PIRI.L Share News (PIRI)

(Sharecast News) - Technology-focussed Pires Investments updated the market on its investment in sports betting platform developer Low6 on Monday, with Low6 proposing to extend its pre-IPO round.

The AIM-traded firm subscribed for 6,667 shares in Low6 at a price of £30 each in December, for a total consideration of £0.2m.

In the fourth quarter, Low6 closed a pre-initial public offering round, raising AUD 6m (£3.3m) in convertible notes, with the issue being over-subscribed.

Two "prominent" Australian institutional investors participated in the raise, Pires said.

Low6 advised on Monday that it was proposing to extend the pre-IPO round to allow further investment from a "leading gaming industry player".

Pires said that any additional funds raised by Low6 would provide it with further working capital as its users continued to increase, moving ahead of the company's internal projections.

Low6 said in its investor update that it had around 80,000 users, with more than 80% of them being 'Gen Z' and 'millennials', which it described as a target demographic of many, if not all, gaming companies globally.

Three new influencer partners, being Arsenal Fan TV, the United Stand TV and True Geordie, had a "better-than-expected positive impact on user growth.

In January, Low6 launched its 'UFC Picks' mobile application in partnership with the UFC, on time and on budget.

There were now more than 8,000 users in the UFC app, while the app for Rangers went live on 11 February.

Low6's plans for its initial public offering remained on track, with a listing expected in the second quarter of 2021.

"We are delighted to see Low6's progression since our recent investment in December with a significant increase in users as it continues to roll out new apps in partnership with globally renowned sporting brands and work with new influencer partners," said Pires chairman Peter Redmond.

"Its plans to IPO in the second quarter of 2021 remain on track, and we look forward to updating the market on this investment in due course."

At 1117 GMT, shares in Pires Investments were up 0.94% at 16.05p.