Top Holdings Include Pivotal Systems, IntraOp Medical, QMAT, Wrightspeed, and Nutanix

SAN JOSE, Calif., Oct. 13, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Firsthand Technology Value Fund, Inc. (NASDAQ:SVVC) (the “Fund”), a publicly traded venture capital fund that invests in technology and cleantech companies, disclosed today that its top five holdings as of September 30, 2017, were Pivotal Systems, IntraOp Medical, QMAT, Wrightspeed, and Nutanix.

1. Pivotal Systems, Inc. provides monitoring and process control technologies for the semiconductor manufacturing industry. As of September 30, 2017, the Fund’s investment in Pivotal consisted of 33,508,691 shares of preferred stock plus warrants to purchase additional shares and represented approximately 21.3% of the Fund’s preliminary net assets.
   
   
2. IntraOp Medical Corp. is the manufacturer of the Mobetron, a medical device that is used to deliver intra-operative radiation to cancer patients. As of September 30, 2017, the Fund’s investment in IntraOp consisted of 26,856,187 shares of preferred stock plus debt securities and represented approximately 15.2% of the Fund’s preliminary net assets.
   
   
3. QMAT, Inc. is developing advanced materials technologies for applications in the electronics industry. As of September 30, 2017, the Fund’s investment in QMAT consisted of 18,000,240 shares of preferred stock plus debt securities and warrants to purchase additional shares, and represented approximately 8.6% of the Fund’s preliminary net assets.
   
   
4. Wrightspeed, Inc. is a supplier of electric drivetrains for medium-duty trucks. As of September 30, 2017, the Fund’s investment in Wrightspeed consisted of 3,910,158 shares of preferred stock plus warrants to purchase additional shares and represented approximately 7.7% of the Fund’s preliminary net assets.
   
   
5. Nutanix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTNX) is a provider of hyperconverged data center equipment that merges computing, storage, and networking capabilities into a single piece of equipment. As of September 30, 2017, the Fund’s investment in Nutanix consisted of 459,772 shares of common stock and represented approximately 7.4% of the Fund’s preliminary net assets.

The Fund’s preliminary net assets as of September 30, 2017, include cash and cash equivalents of approximately $0.69 per share. As of September 30, 2017, the Fund’s top five holdings constituted 60.2% of the Fund’s preliminary net assets. Complete financial statements and a detailed schedule of investments for the third quarter will be made available with the Fund’s quarterly report filing on Form 10-Q in November 2017.

About Firsthand Technology Value Fund
Firsthand Technology Value Fund, Inc. is a publicly traded venture capital fund that invests in technology and cleantech companies. More information about the Fund and its holdings can be found online at www.firsthandtvf.com.

The Fund is a non-diversified, closed-end investment company that elected to be treated as a business development company under the Investment Company Act of 1940. The Fund’s investment objective is to seek long-term growth of capital. Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest at least 80% of its total assets for investment purposes in technology and cleantech companies.  An investment in the Fund involves substantial risks, some of which are highlighted below.  Please see the Fund’s public filings for more information about fees, expenses and risk.  Past investment results do not provide any assurances about future results.

CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS: This press release contains "forward-looking statements" as defined under the U.S. federal securities laws. Generally, the words "believe," "expect," "intend," "estimate," "anticipate," "project," "will," and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements, which generally are not historical in nature. Forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to materially differ from the Fund’s historical experience and its present expectations or projections indicated in any forward-looking statement. These risks include, but are not limited to, changes in economic and political conditions, regulatory and legal changes, technology and cleantech industry risk, valuation risk, non-diversification risk, interest rate risk, tax risk, and other risks discussed in the Fund’s filings with the SEC. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made. The Fund undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements made herein. There is no assurance that the Fund’s investment objectives will be attained. We acknowledge that, notwithstanding the foregoing, the safe harbor for forward-looking statements under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 does not apply to investment companies such as us.

Contact:

Heather Hohlowski
Firsthand Capital Management, Inc.
(408) 624-9525
vc@firsthandtvf.com