Purchase of Own Securities

Northern Venture Trust PLC
3 January 2001

                  NORTHERN VENTURE TRUST PLC (the 'Company')

PURCHASE OF OWN SHARES

The Company announces that on 8 December 2000, it purchased for cancellation
under an existing authority granted by shareholders 13,000 ordinary shares of
25p each in the market at a price of 110p, representing approximately 0.03 per
cent of the company's issued share capital. There remain 40,928,396 ordinary
shares in issue.