Parkwalk Advisors has sold on most of its stake in Oxford-founded drone designer Animal Dynamics, securing a 6.9 times return.
Fund management unit Parkwalk Advisors on Tuesday exited the bulk of its shareholding in Animal Dynamics, a UK-based unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) development spinout of University of Oxford.
The exit came through a secondary transaction with unspecified investors that secured a 6.9 times return for Parkwalk and its backers. Parkwalk Advisors is a subsidiary of commercialisation firm IP Group,
Founded in 2015, Animal Dynamics is working on UAVs that operate on ground, water and air with motion mechanics emulating the dynamics of creatures in the natural world.
The company currently has three UAV designs in the pipeline; a dragonfly-inspired aerial drone under development with a research division of the UK Ministry of Defence, another aerial drone called Stork intended for logistics deliveries, and a marine foiling craft with “flapping” propulsion.
Parkwalk had backed Animal Dynamics in December 2017 after a seed investment made through its Oxford-sponsored co-investment vehicle, University of Oxford Isis Fund III, two years previously. The value of neither transaction was disclosed.
Animal Dynamics subsequently attracted $7.7m in its series A round in November 2018 led by university venturing fund Oxford Sciences Innovation, with participation from VC firm Kindred Capital and investment firm Tanarra Capital as well as unnamed additional investors, according to the Telegraph.
The spinout’s management team includes chief scientific officer Adrian Thomas, professor of biomechanics in University of Oxford’s department of zoology.
