10 Companies to follow in 2025
Readers need no reminding its been another indifferent year for UK markets, and another poor one for AIM.
Nearly 90 companies have left the exchange in the past year, leaving not much more than 700, the fewest since 2002: 1,694 companies were quoted at the market’s 2007 peak.
Such is the dark mood that a forecast by investment bank Peel Hunt that up to a third of small and mid-cap AIM businesses could be bought up next year, rendered vulnerable due to a lack of liquidity and depressed valuations, might be the best bet for many investors.
Issues include insufficient coverage by professional analysts (UK small and mid-caps attract a quarter as many as their US peers), a significant reduction over the past 15 years in British investment funds targeting small companies, ever tighter liquidity, and the tidal pull of investor money towards passive investment strategies focused on major indices.
A paper by Barclays highlights some common proposals to address one of the most vexatious issues, the path by which companies can transition from AIM to the LSE Main Market, including extending – for a limited period – the tax concessions enjoyed by AIM investors, such as relief from capital gains and inheritance tax, and the abolition of the 0.5% transaction tax currently levied on many LSE securities. Other proposals are more drastic: a report by the Onward and Tony Blair Institute think tanks argues AIM should simply be abolished, and merged with a beefed-up Main Market
That is perhaps rather too bleak. AIM head Marcus Stuttard, noting that so far this year 40pc of all capital raised across Europe’s growth markets has come from AIM, said that ‘Over almost 30 years, AIM has supported more than 4,000 companies to raise nearly £135bn in equity capital, enabling pioneering businesses to fund innovation, create jobs and drive growth.’
With appropriate reforms, and a more favourable low interest rate economic environment, things could be different. Of the more than 250 European start-ups generating $100m to $500m in revenue, almost half are based in the UK. Britain has a world class scientific research base, and a strong record of innovation in blooming sectors such as AI, fintech and biotech. Markets need to try harder to attract them.
Here, we look at 10 Companies from a variety of sectors that have performed in 2024 or which may be positioned for a better year ahead. Also look out for our roundup of new year selections for Oil & Gas plus mining stocks. Enjoy.
Acuity RM Group
Acuity RM Group (AIM:ACRM) is an established provider of risk management services targeting organisations in the public, private and not for profit sectors required to manage their risks or comply with regulations and standards. The company anticipates new legislation regarding counter-terrorism processes to boost demand among event organisers.
ACRM’s flagship product, STREAM, a governance, risk and compliance software platform that collects data about organisations to improve business decisions and management, is used by around 70 organisations in markets including government, utilities, defence, broadcasting, manufacturing and healthcare. Most customers use it for managing cybersecurity and IT risks and for compliance with ISO 27001 and other standards and regulations, although it can be configured to manage other risks – such as vendor management – to provide a comprehensive view of risk and compliance across an organisation.
STREAM automates the collection and appraisal of data, quantifying and reporting the results. ACRM emphasises the products speed of deployment – it can be up and running in a month; its intuitive interface; its capacity to be used on a SaaS or private cloud delivery (on-premise) basis depending on a customer’s requirements; and the speed with which it processes information through an analytic engine that works in real time to provide critical reports quickly. STREAM has received highly positive reviews from Gartner, G2.com, Continuity, Insurance and Risk Magazine, SC Media, Information Age, and ACRM’s own customers. STREAM is sold on a SaaS or private cloud delivery basis, typically with a three year licence, invoiced annually in advance. Sales are made directly through the company’s own sales team and through a growing network of partners in the UK and the US: some 25pc of ACRMs pipeline is partner sourced.
ACRM is seeking to build market share in a GRC market valued at some $14.9bn in 2022, and expected to grow strongly to $27.1bn in 2027 as more organisations accept the need to manage the risks affecting them. Market drivers include digital transformation and organisations’ increasing awareness of their internal requirement to optimise all aspects of their business and external relations and regulation for better compliance and governance.
Earlier this year ACRM launched a new product, STORM, designed to address the emerging market for managing risk assessment at venues and public events, particularly those with a capacity of 800 or more. The company expects legislative requirements regarding counter-terrorism to drive demand.
ACRM’s H1 results reported an increase in orders of 21pc, up to £0.733m (H1 2023: £0.608m), an expanding sales pipeline of £7.9m (H1 2023: £4.4m), and higher revenues of £1m. ACRM’s cash balance was £1.86m, up from £0.1m a year ago, helped by a £1m fundraise in June.
At the time of writing ACRM’ share price was 2.1p, and its market cap £3.15m.
Alliance Pharma
Alliance Pharma (AIM:APH), a UK-based consumer healthcare company, holds the marketing rights to around 80 consumer healthcare brands and prescription medicines, sold worldwide in more than 100 countries, including recognised high street products such as Kelo-Cote, Nizoral and MacuShield.
APH has positioned its leading brands, treating damaged skin and supporting healthy ageing, to target clearly defined markets with significant scope for international growth, promoted to healthcare providers, patients and carers alike. Headquartered in the UK, the company employs around 290 people based in eight overseas offices across Europe, North America, and the Asia Pacific region, a geographic reach enhanced by a broad network of international distributors. The company prioritise organic growth through investment in its priority brands and channels, but also looks out for selective, complementary acquisitions. It aims to remain asset-light by outsourcing manufacturing and logistics.
APH’s most recent trading update, for the six months ended 30 June 2024, reported revenues of £84.8m (H1 23: £82.4m), up 2.8pc against the prior period, and 5pc at constant exchange rates (CER). Consumer healthcare revenues rose 5pc CER to £61.4m with a particularly strong performance in the Kelo-Cote franchise (a scar treatment), where revenues increased 18.4% CER to £29.2m (H1 23: £25.6m).
Performance of another key brand, anti-dandruff shampoo Nizoral, was impacted by de-stocking following a build in inventory in H1 23 ahead of a move to a new manufacturer, pushing revenues down 20.9pc CER to £8.3m (H1 23: £11.1m). Revenues of Amberen (a menopausal treatment) also declined 8.9pc CER to £5.2m (H1 23: £5.9m) due to ‘softer trading’ on Amazon. But other consumer healthcare revenues increased 8.9pc CER to £18.7m (H1 23: £17.1m) with MacuShield (a range of food supplements for eye health) up 16pc CER to £4.8m. Prescription medicine revenues grew 3.4pc CER to £23.3m (H1 23: £22.7m) reflecting strong growth in Hydromol ointment (up 9.6% CER to £5.1m) and a return to stock of certain products. The company expects to show strong growth in H2 24 (versus H2 23), boosted by new product launches.
The company’s results for the six months ended 30 June 2024 reported gross margin up 300bp, and underlying EBITDA up 6.4pc to £19.1m as investment in marketing and innovation ramps up. Robust free cash flow of £8.8m (H1 23: £11.0m) drove an £8m reduction in net debt to £83.2m (31 December 2023: £91.2m)
APH continues to introduce senior management changes ‘to bring the consumer closer to the heart of the business and to accelerate decision making’. The company delivered three significant launches: Amberen Energy, Mood and Sleep Gummy, MacuShield Omega 3 tablets and ScarAway Kids formulation. Sales from new product launches are expected to double in FY 2024 against FY 2023. The company continues to expand its operations in China.
APH said: ‘Our free cash flow is expected to build strongly throughout the remainder of 2024, which we anticipate will enable us to reduce further our net debt and leverage by the end of the year … The Board’s expectation for full year financial performance is unchanged’.
APH’s positive progress this year has pushed its price up to 45.4p, up nearly 14pc, and its market cap to £245m.
Coinsilium
With its commitment to a raft of technologies at the forefront of the web’s evolution Coinsilium (AQSE:COIN) is something more than a vehicle for gaining exposure to crypto rallies. COIN continues to assemble an impressive investment portfolio in a cluster of blockchain-driven Web 3.0 start-ups.
In brief, Web3.0 – often styled ‘Web 3’ – is a term used to refer to a cluster of related digital innovations driving the next major step in the evolution of the internet, focused on the potential the blockchain offers for direct peer-to-peer transactions that bypass traditional intermediating institutions. Web 3 promises to address the issues of privacy, data ownership, and centralisation that blight today’s web, opening the prospect of a decentralised network in which users have control over their data. Earlier this year the company published the first in a new series of reports designed to describe blockchain technology and its uses in accessible terms.
Prospective investors should review COIN’s wide range of investments carefully. Significant interests include an ongoing collaboration with Web3 development company Indorse on the emerging Byzant Web3 Social Network Ecosystem. One application, the Bastion Wallet, enables both seasoned crypto users and newcomers to interact seamlessly with Web3 applications. Indorse has also been working closely with A-ADS, one of the longest-established and largest crypto and Bitcoin advertising networks, to develop Adbazaar, a decentralised advertising platform tailored for Web3 advertisers and publishers. The project holds significant potential to leverage early entry into the Web3 advertising landscape.
Another investee, Greengage, provides distributed e-money account services through partnerships with regulated payments-as-a-service firms, tailored to entrepreneurs, SMEs, family offices, and digital asset firms. Greengage offers its clients personal and business e-money accounts in more than 50 currencies, and value-added services through a network of third-party providers, including B2B loans, facilitating over a quarter of a billion dollars in lending since its inception.
Coindash is a fully decentralized, open-source ETH staking network, based on Secret Shared Validator (SSV) technology. Addressing complexities in validating Ethereum, SSV enhances validator key security, and delivers benefits to the broader Ethereum network, staking pools, services, and individual stakers.
COIN has an interest in Silta Finance, which has received an investment from a top 10 global infrastructure development bank as part of a strategic partnership agreement to build a climate financing marketplace, powered by AI, for bankability and sustainability assessments. The partnership aims to help support governments, infrastructure developers, and financial institutions to reach their goals of deploying $800bn towards Climate Financing by 2030, opening the door to a $1.3tn global market for projects driving the transition from fossil fuels to renewables.
COIN holds a Simple Agreement for Future Tokens (SAFT) in Yellow Network, a Layer-3 decentralised Broker Clearing Network powered by State Channels used for communicating and trading between brokers. Yellow Network aims to interconnect blockchains and thereby open access to liquidity to truly decentralised, cross-chain and ultra-high-speed trading. A portfolio update published earlier this month reported that Yellow Network token listing is slated for Q1 2025.
COIN also has a SAFT in GGs.io, which offers a gateway to the Latin American market for AAA and Web3 game studios. GGS is currently in the process of establishing a gaming-focused fund aimed at acquiring and managing digital assets in the gaming sector. GGs.io’s investment strategy is focused on acquiring tokens from what it identifies the top 1pc of games, particularly from studios that succeed in replicating or improving upon existing Web2 game franchises.
COIN has another gaming interest, in Ember Sword, powered by a team that collectively has created some of the biggest games in the world, including AION, Cyberpunk 2077, Diablo 3, and Guild Wars.
COIN’s most recent results, for the six months ended 30 June 2024, reported £0.4m cash at bank and £1.1m in other current assets including cryptocurrencies, tokens and rights to future tokens. Powered by soaring crypto prices profits from continuing operations increased to £29,545 from a loss of £104,247 in H1 2023. COIN raised £472,500 earlier in the year.
COIN’s work in developing its portfolio and the ongoing crypto boom has helped the company’s share price increase from 1.4p to 4p over the past year, and take its market cap to £8.72m.
Harvest Minerals
Harvest Minerals (AIM:HMI), which has long focused on the commercial production of organic fertiliser at its Arapua Fertiliser Project in Brazil, opened an exciting new front this year, announcing the licence’s prospectivity for Rare Earth Elements (REE).
After the imposition of sanctions on Russia and Belarus triggered a global shortage in the supply of fertiliser, pushing prices to record highs in 2022, HMI’s results disappointed in 2023, as the return of stocks to normal levels and a downturn in the Brazilian farming sector forced prices back down. After recording a maiden net profit in 2022 of $197,797, HMI published a net loss of $3,180,605, pushing the company’s share price down from highs of nearly 17p hit in 2022.
But as the company put in place efficiencies to weather the storm, the promise of a new source of revenue opened in April, with the identification of rare earths at Arapua: the licence comprises nine exploration mineral rights covering a combined area of 14,481 hectares. Laboratory analysis of rock sample demonstrated the occurrence of REE with contents ranging from 1,176 ppm to 1,860 ppm of total rare earth oxides (TREO). Historical laboratory analysis being validated by HMI has indicated REE contents ranging from 1,837 ppm to 4,117 ppm TREO.
Noting that Brazil has emerged as a significant player in the REE arena, with high-quality projects being explored by the likes of Meteoric Resources, Brazilian Rare Earths and Viridis Mining and Minerals, HMI committed to a programme to re-assay rock samples and drilling data for detailing of mineralisation and potential association of REE.
The company published details of the exploration programme, funded by placing that raised a gross £425,000, in July. The first stage would further assess historical data and samples from previous drill holes, as well as execute several new auger drill holes for resource clarification and confirmation, and the second stage focus on extensive new drilling for resource expansion and a more comprehensive analysis of potential processing methods for REE to substantiate preliminary assessment of the REE opportunity.
Interim results for the six months to 30 June 2024 reported a continued downturn in fertiliser sales, driven by both macroeconomic pressures and a continuation of local factors impacting commodity prices. But assay results from seven auger drill holes from the first phase of the REE exploration programme, published last month, were highly encouraging, reporting TREO content ranging from 817.77 ppm to 4,370.08 ppm. The company looks forward to publishing final results from the programme, including scanning electron microscopy.
HMI currently trades at 0.6p, with a market cap of £1.72m. The share was priced at 2.3p as recently as May, in the wake of the REE announcement.
hVIVO
hVIVO (AIM:HVO), now established as the world leader in testing infectious and respiratory disease vaccines and therapeutics using human challenge clinical trials, moves into 2025 after recording further impressive progress this year.
HVO offers end-to-end early clinical development services to an established and growing repeat client base, which includes four of the top 10 largest global biopharma companies. Its services business includes a portfolio of 11 human challenge models, with a number of new models under development, testing a broad range of infectious and respiratory disease products.
The company offers comprehensive challenge agent manufacturing capabilities, specialist drug development and clinical consultancy services through its Venn Life Sciences brand, and a lab offering via its hLAB brand, which includes virology, immunology biomarker and molecular testing.
HVO’s most recent interims, for the six-month period ended 30 June 2024, reported strong growth across revenue, EBITDA and cash generation. First half revenue increased 30.6pc to £35.6m (H1 2023: £27.3m) as the company inoculated a record number of volunteers across six challenge trials and five separate challenge agents. EBITDA was also up 67.6pc to £8.7m with record EBITDA margins of 24.5pc. The company’s weighted contracted order book stood at £71m (H1 2023: £78m), post-delivery of a record £35.6m in revenues in H1 2024, with FY 2024 revenue guidance fully contracted and good visibility into 2025. The company continues to be debt free and highly cash generative, with cash of £37.1m (H1 2023: £31.3m), after the £1.4m dividend, paid in May 2024.
HVO reaffirms its full-year revenue guidance of £62m and expects EBITDA margins to be at the upper end of market expectations. The company is targeting revenue of £100m by 2028, growth it expect to be underpinned by the increased capacity of its facilities, a strong cash position, and a long-term sustainable growth model.
The company attributes much of its progress to its move to a new facility in Canary Wharf, the world’s largest commercial human challenge trial unit, with highly specialised on-site virology and immunology laboratories, and an outpatient unit. The site, with 50 quarantine rooms allowing an ever broader range of challenge trials, is expected to continue to deliver significant long-term operational efficiencies.
Significant deals through 2024 included a £6.3m Human Rhinovirus (HRV – common cold virus) contract with a biotech client; a £2.5m Omicron characterisation study contract with a mid-sized pharmaceutical company; a Human Metapneumovirus (hMPV) challenge agent manufactured and ready for partnering on a characterisation study; and a Flu B challenge model established following a successful characterisation study.
The company’s pipeline of live opportunities continues to expand including interest in new challenge models and new revenue streams with short to medium term potential opportunities of around £40m. Earlier this month the company announced a £11.5m contract with an existing top-tier global pharmaceutical client to test its antiviral candidate using its RSV Human Challenge Study Model..
HVO trades at 19.63p at the time of writing, taking the company’s market cap to £134m.
Poolbeg Pharma
Poolbeg Pharma (AIM:POLB) continues to pioneer new immunotherapies that promise to relieve the suffering of millions of blood cancer patients across the world.
This year the company’s has progressed the potential of POLB 001, its flagship candidate technology, as a groundbreaking cancer therapy, made innovative use of AI for rapid drug candidate discovery, and pushed forward with a range of new programmes targeting diabetes, obesity, oral ulcers and other conditions. The market for the treatment of myeloma and lymphoma alone is expected to be worth $120bn by 2030.
POLB is understood to be preparing for an IPO on the exchange by the end of the year, following in the footsteps of another venture seeded by Cathal Friel’s Raglan Capital, Amyrt Pharma (AIM:AMYT), which was acquired last year by Chiesi Farmaceutici, an Italian specialist in rare diseases, respiratory health and speciality care, for $1.5bn, a 107pc premium on Amryt’s $7.00 closing price. Like POLB, Amryt, which develops treatments for rare and orphan diseases, built momentum by developing clinical assets and assembling a portfolio of approved and marketed drugs with revenue potential. POLB’s resolve to follow Amryt’s path has been underlined by the appointment to its leadership team of several executives who played a leading role in securing the Chesi acquisition. POLB has close ties to another Raglan Capital enterprise, hVIVO (AIM:HVO), also featured in this list, which developed the extensive clinical data repository that POLB is working to commercialise.
POLB 001, currently POLB’s headline technology, is a ‘Phase II-ready p38 MAP Kinase inhibitor’ promising an effective treatment for inflammation suffered by patients with severe influenza, which infects some 12pc of the world’s population every year, causing more than half a million deaths. POLB 001 aims to combat the ‘cytokine storms’ triggered by severe variants of the disease, violent whole-body reactions that can generate serious complications including sudden cardiac events, tissue damage, pneumonia and sepsis. Current treatments for Cytokine Release Syndrome (CRS) disrupt viral replication, but POLB 001 is designed to go further, directly addressing hyperinfammatory episodes, and improving access by administration through a simple non-invasive oral therapy.
The technology has been cleared for human challenge clinical trials, a major stepping stone towards Phase II trials that would test the treatment’s effectiveness in dampening the body’s robust immune response to lipopolysaccharide, a surrogate for the hyperinflammatory response the final product would target.
POLB has received a US patent for the use of POLB 001 in treating cytokine storms, and preventing them in patients after an immune response has been triggered. The patent opens the way towards a US market in cancer immunotherapy-induced CRS worth more than $10bn.
POLB has continued to explore the potential of POLB 001 beyond severe influenza, opening new opportunities for partnering and out-licensing. A patent application has been submitted for the use of POLB 001 as a treatment option for cancer immunotherapies. Current treatments require invasive interventions that often trigger cytokine side-effects, but POLB 001 offers a simple oral treatment suitable for self-administration by outpatients, greatly enhancing safety and accessibility. POLB’s ambitions to access the oncology market received a major boost earlier this year when the company was able to publish highly promising test results on an in-vivo animal model with CRS symptoms, which demonstrated the prospective treatment’s ‘efficacy in reducing cancer immunotherapy-induced CRS’.
POLB is also a first mover in the use of artificial intelligence in biotech, exploring AI’s potential to identify new treatments more swiftly and accurately than classic ‘manual’ research procedures. The company has used AI analysis tools developed by research partner OneThree Biotech to facilitate the identification of new drug targets and treatments for RSV, and has signed a deal with CytoReason, another AI-focused research partner, for the analysis of influenza disease progression data derived from human challenge study samples.
Earlier this year POLB further extended its interests by entering into an exclusive 12-month option agreement with Silk Road Therapeutics to acquire a novel topical muco-adherent formulation of Pentoxifylline (tPTX) for the treatment of oral ulcers in patient’s suffering from Behçet’s Disease. The disease causes inflammation of blood vessels and tissues producing debilitating symptoms including oral ulcers, which impact essential functions like eating, drinking and speaking.
POLB’s most recent interim results, for the six months to 30 June 2024, reported a cash balance of £10.1m. The company’s positive progress pushed its share price, which currently stands at 7.2p (with a market cap of £36m), to nearly 15p in May.
Roadside Real Estate
Roadside Real Estate (AIM:ROAD), a real estate business focused on building and scaling a high-quality portfolio of modern roadside retail assets, has soared in value this year as it has acquired prime locations optimal for much needed EV charging infrastructure.
ROAD has made rapid progress towards that goal over the past 18 months through a joint venture with Meadow Real Estate Fund that has facilitated a £100m near term pipeline for investment in sites well suited for Drive-Thru, Foodvenience, Local Logistics and Trade Counter businesses, as well as EV charging facilities. According to the agreement Meadow will own and fund 97pc of the JV and ROAD 3pc. ROAD will earn ongoing asset management fees as well as a share of rental income. The partners believe the JV has longer term potential to build a portfolio worth £250m. Three major acquisitions include assets in Stoke, Gosport and Coventry worth £5.3m, £2.8m and £3.3m respectively.
The JV partnership made another significant acquisition in October, entering into an agreement with Lidl to acquire 12 stores for £70m. In line with the terms of the JV, ROAD will provide 3pc of the equity for the acquisition of the Lidl portfolio, amounting to an initial £450,000 and a total maximum commitment of £2.1m.
The 12 stores, all between 20,000 and 25,000 square feet are evenly spread across the UK and will add to Lidl’s existing 960 store estate. Lidl, the fastest growing supermarket chain in the UK, has previously acquired the relevant land, secured planning permission and construction is underway. Completion of the stores is anticipated to range from late October 2024 through to February 2025. The new stores will be on 25-year leases. ROAD said: ‘The Lidl portfolio is an excellent example of the JV strategy in action, rapidly providing targeted capital to enable tenant expansion whilst securing asset management fees and creating additional opportunities for income initiatives.’
ROAD has also succeeded in fully letting its two wholly-owned sites in Wellingborough and Maldon. Wellingborough is valued at £3.9m and has contracted rent of £237,000 per annum, and Maldon, valued at £4.8m, a contracted rent of £286,000. Tenants include Costa Coffee, Formula One Autocentres, Toolstation and City Electrical Factors, Greggs, City Plumbing Supplies Holdings, and C. Brewers & Sons.
ROAD also has a significant legacy investment in Cambridge Sleep Sciences (CSS), a life sciences company specialising in SleepEngine, a unique audio solution that helps to retrain the brain to restore healthy natural sleep patterns. Earlier this year ROAD announced an unconditional partial sale of a stake equivalent to 10pc of the share capital of CSS for £7.5m. ROAD retains 61.4pc ownership of the company, which it intends to sell in due course for reinvestment in its roadside business.
The company’s most recent interim results, to 31 March 2024, reported net cash of £1.6m. ROAD currently trades at 30.2p, up an extraordinary 370pc this year, taking its market cap to £43.85m.
Seed Innovations
With its conviction stake in the medical cannabis sector, investment company Seed Innovations (AIM:SEED) is well placed to benefit from further liberalisation of the industry that may be introduced by the incoming US administration.
SEED offers exposure to life sciences and technology ventures typically inaccessible to everyday investors, with significant holdings in CBD and hemp-derived ventures in Europe, North America and Australia. The company typically holds substantial stakes in investee companies, enabling meaningful engagement as a significant shareholder It maintains a robust cash position with a view to identifying early-stage opportunities with near-term investment catalysts, alongside more mature investments providing near-term liquidity. SEED currently holds equity or debt investments in the following companies:
Avextra AG, a leading European manufacturer and developer of Cannabis-based medicines located in Germany, has recently received approval from regulators for a multi-centre Phase II study to evaluate the safety and efficacy of an oral formulation in managing the symptoms of patients suffering from Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), Alzheimer’s Disease and Parkinson’s Disease.
UK based Juvenescence is a clinical-stage drug development company dedicated to extending healthy lifespan through innovative medicines. Its approach centres around developing medicines that target core pathways of aging to not only treat but prevent age-related diseases, ensuring that longevity comes with enhanced quality of life.
The Clean Food Group Limited (CFG) is a UK-based food-tech company providing sustainable oils and fats solutions for food and cosmetics manufacturers worldwide. In October CFG announced a partnership with THG LABS, a leading UK-based cosmetics manufacturer with end-to-end service capabilities, a collaboration with the potential to transform the cosmetics industry by introducing innovative, sustainable oil alternatives, reducing dependency on environmentally taxing ingredients such as traditional, agriculture-intensive oils.
Little Green Pharma (ASX:LGP), an Australian vertically integrated medical cannabis company, reported strong Q3 results, revenue reaching AUD$10.2m, with cash receipts at AUD$10.8m, marking 40pc and 30pc growth respectively, quarter-over-quarter. With LGP outperforming competitors and generating positive cash flow from operations with minimal long-term debt and a strengthened cash position, SEED sees significant potential for continued growth.
Inveniam Capital Partners is a private fintech company known for Inveniam.io, a technology platform that uses big data, AI and blockchain technology to provide surety of data and high-functioning use of that data in a distributed data ecosystem. Earlier this month Inveniam entered into a partnership to secure investment from G42, one of the world’s leading AI companies.
Portage (NASDAQ:PRTG) is a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company advancing multi-targeted therapies to extend survival and improve the lives of patients with cancer.
SEED’s alert short-term trading strategy was well illustrated this summer through its brief £250,000 investment in Pantheon Resource’s $29m fundraise and retail offer in August. SEED exited its entire position in November, taking gross proceeds of £336,918.90, and a profit of £87,000, realising a 35pc gain in three months.
SEED’s interim Results for the six months ended 30 September 2024 stated a strong cash position of £3.5m, (increasing to more than £3.8m in November following the sale of the Pantheon position), giving the company flexibility to take advantage of emerging opportunities.
Standing at £3.3m at the time of writing, SEED’s market capitalisation trades at a notable discount to the company’s estimated net asset value of £10.6m (as at 30 September 2024). SEED has been clear that it stands by its current portfolio, which ‘remains robust and diversified, featuring a mix of liquid assets and longer-term opportunities across high-growth life sciences and technology ventures.’ In particular the company believes its ‘two medical cannabis investee companies are primed for growth.’ The company’s ‘strategy remains centred on maximising returns from a focused selection of unique opportunities where value can often be unlocked relatively independently of broader market trends’. SEED continues, however, to explore ‘several promising, undervalued opportunities both in the UK and internationally.’
SEED currently trades at 1.63p with a market cap of £3.14m.
Vinanz Group
Vinanz (AQSE:BTC) has made impressive progress since listing on the Aquis Exchange exchange last year towards building a fully-fledged Bitcoin mining company, taking full advantage of Bitcoin’s vertiginous rise.
BTC, also listed on the US OTCQB under the ticker VINZF, currently operates Bitcoin miners in Canada, and Indiana, Iowa, Nebraska and Texas in the US, through third-party cryptocurrency mining providers. The company is maintaining momentum moving into 2025 by applying for listing on the LSE Main Market.
BTC’s first set of results for the six months to the end of February 2024, traced a busy opening period on the markets, reporting a net profit of £174,859, and the rapid expansion of its Bitcoin mining fleet from 120 ASIC miners to 300 miners, increasing the company’s processing power from 12 Petahash per second (PH/s) to around 32 PH/s.
BTC upgraded its fleet just prior to the Bitcoin halving in mid-April – during which the amount of Bitcoin available of a daily basis halved from 900 a day to 450 a day – to establish a competitive advantage over miners with older hardware. The company increased its holdings from 7.14 BTC to 13.85 BTC during the period.
On the corporate side BTC’s shares were approved for trading on the OTCQB Venture Market last September, and two capital raises were undertaken, for £350,000 and £447,750, both at a premium to the previous trading day’s closing price. BTC seeks green power sources, mainly from hydro power, at slightly less than six cents per kilo watt hour.
BTC continues to invest in its fleet with a view to the next halving in 2028. The company launched a new Bitcoin mining cluster in Indiana in June, acquiring an initial 20 Bitmain Antminer SJ19 Pro Bitcoin miners with the ambition of expanding to 100 miners in the near term. It started a new Bitcoin cluster in Texas, as part of its plans to roll-out Bitcoin miners in third-party hosting centres in the US and Canada, and last month announced that the first of an initial order of 10 next generation Canaan Avalon A1566 188 TH Bitcoin miners for its Nebraska fleet was now online. The company has continued to raise new funds, a September placing taking in £608,300 for reinvestment in its North American fleet.
Last month BTC took the next major step in its journey, announcing plans to trade on the LSE Main Market. BTC said: ‘A potential move to the LSE at such an exciting time in the global bitcoin sector, could potentially attract a broader pool of shareholders.’ The company hopes to confirm LSE/FCA approval ‘before year end.’
A commitment to raise a gross £1.5m at 14.5p per share subject to admission was published the following week. The placing ‘will be used primarily to expand the company’s Bitcoin mining fleet in its North American Bitcoin mining operations and expand our operations into new US States in the new year.’
BTC’s share price has mirrored the company’s progress, and Bitcoin’s upwards trajectory, rising from its AQSE opening price of 3.5p to 15p at the time of writing, taking its market cap to £36.05m.
Woodbois
West Africa-focused forestry company Woodbois (AIM:WBI) continues to rebuild after a difficult 2023, securing its finances and new orders.
WBI produces, processes and supplies more than 50 species of sustainable African lumber used for everything from house-building and railway sleepers to high-end furniture and interior design. It also makes veneers for boat construction, furniture, and motorhome interiors. The company’s trading arm sources and supplies sustainable timber to a global customer base from its sawmill and veneer factory in Gabon. Its new carbon sequestration and trading division, which has been allocated 69,000 hectares, will generate voluntary carbon credits for corporate partners through the delivery of large-scale afforestation projects. A feasibility study and proposal has been submitted to Gabon regulators, with approval so far granted for a pilot planting project.
After reporting record production levels, 32pc revenue growth and a maiden operating profit of $5.9m in 2022, WBI weathered tough conditions over the next 12 months, plagued by bad weather and withdrawal of a major credit line. The company has been working to get back on track to position itself to take advantage of a global market in ever greater need of timber. The World Bank estimates that worldwide demand could surge fourfold by 2050, and Gresham House, the London-based specialist alternative asset manager, forecasts demand will increase by 3.1pc over the next 30 years, up from 1.1pc over the past 20 years.
2024 was ‘a decisive turning point’ for WBI as the company executed a ‘thorough reorganisation’, including the integration of its financial systems to ensure better transparency and control, the consolidation of its administrative functions, and the renewal of its management team.
The reorganisation has facilitated significantly higher production at a lower cost, sawn timber production through H1 2024 increasing to 5,040 m3 against 3,700 m3 for H1 2023, and veneer production to 1,840 m3 against 2,000 m3. Forward orders have been secured within key markets in the Middle East and Asia, ensuring all of the company’s increasing production will be sold at normal market prices for the remainder of the year. WBI expects a stronger performance for the full year, driven by ‘improved revenue in the second half, operational efficiency, and cost-saving measures.’
The company’s most recent results, for the half year ended 30 June 2024, reported an improved EBITDAS of $0.6m, a significant turnaround from a $2.8m loss in H1 2023, and an increase in gross profit to $1.8m from $0.5m in H1 2023. The company’s borrowings fell by 27% to $4.1m, down from $5.6m in H1 2023. WBI maintained a cash balance of $0.7m at the end of H1 2024.
The company has shored up its finances, and opened scope for new investment in its facilities, by securing a $5m trade finance facility, allowing it to ‘expand trading volumes, enhance supply chain efficiencies, and commit to larger, more frequent transactions – key components in our strategy to drive profitability’. Fundraises in February, October and November brought in £2m, £484,400 and £1m respectively. The funds are being used to reduce debt and ramp up veneer production to meet growing demand.
A trading update earlier this month confirmed the company’s positive trajectory, reporting that key existing major international clients in Libya, Iraq, and South Korea have placed indicative purchase orders for more than 9,000 m3 of sawn timber valued at approximately $4.5m. The company expects further orders to be placed during the course of the year. WBI currently has open contracts for veneer, whereby clients will purchase the company’s entire expected production for the next six months of 6,600 m3 valued at approximately $4m.
WBI said: ‘We are making progress in streamlining our operations and improving financial performance. By securing orders from known and reliable clients, enhancing payment terms, reducing costs, and taking proactive steps to maintain production during challenging conditions, we are building a stronger foundation for sustainable growth.’
WBI currently trades at 0.2p with a market cap of £9.29m.
