TIDMPIRI
RNS Number : 7287X
Pires Investments PLC
27 April 2023
27 April 2023
Pires Investments plc
("Pires" or the "Company")
Sure Ventures PLC - Investee Company Update
Pires Investments plc (AIM: PIRI), the investment company
focused on next generation technology, notes the announcement made
by its investee company, Sure Ventures PLC ("Sure Ventures"), a
London listed venture capital fund which invests in early stage
software companies, on its portfolio update for Q4 2022.
Pires has a 22.6% shareholding in Sure Ventures and Sure
Ventures has a 25.9% interest in Sure Valley Ventures ("SVV1"), in
which Pires has a 13% direct investment. SVV1 is a venture capital
fund focused on investing in the software technology sector with a
specific focus on Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things,
Cyber Security, Machine Learning, Immersive Technologies and Big
Data. Consequently, Pires has a combined direct and indirect
interest in SVV1 of circa 19%.
The full text of the announcement released by Sure Ventures is
set out below.
"Sure Ventures is a London listed venture capital fund which
invests in early stage software companies in the rapidly growing
technology areas of Augmented Reality ('AR'), Virtual Reality
('VR'), Internet of Things ('IoT') and Artificial Intelligence
(AI). We are pleased to provide an update on the Company's
investment portfolio.
SURE VALLEY VENTURES FUND
Sure Ventures made a EUR7million commitment to Sure Valley
Ventures Fund ('Sure Valley') representing an interest in Sure
Valley of approximately 25.9%. This commitment was made at a price
of EUR1.00 per share. The current NAV of the Sure Valley Ventures
ICAV as of Q4 2022 is EUR1.36104 which is a 4% decrease from its
NAV as at Q3 2022.
Sure Valley has several investments across the AI, AR, VR and
IoT sectors and the major contributing factors and commentary on
underlying companies that has driven this NAV calculation are as
follows:
Cameramatics
Cameramatics offers a cloud based, SaaS solution to Fleet
managers, allowing companies to deal with the increasing demands
around driver shortages, driver retention, rising fuel costs,
Insurance costs, emission output and driver safety protocols. Its
in-house developed smart technologies, smart vision systems, AI
safety technologies, fleet safety/risk management tools and data
software solutions have been achieving strong results for
customers.
This demand has led to a further Investment round of 3 million
GBP from existing investors to assist with funding the growth of
the Business. The company are expanding into new geographic
markets, with traction being gained in the US, winning flagship
clients abroad and important customers such as Maritime in the
UK.
Buymie
Buymie is an on-demand grocery service, currently available in
Dublin, Ireland and Bristol, UK. An individual can order goods from
a selection of local stores such as Tesco and Lidl in Ireland and
the Co-op and Asda in the UK via the Buymie app.
One of the company's main partners has been Dunnes Stores and
the next stage of growth for the Business was to expand into the UK
to further cities. We note press speculation suggesting that
Company may be acquired by Dunne's. We are unable to comment on
this press speculation at this point.
Listed holdings
Equity markets have been volatile, and both Engage XR (EXR.L)
and Immotion PLC (IMMO.L) traded lower on a quarter-on-quarter
basis. The AIFM continue to monitor both positions and will update
the market with developments.
Immotion PLC/Lets explore
Immotion (Now lets Explore), the UK-based immersive
entertainment group announced it has entered into a conditional
sale and purchase agreement, for the sale of its Location Based
Entertainment business ("LBE") (collectively; Immotion Studios
Limited ("ISL"), Immotion VR Limited ("IVL") and C.2K Entertainment
Inc. ("C.2K)), to LBE BidCo, Inc. for an enterprise value of
$25,211,739 on a cash free/debt free basis (the "Proposed
Transaction").
Sale of the LBE business agreed, subject to shareholder
approval, for an enterprise value of $25,211,739, this will prompt
Intended return of the majority of the LBE sale proceeds to
Shareholders (up to circa GBP13.5m, equating to approximately 3p
per share), retaining circa GBP6.5m within the Company for future
opportunities.
The AIFM will follow the announcements closely and decide what
to do with its holding depending on the new opportunities
identified by the board of Lets Explore PLC.
ENGAGE XR
Engage XR, the virtual reality technology company, focused on
becoming a leading global provider of virtual communications
solutions through ENGAGE, completed an GBP8.8m sterling fundraise
in February 2023 to assist with both working capital and growth
opportunity.
The deal attracted some decent institutional investors with
Canaccord Genuity, Unicorn, Premier Miton and Octopus Investments.
The company have sited a strong pipeline and completed a "Fatboy
Slim" VR concert in ENGAGE in March 2023 and at last count had 190
commercial customers since May 2019.
SURE VALLEY VENTURES ENTERPRISE CAPITAL FUND
Sure Valley Ventures ("SVV") completed a GBP3m seed round in
Opsmatix Systems Limited trading as Jaid ("Jaid"), an innovative
technology firm providing AI-powered human communication solutions,
marking the fund's second investment. The proceeds of the funding
will be used to expand its industry-leading machine learning team,
build out business development efforts across America and Europe
and expand into Asia.
Jaid is a rapidly growing company that provides AI as a Service
(AIaaS) solutions to businesses to automate a variety of use cases,
including client service automation, sales automation, payment
exception processing, and claims administration processing. Jaid's
technology helps businesses reduce costs, improve efficiency, and
make data-driven decisions. The Business is progressing well and
signing new customers monthly.
The fund is also completing final due diligence on two other AI
based software companies and we look forward to updating the market
with news once in a position to do so.
Sure Ventures PLC NAV
The Sure ventures PLC NAV at the end of September 2022 sits at
120.33p. This represents a 3.03% decrease across the period, down
from 124.09 per share at the end of Q3. This decrease represents
costs and changes to the value of its listed holdings in Engage XR
and Immotion PLC. Engage XR share price has been frustrating, but
we continue to back the Business and believe in its future
potential.
Forward looking statement & Director comment
When calculating the NAV for both Sure Valley Ventures and Sure
Ventures PLC we do not re-rate an unlisted investee company
valuation unless there is a funding round priced by another
investor. The nature and stage of the software companies that we
invest requires patience and we are now starting to see these
businesses mature at a strong pace. The pipeline of deals for Sure
Valley Ventures Enterprise Capital fund remains robust despite the
market conditions.
Gareth Burchell comment:
"In what has been a tough market for tech companies, both listed
and un-listed businesses, we have been impressed with the progress
we have made with the portfolio. Artificial Intelligence is an area
of the technology market that continues to attract growth and
Investment.
The portfolio Is maturing, we will begin to see potential exits
and continued funding needs from the underlying portfolio. The
market conditions have also driven more pipeline deals, due to cash
constraints at competitors and we are busy evaluating numerous
opportunities ."
Enquiries:
Pires Investments plc Tel: +44 (0) 20 3368 8961
Nicholas Lee, Director
Nominated Adviser Tel: +44 (0) 20 7213 0880
Cairn Financial Advisers LLP
Liam Murray / Ludovico Lazzaretti
Broker Tel: +44 (0) 20 7469 0935
Peterhouse Capital Limited Tel: +44 (0) 20 7469 0936
Duncan Vasey/Lucy Williams
Financial media and PR Tel: +44 (0) 20 3004 9512
Yellow Jersey PR
Sarah Hollins
Annabelle Wills
Jazmine Clemens
Notes to Editors
About Pires Investments plc
Pires Investments plc (AIM: PIRI) is an investment company
providing investors with access to a portfolio of next generation
technology businesses with significant growth potential.
The Company is building an investment portfolio of high-tech
businesses across areas such as Artificial Intelligence, Internet
of Things, Cyber Security, Machine Learning, Immersive Technologies
and Big Data, which the Board believes demonstrate evidence of
traction and the potential for exponential growth, due to
increasing global demand for development in these sectors.
For further information, visit:
https://piresinvestments.com/
Caution regarding forward looking statements
Certain statements in this announcement, are, or may be deemed
to be, forward looking statements. Forward looking statements are
identified by their use of terms and phrases such as "believe",
"could", "should" "envisage", "estimate", "intend", "may", "plan",
"potentially", "expect", "will" or the negative of those,
variations or comparable expressions, including references to
assumptions. These forward looking statements are not based on
historical facts but rather on the Directors' current expectations
and assumptions regarding the Company's future growth, results of
operations, performance, future capital and other expenditures
(including the amount, nature and sources of funding thereof),
competitive advantages, business prospects and opportunities. Such
forward looking statements reflect the Directors' current beliefs
and assumptions and are based on information currently available to
the Directors.
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April 27, 2023 06:59 ET (10:59 GMT)
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