TIDMPIRI
RNS Number : 5758A
Pires Investments PLC
25 May 2023
25 May 2023
Pires Investments plc
("Pires" or the "Company")
Investment portfolio update
Pires Investments plc (AIM: PIRI), the investment company
focused on next generation technology including AI, is pleased to
provide an update in relation to its investment portfolio. Pires
invests in its portfolio companies via (i) direct investments,
indirectly through (ii) its investment in three funds managed by
Sure Valley Ventures and (iii) its investment in Sure Ventures
plc.
1. Sure Valley Ventures ("SVV")
Sure Valley Venture Fund ("SVV1")
SVV1 is SVV's first fund which has completed its new investment
phase and has now entered into its realisation phase. It has
already achieved three realisations/liquidity events to date, with
more expected in the short term. A selection of recent developments
within the investment portfolio include:
LandVault
LandVault, a large metaverse builder, successfully raised an
additional US$3 million after extending its Series B funding round
in April 2023. This strategic funding was from Web3 focused
investors including, The Sandbox, The Gemini Frontier Fund, HodICo
and hedge fund Kingsway Capital. The proceeds of the fundraise are
set to assist in its global expansion, further investment in
innovative technologies and development in the building of a
protocol, Matera, to make the metaverse experience more
accessible.
Everyangle
Everyangle is a Dublin-based computer-vision company that helps
physical retailers, hospitality venues and convenience service
stations optimise operations. Everyangle raised EUR2.7 million in a
seed fundraise in October 2022. This fundraise marks the final new
investment within SVV1, and will be used to accelerate sales,
invest in ongoing product development, and drive further expansion
in the US and UK. The funding round was led by SVV, Act Venture
Capital and Furthr VC (formerly DBIC Ventures), with participation
from Enterprise Ireland.
Smarttech247
Smarttech247 Group plc ("Smarttech247") (AIM: S247) is an
established global artificial intelligence-based cybersecurity
business, specialising in automated managed detection and response.
It has a successful track record of revenue growth and
profitability and is positioned at the intersection of three major
cyber security growth markets: security threat incidents, growth of
cloud adoption and proliferation of cyber security data generation
that needs to be integrated.
On 15 December 2022, the company's shares were admitted to
trading on the London Stock Exchange's AIM market raising gross
proceeds of GBP3.7 million through a placing at a price of 29.66
pence per new ordinary share. Smarttech247's share price as at 24
May 2023 was 36 pence per share, representing approximately a 21%
increase since listing and a significant uplift compared to the
level at which the investment was initially made. Recent full year
and interim results of Smarttech247 are positive for the company's
growth trajectory.
ENGAGE XR
ENGAGE XR Holdings plc ("ENGAGE XR") (AIM: EXR) is a virtual
reality ("VR") technology company focused on becoming a leading
global provider of virtual communications solutions through its
proprietary software platform, ENGAGE. ENGAGE provides users with a
platform for creating, sharing and delivering VR content for
education, training and online events through its three solutions:
Virtual Campus, Virtual Office, and Virtual Events.
In Q4 2022, the company announced the launch of ENGAGE Link, a
new metaverse platform designed for corporations, professionals,
education organisations and event organisers. ENGAGE Link allows
enterprises to use the metaverse to create their own virtual worlds
to provide services directly to their own clients and to engage
with employees and suppliers. The company has seen encouraging
engagement with enterprise customers for this new platform and was
able to successfully demonstrate its capabilities to a global
audience in April 2023, with the hosting of ENGAGE XR's first VR
concert titled "Eat Sleep VR Repeat" starring Norman Cook, AKA
Fatboy Slim.
For the 12 months ended 31 December 2022, the company has
achieved revenue of EUR3.9 million, with the ENGAGE platform
revenue growing by approximately 86% in this period.
In January 2023, the company announced its first AI-powered
employee, Athena, who can answer questions, take voice commands and
complete tasks within its metaverse program. ENGAGE XR hopes in the
future to deploy a number of these custom AI avatars, who will be
adept in hosting several client-facing tasks, such as tech support,
training, education and moderation.
In February 2023, the company raised EUR10.5 million by way of a
placing which included a subscription by HTC for GBP0.58 million.
The funds will enable the company to develop its metaverse platform
through more expansive sales and marketing abilities, as well as
increasing the available working capital and general corporate
purposes. Furthermore, its Q1 2023 revenue growth increased by
approximately 40% compared to the same period in 2022.
Cameramatics
Cameramatics offers a cloud based, SaaS solution to fleet
managers, enabling 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.
Recently, the company raised GBP3 million from existing
investors to assist with funding growth. The company is expanding
into new geographies, with good traction being gained in the US and
new clients being won including customers such as Maritime
Transport, one of the UK's largest privately owned transport
companies.
Furthermore, in April 2023, Cameramatics showcased its
Intelligent Driver Assistance System (i-DAS). This revolutionary
AI-powered collision avoidance system provides drivers with
improved reaction times and blind spot visibility with the goal of
assisting towards a world with zero road accidents.
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 its growth is to expand into the UK with further
cities. Pires notes speculation suggesting that Buymie may be
acquired by Dunnes Stores and we expect a further update on this
situation in due course.
Sure Valley Ventures UK Software Technology Fund ("SVV2")
SVV2 was launched in March 2022 which included a GBP50 million
commitment to the fund from cornerstone investor, the British
Business Bank. The economics of SVV2 are attractive, with Pires and
other private investors expecting to obtain enhanced returns due to
the fund structure. To date, SVV2 has made two investments which
are outlined below:
RetÌnÍZE Limited ("RetÌnÍZE")
RETi ni ZE, the award-winning creative-tech company based in
Belfast, Northern Ireland, successfully raised GBP2 million in a
seed round led by SVV. The company is developing an innovative
software product called Animotive that is harnessing the latest VR
technologies to transform the 3D animation production process. The
proceeds of the seed round will drive the next two-year step in its
growth and the global rollout of Animotive.
Jaid
Jaid is a rapidly growing platform that uses AI as a Service
(AIaaS) solution to help businesses reduce costs, improve
efficiency and make data-driven decisions, including client service
automation, sales automation, payment exception processing and
claims administration processing.
On 14 December 2022, the company raised GBP3 million in seed
funding to enable the company to make additional hires within the
machine learning team, increase its presence within the US and
Europe and to launch in the Asian market. In addition, the company
is set to expand into various other sectors, such as healthcare,
after previously focusing solely on the finance industry.
Sure Valley Ventures III Limited Partnership ("SVV3")
On 23 February 2023, Pires announced that it had agreed to
invest in SVV's new venture capital fund, SVV3, alongside
Enterprise Ireland, the fund's cornerstone investor that committed
50% or EUR15 million to the fund. SVV3 plans to invest in circa 15
high growth AI software companies in sectors such as Enterprise,
Immersive Technologies and Cybersecurity across the Republic of
Ireland.
2. Sure Ventures plc ("SV plc")
SV plc (LSE: SURE) is a London-listed venture capital fund which
invests in early-stage software companies in the rapidly growing
technology areas of Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, Internet of
Things and Artificial Intelligence. Pires has a 22.6% shareholding
in SV plc whose principal investment is a 25.9% interest in SVV1
and a commitment to SVV2. It also has direct shareholdings in
VividQ and Let's Explore Group. As per the announcement on 27 April
2023, SV plc recently issued its Q3 2023 update.
3. Direct Investments
GetVisibility
GetVisibility is a cybersecurity company focusing on data
visibility and control. It uses state-of-the-art artificial
intelligence ("AI") to classify and secure unstructured
information. Its methods allow organisations to quickly visualise
their data footprint where new and changing data risks have become
evident, thus allowing for proactive data management and security.
Its dual approach provides flexibility to employees to manually
classify data whilst also being created with suggestions and
automated checking. GetVisibility also provides risk and compliance
assessments as well as enforcing protection on sensitive data.
The company is growing rapidly, with a significant number of new
channel partners being onboarded in the last quarter, leading to a
substantial increase in its number of enterprise customers.
GetVisibility also announced in January 2023 its plans to invest
EUR1.2 million over the next three years into creating its own AI
academy, with the overarching aim to address gaps in the technology
sector and to create its own team of data scientists.
Pires also has an indirect interest in GetVisibility through
SVV1 and SV plc.
Emergent Entertainment plc ("Emergent")
Emergent was formed from the merger between Pluto Digital plc
and Maze Theory Limited, a London-based digital entertainment
studio. It operates as a next-generation entertainment company
focused on bringing audiences and storytellers together by
harnessing emerging technologies.
The company has recently launched a VR game, Peaky Blinders, and
is making good progress on the development of its Web3 game,
Resurgence. In addition to this, the company is actively discussing
the co-development of a new game with a global games publishing
group and has been in ongoing conversations with numerous leading
organisations regarding upcoming projects. The management team is
also working on reducing the company's cost base and has revised
its 2023 revenue forecasts upwards.
Low6 Limited ("Low6")
Low6 is a leader in sports gaming technology that powers
franchises with their own branded gaming experiences to engage and
monetise their digital fanbases.
In October 2022, the company restructured its capital base which
included the conversion of the outstanding convertible notes and
the raising of GBP2.4 million in new funds. The new funding was
cornerstoned by a leading Australian wagering operator, with
operations in Australia and the US, for approximately GBP0.5
million, with major shareholders also supporting the
transaction.
Low6 is now focused on the revenue generative free-to-play and
affiliate markets in North America with the ambition to be the
global leader in fan engagement. A number of new partnerships have
been established, including the appointment as the National Hockey
League ("NHL") free to play provider for a period of 3 years, who
have also invested in Low6. Trading is in line with expectations
for the year to 30 June 2023, having achieved circa US$5 million in
contracted revenue for the first six months, with the company
focused on achieving a breakeven EBITDA.
General
On 22 December 2022, Pires announced that it had entered into a
two-year GBP1.235 million unsecured loan facility to provide the
Company with additional funding flexibility. This, together with
expected liquidity events from SVV1, will enable the Company to
continue to progress its investment strategy.
Nicholas Lee, Director of Pires, commented:
"Overall, our investment portfolio continues to make good
progress. In particular, our investee companies have been able to
successfully access new capital notwithstanding challenging market
conditions. At the same time, liquidity events have been achieved
as evidenced by Smarttech247's recent IPO, against the background
of difficult market conditions for new listings. This is clearly a
function of the quality of our investments and acts as a further
demonstration of the progress that has been made in terms of
creating value for investors.
"SVV1 is now very much in its realisation phase and we are
looking forward to further developments against this backdrop.
Furthermore, with SVV2 and SVV3 up and running, capital is
available to make further investments at an opportune time in the
technology sector investment cycle.
"The Directors believe that the Pires portfolio offers investors
exposure to high growth AI focused technology companies within the
flexibility of a publicly traded vehicle."
The Directors of the Company are responsible for the release of
this announcement.
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
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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END
PFUFLFETEVISFIV
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