognition 
                   The Company recognises financial assets 
                    and financial liabilities on the date it 
                    becomes party to the contractual provisions 
                    of the asset or liability. Purchases and 
                    sales of financial assets and financial 
                    liabilities are recognised using trade date 
                    accounting. From trade date, any gains and 
                    losses arising from changes in fair value 
                    of the financial assets or financial liabilities 
                    are recorded in the Statement of Comprehensive 
                    Income with financial assets and liabilities 
                    being derecognised when the right to receive 
                    cash flows or the obligation to pay settle 
                    cash flows has expired or the Company has 
                    transferred substantially all risks and 
                    rewards of ownership. 
 
            iii)   Fair value measurement principles 
                   Financial assets and liabilities are initially 
                    recorded at their transaction price and 
                    then measured at fair value subsequent to 
                    initial recognition. Gains and losses arising 
                    from changes in the fair value of the 'financial 
                    assets or financial liabilities at fair 
                    value through profit or loss' category are 
                    presented in the Statement of Comprehensive 
                    Income for the period in which they arise. 
 
                   Financial assets classified as receivables 
                    are carried at amortised cost less any impairment 
                    losses. Financial liabilities, other than 
                    those at fair value through profit or loss, 
                    are measured at amortised cost using the 
                    effective interest rate method. 
 
                   IFRS 13 'Fair Value Measurement' aims to 
                    improve consistency and reduce complexity 
                    by providing a precise definition of fair 
                    value and a single source of fair value 
                    measurement and disclosure requirements 
                    for use across IFRSs. The requirements do 
                    not extend the use of fair value accounting 
                    but provide guidance on how it should be 
                    applied where its use is already required 
                    or permitted by other standards within IFRS. 
 
            iv)    Investees 
                   The Company's investments in investees (that 
                    is, limited partnerships, co-investments 
                    and companies in the investment portfolio) 
                    are subject to the terms and conditions 
                    of the respective investee's offering documentation. 
                    The investments in the investees are valued 
                    based on the reported Net Asset Value ("NAV") 
                    of such assets as determined by the administrator 
                    or General Partner of the investee and adjusted 
                    by the Directors in consultation with the 
                    Manager to take account of concerns such 
                    as liquidity so as to ensure that investments 
                    held at fair value through profit or loss 
                    are carried at fair value. The reported 
                    NAV is net of applicable fees and expenses 
                    including carried interest amounts of the 
                    investees and the underlying investments 
                    held by each investee are accounted for, 
                    as defined in the respective investee's 
                    offering documentation. While the underlying 
                    fund managers may utilise various model-based 
                    approaches to value their investment portfolios, 
                    on which the Company's valuations are based, 
                    no such models are used directly in the 
                    preparation of fair values of the investments. 
                    The NAV of investees reported by the administrators 
                    may subsequently be adjusted when such results 
                    are subject to audit and audit adjustments 
                    may be material to the Company. 
 
            v)     Investment in Subsidiary 
                   Entities which meet the definition of an 
                    investment entity are required to fair value 
                    subsidiaries through profit or loss rather 
                    than consolidate them. An investment entity 
                    meets the definition of an investment entity 
                    if it satisfies the following three criteria: 
                   (i) an entity obtains funds from one or 
                    more investors for the purpose of providing 
                    those investors with investment services; 
                    the Company provides investment services 
                    and has several investors who pool funds 
                    to gain access to these services and investment 
                    opportunities which they might not be able 
                    to as individuals. 
                   (ii) an entity commits to its investors 
                    that its business purpose is to investment 
                    solely for capital appreciation, investment 
                    income, or both; the Company's investment 
                    objective is to provide Ordinary Shareholders 
                    with long-term capital gains through investment 
                    in a diversified portfolio of private equity 
                    funds and direct co-investments. 
                   (iii) an entity measures and evaluates the 
                    performance of substantially all of its 
                    investments on a fair value basis; the Company 
                    has elected to measure and evaluate the 
                    performance of all of its investments on 
                    a fair value basis. The fair value basis 
                    is used to present the Company's performance 
                    in its communication with the market and 
                    the primary measurement attribute to evaluate 
                    performance of all of its investments and 
                    to make investment decisions. 
 
                   The Company meets the definition of an investment 
                    entity as defined by IFRS 10 and is required 
                    to account for the investment in APEF Investments 
                    (EUROPE) S.a.r.l. (the "Subsidiary"), which 
                    is itself an investment entity, at fair 
                    value through profit or loss. 
 
                   These financial statements are the only 
                    financial statements presented by the Company. 
 
                   The Company controls 100% of the voting 
                    rights and ownership interests in the Subsidiary, 
                    acquired at the time of the Subsidiary's 
                    incorporation in Luxembourg on 30 September 
                    2016. 
 
                   The Company and the Subsidiary operate as 
                    an integrated structure whereby the Company 
                    invests into the Subsidiary. Total subscriptions 
                    made by the Company into the Subsidiary 
                    during the year ended 31 March 2017 were 
                    $1,947,000 (2016 - nil). As at 31 March 
                    2017 and 31 March 2016 there were no capital 
                    commitment obligations and no amounts due 
                    to the Subsidiary for unsettled purchases. 
 
                   Per IFRS 10, there is a requirement for 
                    the Directors to assess whether the Subsidiary 
                    is itself an Investment Entity. The Directors 
                    have performed this assessment and have 
                    concluded that the Subsidiary is itself 
                    an Investment Entity for the reasons below: 
                   (a) The Subsidiary has obtained funds for 
                    the purpose of investing in equity or other 
                    similar interests and providing the Company 
                    (and its investors) with returns from capital 
                    appreciation and investment income. 
                   (b) The performance of investments made 
                    through the Subsidiary are measured and 
                    evaluated on a fair value basis. 
 
                   Furthermore, the Subsidiary is itself not 
                    deemed to be an operating entity providing 
                    services to the Company, and therefore is 
                    able to apply the exception to consolidation. 
 
                   Movements in the fair value of the Subsidiary's 
                    portfolio and corresponding movements in 
                    the fair value of the Subsidiary may expose 
                    the Company to a loss. 
 
            vi)    Cash and cash equivalents 
                   Cash and cash equivalents consist of cash 
                    on hand, demand deposits and short-term, 
                    highly liquid investments with original 
                    maturities of three months or less. 
 
            vii)   Listed securities 
                   Listed investments are designated upon initial 
                    recognition as at fair value through profit 
                    or loss. Subsequent to initial recognition, 
                    investments are valued at fair value which 
                    for listed investments is deemed to be last 
                    trade market prices. On adoption of the 
                    standard, the Company elected to use last 
                    traded price for valuing listed assets, 
                    where this falls between the bid-ask spread. 
 
      (c)   Interest income and dividend/distribution income 
            Interest income on cash and cash equivalents 
             is accrued using the effective interest method. 
             Dividend income and income from investees is 
             recognised when the right to receive payment 
             is established. Dividend income and income 
             from investees is recognised gross of tax deducted 
             at source, which is recognised as an operating 
             expense. 
 
      (d)   Realised and unrealised gains and losses 
            Realised gains and losses arising on the disposal 
             of investments are calculated by reference 
             to the proceeds received on disposal and the 
             average cost attributable to those investments, 
             and are recognised in the Statement of Comprehensive 
             Income. Unrealised gains and losses on investments 
             held at fair value through profit or loss are 
             also recognised in the Statement of Comprehensive 
             Income. 
 
      (e)   Foreign currency 
            i)     Functional and presentation currency 
                   The investments which the Company makes 
                    are primarily denominated in US Dollars. 
                    The Board of Directors considers US Dollars 
                    as the currency that most faithfully represents 
                    the economic effects of the underlying transactions, 
                    events and conditions. The financial statements 
                    are presented in US Dollars, which is the 
                    Company's functional and presentation currency. 
 
            ii)    Transactions and balances 
                   Foreign currency transactions are translated 
                    into the functional currency using the exchange 
                    rates prevailing at the dates of the transactions. 
                    Foreign exchange gains and losses resulting 
                    from the settlement of such transactions 
                    and from the translation at year-end exchange 
                    rates of monetary assets and liabilities 
                    denominated in foreign currencies other 
                    than US Dollars are recognised in the Statement 
                    of Comprehensive Income. 
 
      (f)   Expenses 
            All expenses recognised in the Statement of 
             Comprehensive Income are on an accruals basis. 
 
      (g)   Share issue expenses 
            Expenses which are directly incurred only on 
             the issue of shares are written off against 
             the share premium account. 
 
      (h)   Dividends payable 
            Dividends which are proposed as final dividends 
             for shareholder approval are recognised upon 
             shareholder approval being granted. Interim 
             dividends which are declared by the Board and 
             do not require shareholder approval are recognised 
             upon their declaration. 
 
      (i)   Distributions in-specie 
            Where distributions in-specie occur, these 
             are designated upon initial recognition at 
             fair value through profit or loss. Thereafter 
             the assets are valued at fair value and in 
             line with the relevant accounting policy. 
 
      (j)   Other receivables and payables 
            Other receivables do not carry any interest 
             and are short-term in nature, and are, accordingly, 
             stated at their amortised cost. Other payables 
             are non-interest bearing and are stated at 
             their amortised cost. 
 
 
 3.   Segmental information 
      The Company engaged in a single segment of business 
       during the year: investment in the Private Equity 
       Funds (including direct and co-investments) portfolio. 
       A reconciliation of movements in value during 
       the year can be found in notes 10 and 13 where 
       additional analysis has been provided for the 
       benefit of shareholders. 
 
      The Company is domiciled in Guernsey. All of 
       the Company's income from investments is from 
       underlying investments that are incorporated 
       in countries other than Guernsey. 
 
      The Company has a diversified portfolio of investments 
       and in accordance with the Company's investment 
       policy no single investment may account for more 
       than 20% of the Company's net assets at the date 
       of investment. 
 
 
                                            2017       2016 
 4.    Income                            US$'000    US$'000 
  Net interest income from cash 
   and cash equivalents                      117         78 
                                        ________   ________ 
 
 
                                                    2017         2016 
 5.    Management fees                           US$'000      US$'000 
  Investment management fee                        2,361        2,833 
                                                ________     ________ 
 
  During the year AFML provided management services 
   to the Company. 
 
  Under the terms of the management agreement, 
   for the six months ended 30 September 2016, the 
   basis of the monthly fee paid to the Manager 
   was equal to one-twelfth of 1.5% of the NAV of 
   the Company before deduction of any performance 
   fee but after deducting liabilities (excluding 
   from such liabilities the amount of any long-term 
   structured bank debt approved by the Board) and 
   deducting cash at bank, short-term deposits and 
   the value of holdings in money market funds plus 
   one-twelfth of 0.75% of the value of all cash 
   at bank, short-term deposits and holdings in 
   money market funds. Following a review of management 
   fee arrangements, with effect from 1 October 
   2016, the Manager is paid a monthly fee of one-twelfth 
   of 0.9% per annum of the NAV of the Company after 
   deducting liabilities but excluding long-term 
   structured debt. The fee is calculated and accrued 
   as at the last business day of each month and 
   is paid monthly in arrears. At 31 March 2017 
   US$157,000 was outstanding (31 March 2016 - US$239,000). 
 
  At the time of the launch of the Company the 
   previous manager entered into agreements to share 
   part of its management fee with certain shareholders 
   that had subscribed to the original offer. These 
   arrangements are continuing to the extent that 
   original shareholders have remained continuously 
   interested in the Company's shares. 
 
                                                    2017         2016 
                                                 US$'000      US$'000 
  Performance fee                                  1,887            - 
                                                ________     ________ 
 
  In addition, the Manager is entitled to a performance 
   fee subject to certain conditions. 
 
  In order to earn a performance fee all of the 
   following criteria must be met in a performance 
   fee period: 
 
    *    the NAV must have risen by more than 8% in the 
         performance fee period; 
 
    *    the NAV must exceed the high watermark (at which a 
         performance fee was last paid); and 
 
    *    the NAV must have risen by more than 8% per annum 
         compounded over the previous three performance 
         periods. 
 
  The performance fee itself is calculated at 10% 
   of the NAV gain above the hurdle rate in the 
   performance period. Furthermore, the total fees 
   payable to the Manager in any performance period 
   is capped at 3% of NAV. As at 31 March 2017 US$1,887,000 
   was payable (31 March 2016 - US$nil). Notwithstanding 
   the fact that net asset value has decreased over 
   the period in the Company's functional and presentation 
   currency of US Dollars, the calculation basis 
   of the performance fee is based in Sterling terms 
   and given the fall in Sterling against the US 
   Dollar in the period this gives rise to a performance 
   fee being accrued at the period end. 
 
 
                                                      2017       2016 
 6.    Other operating expenses                    US$'000    US$'000 
  Administration fees{A}                               159        176 
       Auditor's fees: 
  - audit                                               72         74 
  - for review of the interim report                    15         22 
  Bank charges                                           4          4 
  Brokerage fees                                        49         52 
  Custody fees                                          14         15 
  Depositary fees                                       31         19 
  Directors' fees                                      182        195 
  Directors' and officers' insurance                    12         18 
  Legal and professional fees{B}                       233        195 
  Loan facility fees                                   494        206 
  Printing and communication{C}                        127        136 
  Travel expenses                                       10         10 
  Listing fee                                           13         14 
  Registrar's fees                                      37         40 
  Regulatory fees                                       12         12 
  Subscription fees                                     22         19 
  Other expenses                                         6          4 
                                                  ________   ________ 
                                                     1,492      1,211 
                                                  ________   ________ 
 
  {A} The Administrator is paid by the Company 
   a fee of GBP111,750 (US$140,000) per annum plus 
   disbursements. The contract notice period is 
   90 days. At 31 March 2017 GBP30,000 (US$36,000) 
   was outstanding (31 March 2016 - GBP29,000 (US$42,000)). 
  {B} Included within the total are costs of US$187,000 
   (2016 - US$nil) attributable to the renewal of 
   the loan facility and costs of US$36,000 (2016 
   - US$37,000) related to taxation services provided 
   by Ernst & Young LLP. 
  {C} Included in the total are costs attributable 
   to the Company's agreement with AAML ('AAML') 
   for the provision of promotional activities in 
   relation to the Company's participation in the 
   Aberdeen Investment Trust Share Plan and ISA. 
   The total fees paid and payable under the agreement 
   were GBP77,000 (US$107,000) (2016 - GBP74,000 
   (US$112,000)) and the sum due to AAM at the year 
   end was GBP18,000 (US$23,000) (2016 - GBP45,000 
   (US$66,000)). 
 
 
 7.   Taxation 
      The Company is subject to federal and state tax 
       on effectively connected income ("ECI") received 
       from certain of its underlying portfolio holdings 
       in the US. Such taxes are deducted by the investee 
       from income before being paid to the Company. 
       Upon filing the Company's annual tax return with 
       US authorities the Company will be able to assess 
       whether any ECI tax paid on its behalf may be 
       recoverable. US$nil was identified as recoverable 
       at 31 March 2017 (31 March 2016 - US$nil). In 
       certain circumstances, the Company is also in 
       a position to receive recoverable withholding 
       taxes on distribution income from underlying 
       holdings. During the year ended 31 March 2017, 
       the Company incurred state taxes of US$61,000 
       and withholding tax expenses of US$256,000 and 
       received withholding tax refunds of US$46,000, 
       and federal tax refunds of US$8,000, therefore 
       amounting to a net tax expense for the year of 
       US$263,000. The Company is domiciled and registered 
       for taxation purposes in Guernsey where it pays 
       an annual exempt status fee (which is currently 
       GBP1,200) under The Income Tax (Exempt Bodies) 
       (Guernsey) Ordinances 1989 (as amended). Consequently, 
       the Company does not pay income or corporation 
       taxes there and, other than in the US as noted 
       above, does not currently suffer such taxes anywhere 
       else. 
 
 
                                                  2017       2016 
 8.    Dividends                               US$'000    US$'000 
       Amounts recognised as distributions 
        to equity holders in the period: 
  Dividend for 2016 - 2.20p (2015 
   - 2.20p)                                      3,457      3,762 
       Interim dividend for 2017 - 2.00p         2,727          - 
        (2016 - nil) 
                                              ________   ________ 
                                                 6,184      3,762 
                                              ________   ________ 
 
       The proposed final dividend for 2017 has not 
        been included as a liability in these financial 
        statements as it is subject to shareholders' 
        approval at the Annual General Meeting which 
        is scheduled for 15 September 2017 (2016 - same). 
 
       The table below sets out the proposed final dividend, 
        and dividends paid, in respect of the financial 
        year. 
 
                                                  2017       2016 
                                               US$'000    US$'000 
       Interim dividend for 2017 - 2.00p         2,727          - 
        (2016 - nil) 
  Proposed final dividend for 2017 
   - 2.00p (2016 - dividend -2.20p)              2,729      3,457 
                                              ________   ________ 
                                                 5,456      3,457 
                                              ________   ________ 
 
 
 9.   Earnings per share 
      The basic earnings per share is calculated by 
       dividing the profit attributable to equity shareholders 
       of GBP3,839,000 (US$4,800,000); (2016 - GBP4,948,000) 
       (US$7,112,000)) by 109,131,199 (2016 - 109,131,199) 
       shares, the weighted average number of shares 
       in issue during the year. There were no potentially 
       dilutive shares in issue at 31 March 2017 (31 
       March 2016 - nil). Whilst the Company has chosen 
       to report basic earnings per share in a currency 
       other than its functional and presentation currency 
       as supplementary information it has complied 
       with the requirements of IFRS including the translation 
       method. 
 
 
                                                      2017       2016 
                                                   Private    Private 
                                                    Equity     Equity 
                                                     Funds      Funds 
 10.    Financial assets held at fair              US$'000    US$'000 
         value through profit or loss 
  Cost at beginning of year                        142,967    131,609 
  Additions                                         48,386     26,402 
  Disposals and return of capital                 (19,094)   (15,166) 
  Realised gains/(losses) on investments             3,445        122 
                                                  ________   ________ 
  Cost at end of year                              175,704    142,967 
  Unrealised gains on investments                   22,100     30,137 
                                                  ________   ________ 
  Fair value at end of year                        197,804    173,104 
                                                  ________   ________ 
 
  As at 31 March 2017 (2016 - same) there was one 
   operating segment, being Private Equity Funds 
   and direct and co-investments. 
 
 
 11.    Unconsolidated structured entities 
        The Company invests in investment funds and has 
         assessed whether these investees should be classified 
         as unconsolidated structured entities in accordance 
         with IFRS 12 - Disclosure of Interests in Other 
         Entities. These investees are closed-end private 
         equity limited partnerships or investment companies 
         which invest in underlying companies for the 
         purposes of capital appreciation. These entities 
         are generally financed through committed capital 
         from limited partners or shareholders, with cash 
         being drawn down for financing investment activity. 
         The Company has considered the voting rights 
         and other similar rights afforded to investors 
         in these investees, including the rights to remove 
         the General Partner or liquidate the investee. 
         The Company has concluded that these rights or 
         the contractual agreement with the General Partner 
         is the dominant factor in controlling the investees. 
 
        As at 31 March 2017, the Company's maximum exposure 
         to loss attributable to these entities comprises 
         the current carrying value of the assets, along 
         with the uncalled committed capital relating 
         to those investments, as summarised below: 
 
                                               31 March    31 March 
                                                   2017        2016 
                                                US$'000     US$'000 
  Financial assets held at fair 
   value through profit or loss                 197,804     173,104 
  Uncalled commitments                          141,888     122,816 
                                               ________    ________ 
  Maximum loss exposure                         339,692     295,920 
                                               ________    ________ 
 
 
 12.    Fair value hierarchy 
        IFRS 7 'Financial Instruments: Disclosures' requires 
         an entity to classify fair value measurements 
         using a fair value hierarchy that reflects the 
         subjectivity of the inputs used in making measurements. 
 
        Fair value estimation 
        The Company has adopted IFRS 13 'Fair Value Measurement'. 
         The fair value of financial assets and liabilities 
         traded in active markets is based on quoted market 
         prices at the close of trading on the period 
         end. If a significant movement in fair value 
         occurs immediately subsequent to the close of 
         trading on the period end date, valuation techniques 
         will be applied to determine the fair value. 
         An active market is a market in which transactions 
         for the asset or liability take place with sufficient 
         frequency and volume to provide pricing information 
         on an ongoing basis. 
 
        Investments in private equity funds, including 
         co-investments, may not have a readily available 
         market and are therefore valued based on the 
         fair value of each private equity fund as reported 
         by the respective General Partner as per the 
         capital account summary statement, normally updated 
         and received on a calendar quarterly basis, which 
         includes estimates made by those General Partners. 
         The Board and Manager believe that this value, 
         in most cases, represents fair value as of the 
         relevant statement date, although, if other factors 
         lead the Board or Manager to conclude that the 
         fair value attributed by the General Partner 
         does not match their estimate of actual fair 
         value, the Board and Manager will adjust the 
         value of the investment from the General Partner's 
         estimate. The Board and Manager estimate fair 
         value using publicly available information and 
         the most recent financial information provided 
         by the General Partners, as adjusted for cash 
         flows since the date of the most recent financial 
         information. As the key input into the model 
         is official valuation statements, we do not consider 
         it appropriate to put forward a sensitivity analysis 
         on the basis insufficient benefit is likely to 
         be derived by the end user. 94% by value of the 
         portfolio has been valued using 31 March 2017 
         quarter-end valuations, 2% has been valued using 
         an estimate of value at 31 March 2017 and 4% 
         has been valued using 31 December 2016 quarter-end 
         valuations, adjusted for cash movements. 
 
        The Company has classified fair value measurements 
         using a fair value hierarchy that reflects the 
         significance of the inputs used in making the 
         measurements. The fair value hierarchy has the 
         following levels: 
 
        Level 1: quoted prices (unadjusted) in active 
         markets for identical assets or liabilities; 
        Level 2: inputs other than quoted prices included 
         within Level 1 that are observable for the assets 
         or liability, either directly (ie as prices) 
         or indirectly (ie derived from prices); and 
        Level 3: inputs for the asset or liability that 
         are not based on observable market data (unobservable 
         inputs). 
 
        The level in the fair value hierarchy within 
         which the fair value measurement is categorised 
         in its entirety is determined on the basis of 
         the lowest level input that is significant to 
         the fair value measurement of the instrument 
         in its entirety. For this purpose, the significance 
         of an input is assessed against the fair value 
         measurement in its entirety. If a fair value 
         measurement uses observable inputs that require 
         significant adjustment based on unobservable 
         inputs, that measurement is a level 3 measurement. 
         Assessing the significance of a particular input 
         to the fair value measurement in its entirety 
         requires judgement, considering factors specific 
         to the financial asset or liability. 
 
        The determination of what constitutes "observable" 
         requires significant judgement by the Directors 
         in consultation with the Manager. The Directors 
         consider observable data to be that market data 
         that is readily available, regularly distributed 
         or updated, reliable and verifiable, not proprietary, 
         and provided by independent sources that are 
         actively involved in the relevant market. 
 
        The following tables summarise by level within 
         the fair value hierarchy the Company's financial 
         assets and liabilities at fair value as follows: 
 
                                     Level       Level      Level      Total 
                                         1           2          3 
        31 March 2017              US$'000     US$'000    US$'000    US$'000 
  Financial assets at 
   fair value through 
   profit and loss                 -                 -    197,804    197,804 
                                  ________    ________   ________   ________ 
 
                                     Level       Level      Level      Total 
                                         1           2          3 
        31 March 2016              US$'000     US$'000    US$'000    US$'000 
  Financial assets at 
   fair value through 
   profit and loss                 -                 -    173,104    173,104 
                                  ________    ________   ________   ________ 
 
        A reconciliation of fair value measurements in 
         Level 3 is set out in the following table (Private 
         Equity Funds includes co-investments): 
 
                                                                     Private 
                                                                      Equity 
                                                                       Funds 
        Year ended 31 March 2017                                     US$'000 
  Opening balance                                                    173,104 
  Purchases including calls                                           48,386 
  Sales and return of capital                                       (19,094) 
        Total gains or losses on investments included 
         in Statement of Comprehensive Income: 
  - on assets sold                                                     3,445 
  - on assets held at the year end                                   (8,037) 
                                                                    ________ 
                                                                     197,804 
                                                                    ________ 
 
                                                                     Private 
                                                                      Equity 
                                                                       Funds 
        Year ended 31 March 2016                                     US$'000 
  Opening balance                                                    175,125 
  Purchases including calls                                           26,402 
  Sales and return of capital                                       (15,166) 
        Total gains or losses on investments included 
         in Statement of Comprehensive Income: 
  - on assets sold                                                       122 
  - on assets held at the year end                                  (13,379) 
                                                                    ________ 
                                                                     173,104 
                                                                    ________ 
 
 
 13.    Net changes in fair value of financial assets 
         at fair value through profit or loss 
        The net realised and unrealised investment gain 
         or loss from financial assets at fair value through 
         profit or loss shown in the Statement of Comprehensive 
         Income is analysed as follows: 
 
                                                        2017       2016 
                                                     US$'000    US$'000 
  Unrealised losses on investments                   (8,037)   (13,379) 
  Capital calls in relation to investee 
   expenses{A}                                       (4,647)    (3,260) 
  Realised gains on disposal of 
   investments                                         3,445        122 
  Realised gains on investee distributions            16,778     28,125 
  Realised currency losses on investee 
   distributions                                       (764)    (2,925) 
  Distribution income from investments                 3,866      2,497 
                                                    ________   ________ 
                                                      10,641     11,180 
                                                    ________   ________ 
 
  {A} Capital call expenses relate to management 
   fees and other expenses paid to investees. 
 
 
                                              2017       2016 
 14.    Other receivables: amounts due     US$'000    US$'000 
         within one year 
  Prepayments                                  519        654 
        Due from Subsidiary                     75          - 
  Accrued interest                               -         12 
                                          ________   ________ 
                                               594        666 
                                          ________   ________ 
 
  The fair value of other payables approximates 
   carrying value due to the short-term nature of 
   these instruments. 
 
 
                                             2017       2016 
 15.    Creditors: amounts due within     US$'000    US$'000 
         one year 
        Due within one year 
  Management fees                             157        239 
        Performance fee                     1,887          - 
        Outstanding settlements             2,500          - 
  Loan facility arrangement fee               144        474 
  Other expenses                              291        337 
                                         ________   ________ 
                                            4,979      1,050 
                                         ________   ________ 
        Due after more than one year 
  Loan facility arrangement fee                 -        159 
                                         ________   ________ 
 
  The fair value of other payables approximates 
   carrying value due to the short-term maturity 
   of these instruments. 
 
 
                                                       2017        2016 
 16.    Share capital                               US$'000     US$'000 
        Management shares 
        Authorised: 10,000 shares of GBP1 
         each 
        2 Management shares of GBP1 each                  -           - 
                                                   ________    ________ 
                                                          -           - 
                                                   ________    ________ 
 
                                                       2017        2016 
                                                    US$'000     US$'000 
        Ordinary shares 
        Authorised: unlimited number of 
         shares of no par value 
        Share capital and share premium 
         issued and fully paid 
  Opening balance of 109,131,199 
   (2016 - 109,131,199) Sterling 
   shares                                           229,199     229,199 
        Nil (2016 - nil) Sterling shares                  -           - 
         repurchased/issued during the 
         year 
                                                   ________    ________ 
  Closing balance of 109,131,199 
   Sterling shares                                  229,199     229,199 
                                                   ________    ________ 
 
  The authorised share capital of the Company on 
   incorporation was GBP10,000 divided into 10,000 
   shares of GBP1.00 each. On 31 May 2007 a special 
   resolution was passed by the Company to increase 
   the share capital to an unlimited number of participating 
   shares of no par value ("shares"), which upon 
   issue, the Directors were able to designate as 
   Sterling shares, US Dollar shares or otherwise 
   as determined by the Directors at the time of 
   issue, and 10,000 Management shares of GBP1.00 
   each. 
 
  The shares were issued on 4 July 2007 as a result 
   of the Company announcing the placing and offer 
   for subscription of its shares on 6 June 2007. 
   Shareholders' rights attaching to the Sterling 
   shares are detailed within the "Glossary of Terms 
   and Definitions" on page 88 of the Annual Report. 
 
  Following approval by shareholders of the Share 
   Conversion Proposal on 3 June 2010, all the US 
   Dollar shares were converted into new Sterling 
   shares on 2 July 2010, on the basis of 0.5810 
   new Sterling shares for every US Dollar share 
   held. 
 
  The Company's Sterling shares give shareholders 
   the entitlement to all of the capital growth 
   in the Company's assets and to all the income 
   from the Company that is resolved to be distributed. 
   The Sterling shares are in registered form and 
   traded on the London Stock Exchange's Main Market. 
   Subject to the Articles of Incorporation, on 
   a show of hands every registered holder of Shares 
   (a shareholder) who is present in person (or, 
   being a corporation, by representative) shall 
   have one vote. On a poll every shareholder present 
   in person (or, being a corporation, by representative) 
   or by proxy shall be entitled to one vote in 
   respect of each Share held by him. In the case 
   of joint holders, the vote of the senior who 
   tenders a vote, whether in person or by proxy, 
   shall be accepted to the exclusion of the votes 
   of the other joint holders, and for this purpose 
   seniority shall be determined by the order in 
   which the names stand in the register of members 
   in respect of the Shares. On a winding up of 
   the Company, following payment to the holders 
   of Management Shares of any sums up to the nominal 
   amount paid up thereon, the assets of the Shares 
   available for distribution among the holders 
   of Shares shall be distributed amongst the holders 
   pro rata to the number of such Participating 
   Shares held by each shareholder and no holder 
   of Shares shall have any claim against the Company 
   or any remaining assets of the Company in respect 
   of any shortfall. 
 
 
                                             2017       2016 
 17.    Revenue reserves                  US$'000    US$'000 
  Opening revenue reserves               (20,064)   (23,414) 
  Profit attributable to equity 
   shareholders                             4,800      7,112 
  Dividend paid                           (6,184)    (3,762) 
                                         ________   ________ 
  Closing revenue reserves               (21,448)   (20,064) 
                                         ________   ________ 
  Revenue reserves attributable 
   to shareholders                       (21,448)   (20,064) 
                                         ________   ________ 
 
 
 18.   Net asset value 
       The net asset value of each share is determined 
        by dividing the net assets of the Company attributable 
        to the shares of GBP166,141,000 (US$207,751,000); 
        (2016 - GBP145,505,000 (US$209,135,000)) by 109,131,199 
        (2016 - 109,131,199), being the number of shares 
        in issue at the year end. Whilst the Company 
        has chosen to report net asset value per share 
        in a currency other than its functional and presentation 
        currency as supplementary information it has 
        complied with the requirements of IFRS including 
        the translation method. 
 
 
 19.    Commitments 
        The table below summarises commitments to the 
         underlying investments of the Company at 31 March 
         2017. 
 
                                                         Total                 Outstanding 
                                        Currency   Commitments      Currency   Commitments 
                                            '000       US$'000          '000       US$'000 
  Apax 8 (A8 -A (Feeder)) 
   L.P.                               EUR 10,000        10,696       EUR 812           869 
  CCMP Capital Investors 
   III L.P.                                             15,000                       6,599 
  Coller International 
   Partners V L.P.                                      15,000                       3,270 
  CVC Capital Partners 
   Asia Pacific IV 
   L.P.                                                 10,000                       6,653 
  Exponent Private 
   Equity Partners 
   III L.P.                            GBP10,000        12,505      GBP4,995         6,246 
  FFL Parallel Fund 
   IV L.P.                                              10,000                       5,881 
  Goldman Sachs Capital 
   Partners VI L.P.                                     15,000                       2,238 
  Gores Capital Partners 
   III L.P.                                             10,000                       1,644 
  HIG Bayside Debt 
   & LBO Fund II L.P.                                   15,000                       2,435 
  Latour Capital II 
   L.P.                               EUR 10,000        10,696     EUR 8,040         8,599 
  Lion Capital Fund 
   III L.P.                           EUR 10,000        10,696     EUR 1,681         1,798 
  Longreach Capital 
   Partners Ireland 
   1, L.P                                                7,425                         280 
  Longreach Capital 
   Partners 2 - USD, 
   L.P.                                                  7,500                       1,010 
  MatlinPatterson 
   Global Opportunities 
   Partners III L.P.                                    10,000                         434 
  MML Capital Partners 
   Fund VI L.P.                       EUR 13,000        13,903     EUR 7,435         7,952 
  Montagu V L.P.                       EUR 8,000         8,556     EUR 7,720         8,257 
  MTS Health Investors 
   IV L.P.                                              15,000                      12,792 
  Nazca Fund IV FCR                   EUR 10,000        10,696     EUR 9,124         9,758 
  Northzone Ventures 
   VI L.P.                            EUR 10,000        10,696       EUR 366           392 
  Northzone VIII L.P.                 EUR 12,000        12,834    EUR 10,025        10,722 
  Oaktree OCM Opportunities 
   Fund VIIb L.P.                                       15,000                       1,500 
  Pangaea Two Parallel 
   L.P.                                                  5,000                       1,799 
  Pine Brook Capital 
   Partners L.P.                                        10,000                         985 
  Resolute Fund III 
   L.P.                                                 15,000                       7,599 
        RHO Ventures VI                                 10,000                           - 
         L.P. 
  Sagard 3 FCPI                       EUR 10,000        10,696     EUR 5,584         5,973 
  Silver Lake Partners 
   III L.P.                                             15,000                       1,621 
  StepStone International 
   Investors III L.P.                 EUR 14,600        15,615       EUR 449           480 
  Summa Equity Fund 
   I (No.2) AB                       SEK 145,500        16,295   SEK 125,922        14,104 
  Tenaya Capital V 
   L.P.                                                 12,500                       1,120 
  Tenaya Capital VI 
   L.P.                                                  5,000                         872 
        Thoma Bravo Fund                                10,000                           - 
         IX L.P. 
  Wisequity IV                        EUR 10,000        10,696     EUR 6,211         6,643 
  Co-investments                                        20,963                       1,363 
                                                      ________                    ________ 
  As at 31 March 2017                                  402,968                     141,888 
                                                      ________                    ________ 
 
 
 20.    Financial risk management 
        The Company maintains positions in a variety 
         of investees as determined by its investment 
         management strategy. 
 
        The investees' own investing activities expose 
         the Company to various types of risks that are 
         associated with the financial investments and 
         markets in which they invest. The significant 
         types of financial risks, to which the Company 
         is exposed are market risk, credit risk and liquidity 
         risk. 
 
        Asset allocation is determined by the Company's 
         Manager which manages the allocation of assets 
         to achieve the investment objectives. Achievement 
         of the investment objectives involves taking 
         risks. The Manager exercises judgement based 
         on analysis, research and risk management techniques 
         when making investment recommendations. Adherence 
         to target asset allocations and the composition 
         of the portfolio is monitored by the Board. 
 
        Risk management framework 
        The directors of Aberdeen Fund Managers Limited 
         collectively assume responsibility for obligations 
         under the AIFMD including reviewing investment 
         performance and monitoring the Company's risk 
         profile during the year. 
 
        AFML is a fully integrated member of the Aberdeen 
         Group, which provides a variety of services and 
         support to AFML in the conduct of its business 
         activities, including in the oversight of the 
         risk management framework for the Company. AFML 
         has delegated the day to day administration of 
         the investment policy to Aberdeen Asset Managers 
         Limited, which is responsible for ensuring that 
         the Company is managed within the terms of its 
         investment guidelines and the limits set out 
         in its pre-investment disclosures to investors 
         (details of which can be found on the Company's 
         website). AFML has delegated responsibility for 
         monitoring and oversight of the Investment Manager 
         and other members of the Aberdeen Group which 
         carry out services and support to APWML to Aberdeen 
         Fund Managers Limited. 
 
        The Manager conducts its risk oversight function 
         through the operation of the Group's risk management 
         processes and systems which are embedded within 
         the Group's operations. The Group's Risk Division 
         supports management in the identification and 
         mitigation of risks and provides independent 
         monitoring of the business. The Division includes 
         Compliance, Business Risk, Market Risk, Risk 
         Management and Legal. The team is headed up by 
         the Group's Head of Risk, who reports to the 
         Chief Executive Officer of the Group. The Risk 
         Division achieves its objective through embedding 
         the Risk Management Framework throughout the 
         organisation using the Group's operational risk 
         management system ("SWORD"). 
 
        The Group's Internal Audit Department is independent 
         of the Risk Division and reports directly to 
         the Group CEO and to the Audit Committee of the 
         Group's Board of Directors. The Internal Audit 
         Department is responsible for providing an independent 
         assessment of the Group's control environment. 
 
        The Group's corporate governance structure is 
         supported by several committees to assist the 
         board of directors of Aberdeen, its subsidiaries 
         and the Company to fulfil their roles and responsibilities. 
         The Group's Risk Division is represented on all 
         committees, with the exception of those committees 
         that deal with investment recommendations. The 
         specific goals and guidelines on the functioning 
         of those committees are described on the committees' 
         terms of reference. 
 
        Risk management 
        The significant types of risk that the Company 
         is exposed to are detailed below: 
        a)     Capital management risk 
               - the Company may not be able to continue 
                as a going concern, and 
               - the balance between equity capital and debt 
                may become inappropriate resulting in an adverse 
                impact on returns to shareholders. 
 
               The capital of the Company is represented 
                by the net assets attributable to the holders 
                of the Company's shares. 
 
               It is the Board's policy to monitor and review 
                the broad structure of the Company's capital 
                on an ongoing basis. This review includes 
                the nature and planned level of gearing, which 
                takes account of the Manager's views on the 
                market and the extent to which any return 
                of capital may be made to equity shareholders 
                via dividends or share repurchases. The Company 
                may borrow up to 25% of the net assets of 
                the Company. Capital transactions undertaken 
                during the year are disclosed in the Chairman's 
                Statement. 
 
        b)     Market risk 
               The potential for adverse changes in the fair 
                value of the Company's investment portfolio 
                is referred to as market risk. Commonly used 
                categories of market risk include currency 
                risk, interest rate risk and other price risk. 
 
                 *    Currency risk may result from exposure to changes in 
                      spot prices, forward prices and volatilities of 
                      currency exchange rates. 
 
                 *    Interest rate risk may result from exposures to 
                      changes in the level, slope and curvature of the 
                      various yield curves, the volatility of interest 
                      rates, and credit spreads. 
 
                 *    Other price risk is the risk that the value of an 
                      instrument will fluctuate as a result of changes in 
                      market prices other than those arising from currency 
                      risk or interest rate risk. 
 
               i) Market risk management 
               The Company's unlisted equity securities are 
                susceptible to market price risk arising from 
                uncertainties about future values of the investment 
                securities. The Manager provides the Company 
                with investment recommendations that are consistent 
                with the Company's objectives. 
 
               The valuation method of these investments 
                is described within the accounting policies. 
                The nature of some of the Company's investments, 
                which are unquoted investments in private 
                equity funds and co-investments, means that 
                the investments are valued by the Manager 
                on behalf of the Company after due consideration 
                of the most recent available information from 
                the underlying investments as adjusted where 
                relevant by the Directors. While the underlying 
                fund managers may utilise various model-based 
                approaches to value their investment portfolios, 
                on which the Company's valuations are based, 
                no such models are used directly in the preparation 
                of fair values of the investments. 
 
               Market risk is the risk that the fair value 
                or future cash flows of a financial instrument 
                will fluctuate because of changes in market 
                prices. The investments of the Company are 
                subject to normal market fluctuations and 
                the risks inherent with investment in financial 
                markets. The maximum risk resulting from financial 
                instruments held by the Company is determined 
                by the fair value of the financial instruments. 
                The Manager moderates this risk through careful 
                selection of funds managed by experienced 
                fund managers, which meet the investment objectives; 
                the Company's market risk is managed through 
                diversification of the investment portfolio. 
                Through a variety of analytical techniques, 
                the Manager monitors, on a daily basis, the 
                Company's overall market positions, as well 
                as its exposure to market risk. 
 
               ii) Currency risk 
               The Company has assets and liabilities denominated 
                in currencies other than US Dollars, its functional 
                currency. The Company is therefore exposed 
                to currency risk, as the value of the assets 
                and liabilities denominated in other currencies 
                fluctuates due to changes in exchange rates. 
 
               The table below summarises the Company's exposure 
                in US Dollars to currency risks at the year 
                end: 
 
               As at 31 March                      US'000     GBP'000       EUR'000    SEK'000       Total 
                2017 
               Assets/(liabilities) 
   Financial assets 
    at fair value 
    through profit 
    or loss                                       127,079      11,701        57,026      1,998     197,804 
   Cash and cash 
    equivalents                                    13,335         331           666          -      14,332 
   Other assets 
    and liabilities                               (4,385)           -             -          -     (4,385) 
                                                 ________    ________      ________   ________    ________ 
   Total at 31 March 
    2017                                          136,029      12,032        57,692      1,998     207,751 
                                                 ________    ________      ________   ________    ________ 
 
               As at 31 March                      US'000     GBP'000       EUR'000    SEK'000       Total 
                2016 
               Assets/(liabilities) 
   Financial assets 
    at fair value 
    through profit 
    or loss                                       121,829       8,257        43,018          -     173,104 
   Cash and cash 
    equivalents                                    29,995       3,644         2,935          -      36,574 
   Other assets 
    and liabilities                                 (543)           -             -          -       (543) 
                                                 ________    ________      ________   ________    ________ 
   Total at 31 March 
    2016                                          151,281      11,901        45,953          -     209,135 
                                                 ________    ________      ________   ________    ________ 
               Currency risk 
                sensitivity 
               Based on the Company's exposure to monetary 
                assets and liabilities denominated in Euros 
                per the table above and the exchange rate 
                at 31 March 2017 per note 23, a 10% strengthening 
                in the US Dollar would result in a decrease 
                in the net assets of the Company of US$5,769,000. 
                Based on the Company's exposure to monetary 
                assets and liabilities denominated in Euros 
                per the table above and the exchange rate 
                at 31 March 2017 per note 23, a 10% weakening 
                in the US Dollar would result in a decrease 
                in the net assets of the Company of US$5,769,000. 
 
               Based on the Company's exposure to monetary 
                assets and liabilities denominated in Sterling 
                per the table above and the exchange rate 
                at 31 March 2017 per note 23, a 10% strengthening 
                in the US Dollar would result in a decrease 
                in the net assets of the Company of US$1,203,000. 
                Based on the Company's exposure to monetary 
                assets and liabilities denominated in Euros 
                per the table above and the exchange rate 
                at 31 March 2017 per note 23, a 10% weakening 
                in the US Dollar would result in a decrease 
                in the net assets of the Company of US$1,203,000. 
 
               Based on the Company's exposure to monetary 
                assets and liabilities denominated in Swedish 
                Krona per the table above and the exchange 
                rate at 31 March 2017 per note 23, a 10% strengthening 
                in the US Dollar would result in a decrease 
                in the net assets of the Company of US$200,000. 
                Based on the Company's exposure to monetary 
                assets and liabilities denominated in Euros 
                per the table above and the exchange rate 
                at 31 March 2017 per note 23, a 10% weakening 
                in the US Dollar would result in a decrease 
                in the net assets of the Company of US$200,000. 
 
               iii) Interest rate risk 
               The Company is exposed to interest rate risk. 
                The Company invests primarily in private equity 
                funds and private equity like funds that are 
                non interest bearing investments, mainly subject 
                to market risk. Interest receivable on bank 
                deposits or payable on loan positions will 
                be affected by fluctuations in interest rates. 
                Changes to prevailing interest rates or changes 
                in expectations of future rates may result 
                in an increase or decrease in the value of 
                the securities held. In general, if interest 
                rates rise, the value of fixed income securities 
                will decline. A decline in interest rates 
                will, in general, have the opposite effect. 
 
               Although the majority of the Company's financial 
                assets and liabilities are non interest bearing, 
                cash and cash equivalents represent 7% of 
                the Company's NAV (31 March 2016 - 18%). As 
                a result, the Company is subject to some risk 
                due to fluctuations in the prevailing levels 
                of market interest rates. Any excess cash 
                and cash equivalents are invested at short-term 
                market interest rates. 
 
               As at 31 March 2017 the Company's interest 
                bearing assets and liabilities, all of which 
                receive or pay interest at a variable rate, 
                were as follows: 
 
                                                                               2017                   2016 
                                                                            US$'000                US$'000 
   Cash and cash equivalents                                                 14,332                 36,574 
                                                                           ________               ________ 
 
               Based on the cash and cash equivalents held 
                at 31 March 2017, a movement of 0.25% in market 
                interest rates would impact the Company's 
                annual income by approximately US$36,000 per 
                annum (2016 - US$92,000 per annum). 
 
               iv) Other price risk 
               Other price risk is the risk that the value 
                of the investees' financial investments will 
                fluctuate as a result of changes in market 
                prices, other than those changes arising from 
                currency risk or interest rate risk whether 
                caused by factors specific to an individual 
                investment, its issuer or any factor affecting 
                financial investments traded in the market. 
 
               As the Company's investments are carried at 
                fair value with fair value changes recognised 
                in the Statement of Comprehensive Income, 
                all changes in market conditions will directly 
                affect the overall NAV. 
 
               The investments are valued based on the latest 
                available unaudited price of such shares or 
                interests as determined by the administrator 
                or General Partner of each investee. Furthermore, 
                valuations received from the administrators 
                or General Partners of the investees may be 
                estimates and such values are generally used 
                to calculate the NAV of the Company. Such 
                estimates provided by the administrators or 
                General Partner of the investees may be subject 
                to subsequent revisions which may not be restated 
                for the purpose of the Company's final month-end 
                NAV. 
 
               Currency, interest rate and other price risk 
                are managed by the Company's Manager as part 
                of the integrated market risk management processes. 
 
        c)     Credit risk 
               The Company takes on exposure to credit risk, 
                which is the risk that a counterparty will 
                be unable to pay amounts in full when due. 
                The Manager has adopted procedures to reduce 
                credit risk related to the Company's dealings 
                with counterparties. Before transacting with 
                any counterparty, the Manager or its affiliates 
                evaluate both creditworthiness and reputation 
                by conducting a credit analysis of the party, 
                its business and its reputation. The credit 
                risk of approved counterparties is then monitored 
                on an ongoing basis, including periodic reviews 
                of financial statements and interim financial 
                reports as needed. Impairment provisions are 
                provided for losses, if any, that have been 
                incurred by the Balance Sheet date. 
 
               At 31 March 2017 and 31 March 2016, the following 
                financial assets were exposed to counterparty 
                credit risk: cash and cash equivalents. The 
                carrying amounts of financial assets best 
                represent the maximum credit risk exposure 
                at the year end date. 
 
               The Company places cash deposits with counterparties 
                whose credit ratings are all investment graded. 
                Ratings for fixed deposits, as rated primarily 
                by Moody's that subject the Company to credit 
                risk at 31 March 2017 and 31 March 2016 are 
                noted below: 
 
                                                                     2017                     2016 
               Credit ratings for                              Rating          % of     Rating        % of 
                short-term notes                                                NAV                    NAV 
   Standard Chartered                                             P-1           0.3        P-1         2.5 
   Barclays Bank                                                  P-1           5.6        P-1         1.7 
 
               The Company has also placed funds within Aberdeen 
                Liquidity Funds which are rated by S&P at 
                31 March 2017 and 31 March 2016 as noted below: 
 
                                                                     2017                     2016 
               Credit ratings for                              Rating          % of     Rating        % of 
                short-term funds                                                NAV                    NAV 
   Sterling Fund                                                  A-1           0.1        A-1         1.7 
   US Dollar Fund                                                 A-1           0.9        A-1        11.5 
 
        d)     Liquidity risk 
               The Company's financial instruments include 
                investments in unlisted securities, which 
                are not traded in an organised public market 
                and may generally be illiquid. Although this 
                illiquidity is considered as part of the investment 
                valuations, should the Company be required 
                to dispose of such investments in a short 
                time-frame, an action that is not consistent 
                with the Company's investment objective, the 
                Company may have difficulty liquidating quickly 
                its investments in these instruments at an 
                amount close to fair value in order to respond 
                to its liquidity requirements or to specific 
                events. 
 
               The financial liabilities of the Company comprise 
                trade and other payables. The Company will 
                generally retain sufficient cash and cash 
                equivalent balances to satisfy trade and other 
                payables as they fall due. 
 
               The Company's outstanding commitments are 
                detailed in note 19. When an over-commitment 
                approach is followed, the aggregate amount 
                of capital committed by the Company to investments 
                at any given time may exceed the aggregate 
                amount of cash that the Company has available 
                for immediate investment, so there is a risk 
                that the Company might not be able to meet 
                capital calls when they fall due. To manage 
                this risk, the Company holds an appropriate 
                amount of its assets in cash and cash equivalents 
                together with a selection of readily realisable 
                investments as well as access to a revolving 
                credit facility detailed below. 
 
               In planning the Company's commitments, the 
                Manager takes into account expected cash flows 
                to and from the portfolio of fund interests 
                and, from time to time, may use borrowings 
                to meet draw downs; these expected cash flows 
                are monitored against actual draw downs and 
                distributions on a monthly basis to assess 
                the level of additional commitments that can 
                be made and how much cash needs to be kept 
                on hand. The Directors have resolved that 
                the Company may borrow up to 25% of its NAV 
                for short-term or long-term purposes. 
 
               As at 31 March 2017, the Company had a revolving 
                credit facility in place of GBP40 million 
                (2016 - GBP40 million) with LLoyds Banking 
                Group. The terms of the loan facility contain 
                two main covenants; (i) LTV test - the Company 
                shall ensure that at all times the aggregate 
                amount of all financial indebtedness shall 
                not exceed 20% of the Adjusted Net Asset Value 
                and (ii) Commitment test - if and for so long 
                as the ratio of unfunded commitments to liquidity 
                is more than 2.5:1, the Borrower shall not 
                enter into any further Investment Commitments 
                in any unlisted Investment in respect of which 
                there are uncalled commitments. The Company 
                met both these covenants throughout the period 
                for which the loan facility was utilised. 
 
               The table below sets out the liquidity risk 
                of the Company as at 31 March 2017 and 31 
                March 2016. All liabilities represent amounts 
                falling due within twelve months. Amounts 
                due within twelve months equal their carrying 
                balances. 
 
                                                                          Less than              Less than 
                                                                           one year               one year 
                                                                               2017                   2016 
               Financial liabilities                                        US$'000                US$'000 
   Other payables                                                             4,979                  1,050 
                                                                           ________               ________ 
 
               Based on on-going communications with General 
                Partners and the Manager's best estimates 
                as at 31 March 2017, the outstanding commitments 
                could be drawn down with the following maturity 
                profile: 
 
                                                                               2017                   2016 
               Maturity                                                 US$ million            US$ million 
   Less than 3 months                                                            16                     11 
   3-6 months                                                                     8                      8 
   6-12 months                                                                   14                     14 
   1-2 years                                                                     28                     19 
   Greater than 2 years                                                          76                     70 
                                                                           ________               ________ 
                                                                                142                    122 
                                                                           ________               ________ 
 
   There is no guarantee of this call rate. Any 
    new investments or secondary sales made will 
    alter these figures and assumptions. 
 
   As at 31 March 2017, an analysis of the financial 
    instruments by category shows assets held 
    at fair value through profit or loss of US$197,804,000 
    (2016 - US$ 173,104,000), deposits and receivables 
    of US$14,332,000 (2016 - US$36,586,000) and 
    other financial liabilities totalling US$4,979,000 
    (2016 - US$1,209,000). 
 
 
 
 21.   Related party transactions 
       Directors' fees and interests 
       Fees payable during the year to the Directors 
        and their interests in shares of the Company 
        are disclosed within the Directors' Remuneration 
        Report in the Annual Report. 
 
       Transactions with Service Providers 
       During the year, the Company had an agreement 
        with AFML for the provision of management services. 
        AFML also acts as the alternative investment 
        fund manager (AIFM) of the Company and delegates 
        the portfolio management of and the provision 
        of promotional activities for the Company to 
        AAML. AFML and AAML are all wholly owned subsidiaries 
        of AAM PLC. Details of transactions during the 
        year and balances outstanding at the year end 
        are disclosed in notes 5 and 6. 
 
       As at 31 March 2017, the Company had holdings 
        amounting to US$2,037,000 (2016 - US$27,557,000) 
        in Aberdeen Liquidity Funds which are managed 
        and administered by AAML. The Company pays a 
        management fee of 0.9% per annum on the value 
        of these holdings but no fee is chargeable at 
        the underlying fund level. Details of these holdings 
        can be found within the Investment Portfolio. 
 
 
 22.   Controlling party 
       In the opinion of the Directors on the basis 
        of shareholdings advised to them, the Company 
        has no immediate or ultimate controlling party. 
 
 
 23.    Exchange rates 
        As at 31 March 2017 and 31 March 2016, the exchange 
         rates used (against US$) in preparation of these 
         financial statements are as follows: 
 
                                             2017           2016 
                                              US$            US$ 
  Sterling                                 1.2505         1.4373 
  Euro                                     1.0696         1.1396 
  Swedish Krona                            0.1120         0.1234 
 
 
 24.    Geographical analysis 
        Geographic breakdown is determined by the geographical 
         area in which each Fund has indicated that it 
         will invest: 
 
                                                  2017         2016 
                                                  US$m         US$m 
  Global                                          70.6         59.3 
  North America                                   64.9         67.6 
  Europe                                          38.1         31.7 
  Asia & Other                                    24.2         14.5 
 
  The Company engages in a single segment of business 
   as detailed in note 3 to the financial statements 
   and geographical analysis is provided as supplemental 
   information. 
 
 
 25.   Subsequent events 
       On 10 April 2017 the Company committed GBP2.2 
        million to co-invest in BP INV3 L.P. 
 
       Other than this there were no material subsequent 
        events. 
 

Please note that past performance is not necessarily a guide to the future and that the value of investments and the income from them may fall as well as rise and may be affected by exchange rate movements. Investors may not get back the amount they originally invested.

The above financial information does not constitute statutory financial statements as defined in Section 262 of The Companies (Guernsey) Law, 2008. The comparative information is based on the statutory financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2016. Those financial statements, upon which the auditors issued an unqualified opinion, have been delivered to the Registrar of Companies. Statutory financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2017 will be filed in due course.

The Annual General Meeting of the Company will be held at 10.30 a.m. on 15 September 2017 at 1 Royal Plaza, Royal Avenue, St Peter Port, Guernsey GY1 2HL.

The audited Annual Report and Financial Statements incorporating the Notice of Annual General Meeting will be posted to shareholders during July. Copies may be obtained during normal business hours from the Company's Registered Office, 1 Royal Plaza, Royal Avenue, St Peter Port, Guernsey GY1 2HL Channel Islands or from the Manager, Bow Bells House, 1 Bread Street, London EC4M 9HH. Further copies will be available for download from the Company's website www.aberdeenprivateequity.co.uk.

Neither the content of the Company's website nor the content of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Company's website (or any other website) is (or is deemed to be) incorporated into, or forms (or is deemed to form) part of this announcement.

By order of the Board

Ipes (Guernsey) Limited

Company Secretary

26 June 2017

[i] Situation in UK Parliament where no one party has prevailed with a majority over all other parties

[ii] Cash plus debtors less creditors

[iii] Excludes underlying companies in the portfolio's two Secondary funds (Coller V, StepStone III)

[iv] This figure includes performance from existing investments and from any new investments made during the year. It is inclusive of fees charged by underlying managers during the year, including accruals for GPs' performance fees ("carried interest") but does not include management and/or any performance fees charged to the Company

[v] Source Aberdeen Asset Management based on GP supplied reports

[vi] "Trade sale" - a sale to a business. "Secondary sale" - a sale to another private equity investor (also known as a "Financial Sale")

[vii] For the purposes of this analysis, income from investments has been capitalised into the distributions figure

[viii] Source Aberdeen Asset Management, in local currency and inclusive of income distribution

[ix] New York Stock Exchange

[x] Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning

[xi] US based securities exchange, with historic technology bias

[xii] Source Aberdeen Asset Management, in local currency and inclusive of income distribution

[xiii] The ratio of distributed capital to investors' paid in capital, known as 'Distributed to Paid In'

[xiv] Legally completed, but not yet drawn

[xv] In addition the Company also paid calls for this period of $4.6m in relation to GPs fees and expenses (previous year, $3.1m)

[xvi] Excluding calls for co-investments

[xvii] Excluding secondary market fund sales' proceeds

[xviii] In this case, referring to the replacement of LPs' equity (and subsequent distribution thereof) with debt. Often referred to as a 'dividend recapitalisation', or simply 'recap'

[xix] The CBOE Volatility index which measures implied volatility of S&P 500 index options

[xx] March 2017, based on LBO purchase prices as measured by total consideration over EBITDA

[xxi] MJ Hudson Private Equity Fund Terms Research 2017 (quoting Preqin Private Equity online)

[xxii] Limited Partnership Agreements

[xxiii] Global Financial Crisis

[xxiv] Underlying Portfolio Fund Company

[xxv] Three year committed revolving credit facility with Lloyds Bank plc, effective 31 March 2016

This information is provided by RNS

The company news service from the London Stock Exchange

END

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