Last week ABP, the Dutch pension fund, said it will invest €1 billion in fast growing European technology companies over three years, starting with €250 million for the Scaleup Europe Fund. Its chairman framed the decision around the fund's first duty, delivering sound pensions, and said the investment is consistent with it.
The scale is very different, but the discipline is the one every holding company faces. Capital is limited, the opportunities are not, and the decision about where money goes says more about a group than any mission statement.
Grant & Graham Holding OÜ sits above a group that includes a management consultancy, artist management, property services, software and payments. Each of those companies could use more capital than the group has. This article sets out how we think about that choice.
Rules before opportunities
The worst time to decide how to judge an investment is when an attractive one is in front of you. Enthusiasm fills the gaps in the analysis.
So the group sets its rules in advance. Our approach to capital allocation is rules based: clear hurdles a proposal has to clear, and defined exits if it does not deliver. A new venture, a senior hire or an expansion into another country is measured against the same questions, whichever company proposes it.
Hurdles that fit a small group
Hurdles do not have to be complicated. For a group of our size, the useful ones are usually these.
- Evidence. What has already been proven with real customers or real usage, rather than projected?
- Fit. Does it use what the group already has, such as people, systems, relationships or brand?
- Cash. How much is needed before it pays its own way, and what happens if that takes twice as long?
- Accountability. Who owns the result, and do they have the authority to deliver it?
A proposal that cannot answer these is not rejected forever. It goes back to be made stronger, and often returns as a better idea.
The same hurdles apply to the companies already in the group. An established business asking for more capital answers the same four questions as a new idea. That keeps the comparison fair, and stops the loudest or longest standing company from winning by default.
Defined exits
Every investment decision should include a view on what happens if it does not work. That means agreeing at the start which milestones must be reached and by when, and what the group will do if they are missed: scale back, restructure, sell or close.
This is not pessimism. It protects the rest of the group, and it frees the people involved from defending a plan long after the evidence has moved on. Agreeing the exit early is what makes it possible to back an idea with conviction.
Oversight and reporting
Rules only work if someone checks them. The holding company provides governance across the group: regular reporting from each company, reviews against the milestones that were agreed, and a clear view of how capital is being used.
The principles we hold the group to are senior accountability, disciplined capital allocation, independent oversight, transparent reporting, long horizon thinking and ethical conduct. Capital allocation is where those principles stop being words and start shaping decisions.
Why Tallinn helps
We chose Estonia for the holding company for practical reasons: EU membership, a digital state where almost all government services are online, and transparent corporate law. Those features make the group simpler to govern, and easier to explain to partners, banks and investors.
They also make reporting faster. When filings, registers and records are digital by default, the information a board needs is closer to hand.
Long horizon, short feedback
ABP's commitment is measured over years. Ours are smaller, but the principle holds. Patient capital works best when it is paired with short feedback loops: frequent, honest reporting that shows early whether a bet is working.
Long horizon and short feedback is the combination we aim for across Grant & Graham Holding. It lets us stay committed to the companies we build, while staying honest about which ones deserve the next euro.
If you are building a group of your own and weighing where the next investment should go, we are always glad to compare notes.
Read more about Grant & Graham Holding OÜ, or book a call with Andrew Collins.
Source: NL Times, 24 September 2026.
