22 Dec 2022 11:22
22 December 2022
Pires Investments plc
("Pires" or the "Company")
Two-year £1.235 million Unsecured Loan Facility
Pires Investments plc (AIM: PIRI), the investment company focused on next-generation technology, is pleased to announce that it has entered into a two-year £1.235 million unsecured loan facility with a group of investors (the "Investors") in order to provide it with additional funding flexibility.
Highlights
· The facility comprises a two-year £1.235 million unsecured loan facility accruing interest at 7.5% per annum with a bullet repayment of principal and interest at the end of the term. Warrants over 47,839,284 new ordinary shares have been issued to the Investors which will vest if the average of the Company's volume-weighted average price over five consecutive trading days exceeds 5.163 pence within the three-year exercise period of the warrants (the "Warrants"). The warrant exercise price is 4 pence, which represents a 60% premium to the closing mid-market price of 2.5 pence per Pires ordinary share on 21 December 2022.
· The Board believes that it is important to ensure that the Company has a number of financing options available to enable it to actively progress its investment strategy, particularly when current market conditions are attractive for investment by the Company.
· The current expectation of short to medium-term realisations from the Company's investment portfolio also means that permanent equity capital may not be required, therefore this funding structure potentially reduces dilution for existing shareholders by enabling the funding to be repaid from cash received from investment realisations rather than the issue of equity.
· In the event of the Company achieving realisations or raising new equity, the debt facility requires that a certain portion of the net proceeds will be paid to the Investors, reducing the amounts owed under the loan facility.
· This loan facility provides the Company with a more attractive alternative to an equity placing at, most likely, a discount to its current market value. The Investors include Barry Downes, Brian Kinane and Greg D'Ambrosio who are partners or senior management at Sure Valley Ventures, the venture capital firm that manages certain of the funds that the Company is invested in.
· The Warrants issued have a three-year exercise period from the date of grant, being 22 December 2022 and may also provide an additional source of funding for the Company depending on the Company's future share price performance.
Nicholas Lee, Director of Pires, commented:
"This facility provides us with flexibility and the ability to continue to actively pursue our investment strategy at an opportune time when attractive businesses are struggling to secure funding thereby providing us with excellent opportunities for investment. We believe that the terms are attractive for a two-year unsecured facility and provides the Company with various financing options going forward."
This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of the UK Market Abuse Regulation. The person who arranged the release of this information is Nicholas Lee, Director of the Company.
Enquiries:
Pires Investments plc Nicholas Lee, Director
Nominated Adviser Cairn Financial Advisers LLP Liam Murray/Ludovico Lazzaretti | Tel: +44 (0) 20 3368 8961
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7213 0880 |
Broker Peterhouse Capital Limited Duncan Vasey/Lucy Williams
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Tel: +44 (0) 20 7469 0935 Tel: +44 (0) 20 7469 0936 |
Financial media and PR Yellow Jersey Sarah Hollins Henry Wilkinson Annabelle Wills | Tel: +44 (0) 20 3004 9512
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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.