Baillie Gifford
Updated 28 Oct 2022
Save Article

Disclaimer

This is a non-independent marketing communication commissioned by Baillie Gifford. The report has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and is not subject to any prohibition on the dealing ahead of the dissemination of investment research.

The value of your investment and any income from it can go down as well as up and as a result your capital may be at risk.

Two seemingly unrelated questions. How do we best treat the estimated 40 per cent rise in new cases predicted in the next two decades? Why does the cost of sending money across international borders remain so high and the charges incurred so opaque?

For Milena Mileva, the connection is that they are two of the ‘hard global problems’ that Baillie Gifford UK Growth Trust companies electrosurgery specialist Creo Medical and Wise, a foreign exchange fintech – are addressing.

She believes that the portfolio’s up-and-coming companies, “disruptors at the leading edge of innovation,” are well placed for growth over a ten-year time horizon. Already, she says, they’re “bucking the perception that the UK is not a very exciting place to invest.”

Mileva highlights UK companies taking on some of the biggest global challenges:

Creo Medical

The firm develops medical devices for surgical endoscopy – operations carried out by tiny devices inserted into the body via small incisions.

Speedboat, its leading product, is attached to an endoscope and used to cut out or vaporise pre-cancerous growths in the digestive tract before they spread.

“Creo enables medics to detect diseases and intervene earlier, giving a better chance of recovery,” Mileva explains.

“Endoscopes are traditionally only used in investigative procedures to diagnose disease. Creo’s advanced energy platform and set of surgical tools enable endoscopes to perform treatments. These procedures benefit the patient and save money for healthcare systems.”

Mileva points to Creo’s June 2022 licensing partnership with Intuitive Surgical, the global leader in robot-assisted surgery. To her, the tie-up is evidence of the broader applicability of the UK firm’s technology: “The fact that a $6bn-revenue company such as Intuitive is partnering with a small business like Creo is a strong endorsement.”

Wayve

Wayve uses artificial intelligence (AI) to make safe and reliable self-driving cars, applying ‘deep learning’ techniques that involve learning the skill from corrected mistakes and imitation.

“Unlike rivals in the autonomous vehicles field, it doesn’t use high-definition maps and expensive sensors” adds Mileva.

“So the learning isn’t limited to the geographical areas they’ve already been ‘taught’. The aim is to teach the car to drive anywhere.”

The company is still privately owned. The Trust took a stake under new rules that let it invest up to 10 per cent of its holdings in unlisted firms.

Mileva lists the potential benefits of self-driving vehicles as improved road safety, fewer emissions, more efficient delivery of goods and greater access to transport for millions of people.

Exscientia

The ‘pharma tech’ company “precision engineers” drugs tailored to individual cancer patients and those with other diseases. This involves using artificial intelligence at each stage of the drug discovery and development process.

“The company is made up of a 50-50 split between biologists and technologists,” Mileva says.

“From the AI generation of the first novel molecules to the design of a potential therapy typically takes Exscientia around 12 months. The industry average is four and a half years.”

The firm has 25 new therapies in its pipeline including the first three AI-designed drug candidates to enter phase one clinical trials – the first step in testing a new treatment in humans.

Headquartered in Oxford Science Park and listed on New York’s Nasdaq exchange, Mileva is hopeful that “Excscientia will become the next AstraZeneca. The academic credibility of the people involved gives me confidence that it can.”

Wise

Wise has pioneered low-cost, super-transparent international money transfers.

Because it uses its own account in the destination country to pay a recipient an amount akin to the real exchange rate, money does not cross international borders and incur additional costs. Wise is upfront about the (usually lower) fees it charges.

Founded as TransferWise in 2010, the firm has grown rapidly, grabbing market share from banks and other incumbent foreign exchange brokers.

It listed on the London Stock Exchange last year and reported 38 per cent annual revenue growth in its last financial year.

“Individuals and companies transfer an estimated $18tn every year. Over 60 per cent of that is in the hands of banks, where transactions are riddled with hidden charges. It’s expensive and slow,” says Mileva.

“Banks can’t or won’t compete with the scalable technology infrastructure that makes Wise cheaper and faster.”

Words by Holly Thomas

Milena Mileva
Joint manager, Baillie Gifford UK Growth Trust

Investments with exposure to a single market may increase risk. The Trust's risk could be increased by its investment in private companies. These assets may be more difficult to sell, so changes in their prices may be greater.

Some of the views expressed are not necessarily those of Baillie Gifford. Investment markets and conditions can change rapidly, therefore the views expressed should not be taken as statements of fact nor should reliance be placed on them when making investment decisions.

The investment trusts managed by Baillie Gifford & Co Limited are listed on the London Stock Exchange and are not authorised or regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

A Key Information Document is available by visiting bailliegifford.com

Welcome to Kepler Trust Intelligence

Please enter a valid email address
{{item.msg}}
Please enter a valid password
{{item.msg}}
Please enter a valid email address
{{item.msg}}
Please check your email. If an account exists you'll be sent instructions on how to reset your password.
To ensure that we are able to provide content which is appropriate for you, please tell us a little about yourself.
Please choose an option
{{item.msg}}
Please enter a company name
{{item.msg}}
Please enter a location name
{{item.msg}}
Please choose an option
{{item.msg}}
Please enter a platform
{{item.msg}}
Please choose an option
{{item.msg}}
Please enter a trust
{{item.msg}}
See benefits
A free Kepler Trust Intelligence account allows you to access premium content including the ‘Kepler View’ – our verdict on the trusts we cover – and historical research so you can see how our view has changed over time. An account also unlocks useful facilities like the ‘follow’ button which lets you keep track of the trusts you’re interested in and as a logged in user you can also download PDFs of our research, and choose the layout of the page you’re reading to suit your preference. We will not share your details unless you give us permission to do so, and we won’t bombard you with emails – we only send one a week.
Please select an option
{{item.msg}}
Please enter your first name
{{item.msg}}
Please enter your last name
{{item.msg}}
Please enter a valid email address
An account already exists with this email - have you forgotten your password?
{{item.msg}}
Please enter a valid password
{{item.msg}}
Please enter a valid password
{{item.msg}}
?
The information contained herein is not for distribution and does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of any offer to buy any securities in the United States to or for the benefit of any United States person (being residents of the United States or partnerships or corporations organised under the laws thereof). The investment funds referred to herein have not been registered in the United States under the Investment Company Act of 1940 and units or shares of such funds are not registered in the United States under the Securities Act of 1933.
Please confirm
{{item.msg}}
Please select an option
{{item.msg}}
How will this information be used? Your answers help us to tailor our content to relevant investment trusts, and to ensure that the asset allocation and portfolio strategy research we produce is appropriate to our userbase.
Our Website uses Cookies Cookies are small text files held on your computer. They allow us to give you the best browsing experience possible and mean we can understand how you use our site. Some cookies have already been set. You can delete and block cookies, but parts of our site won’t work without them. By using our website you accept our use of cookies. For further information please refer to the Kepler Privacy Notice.
Need help?

One more thing...

Did you know, you can 'follow' individual trusts on Kepler Trust Intelligence? Use the functions below to set up alerts and we'll send you research and updates on your chosen trusts.

Suggested trusts to follow

Browse all funds
Need help?
Current Site Kepler Trust Intelligence is produced by the investment companies team at Kepler Partners and is the UK’s premier source of detailed qualitative research on investment trusts. Absolute Hedge is a market leading UCITS research database providing proprietary research on funds, themes and strategies in the UCITS space. Kepler Liquid Strategies is a Dublin domiciled UCITS fund platform featuring a number of best-of-breed fund managers. Kepler Partners is a corporate advisory and asset raising boutique specialising in the regulated funds market in Europe and investment trusts in the UK.