Firsthand Technology Value Fund Announces Plan To Seek Stockholder Approval To Withdraw BDC Election And Pursue Liquidation

Firsthand Technology Value Fund, Inc. (NASDAQ:SVVC) (the "Fund" or "Firsthand"), a publicly-traded venture capital fund that invests in technology and cleantech companies, today announced that its Board of Directors (the "Board") has approved a plan to seek stockholder approval to withdraw the Fund's election to be regulated as a business development company ("BDC") under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended. The Board will also be seeking stockholder approval on a plan of liquidation of the Fund.

The Fund also announced today that it has suffered material setbacks on two of its largest holdings. The resulting valuation write-downs could reduce the asset value of the Fund to a level below the amount of the Fund's accrued liabilities, most of which are fees payable to the Fund's investment adviser, Firsthand Capital Management, Inc. ("FCM"). The Board and FCM have agreed to take actions necessary to ensure that the Fund maintains a positive net asset value ("NAV") per share, which may include FCM waiving certain accrued investment management fees.

Additional information will be available in the Fund's forthcoming quarterly report on Form 10-Q in November 2023.