Brisbane based BlueMount Capital announce UK office

New capital investment firm BlueMount Capital has announced the opening of UK operations this week.

BlueMount Capital, formed by four highly experienced corporate advisers, delivers a broad range of funding services to sophisticated investors and private and public companies.

The firm currently has offices open in Brisbane, Sydney and Perth, and is expanding their services to operate on an international level.

Queensland managing director, Dr Mark Rainbird, says opening an office in the UK and Ireland will allow the business to take advantage of European market opportunities, in addition to facilitating local companies with overseas capital.

“Obtaining growth capital offshore rather than through limited local options can prove to be a successful move for Australian companies,” Dr Rainbird says.

“Opening an arm in the UK not only creates opportunities to obtain capital but also allows listing on major markets such as the Frankfurt Stock Exchange or the Alternative Investment Market.

“We are expanding the company and its services to capitalize on key opportunities in Europe whilst also creating worldwide networks in order to facilitate and enhance the success of capital raising for our local clients.”

Director of the UK office Benn Zemek, who is in Brisbane this week for the launch, has extensive experience in transaction origination, financial structuring, capital raising and investment management of various real estate investment strategies. 

The UK office will also service Ireland, with the assistance of director Ian Leslie, who has broad experience in the real estate industry extending from property valuation, asset and portfolio management, and acquisitions across the commercial, retail and industrial sectors.

Mr Zemek says BlueMount have been working with himself and Mr Leslie for the past 18 months on a number of real estate transactions within the UK and Ireland, which prompted the opening of the office in the region.

“The decision to open the office comes as a result of extensive work with Ian and myself, and the subsequent successful procurement of equity and debt capital for UK and Irish based real estate companies,” Mr Zemek says.

“BlueMount has been acutely focused on two key opportunities in the UK and Ireland, being the re-capitalisation of non-performing loans and investment into early stage business growth opportunities, both which benefit from the low input cost environment and strong European and US demand.

“To date we have successfully raised EUR 370m from large US and European institutions and US and Asian family offices. The funding facilities procured include equity and convertible note special private placements and senior debt.

Dr Rainbird says it is also important that companies in Australia do not restrict the potential of their capital raising by only seeking capital within the country.

“Australia is a small country with a small pool for investment which creates limitations to business owners to effectively raise capital locally,” Dr Rainbird says.

“International markets can offer a less onerous process and provide the exposure that Australian companies should be aiming for.

“Operating in the UK will generate a pathway between BlueMount Capital and international funds and stock markets, giving clients the potential to gain massive global exposure for investor capital.”

 “Bluemount Capital offers expert services and assistance from pre-IPO plans and funding, to providing Special Private Placements and floating a company on a recognized exchange.  We also deal with merger and acquisitions, private equity funding, wholesale debt and equity funding and capital raisings,” Dr Rainbird says.

“The management team are specialists in all aspects of financial transactions and have successfully completed hundreds of deals in these fields.

“Our firm’s extensive global network of professionals will also ensure a comprehensive evaluation of the most sophisticated proposals.”

For more information visit www.bluemountcapital.com.

For more information please email BlueMount Capital

 

Fast growing tree technology company

PolygenomX (ASSOB: PGX) is commercialising technology that delivers faster growth and higher yielding plants.

The Queensland-based company’s technology allows the rapid propagation of large quantities of fast growing, climate-tough, special purpose trees (and other plants) with guaranteed plant performance.

Polygenomx has the potential to double the profits of any plant plant-based enterprise, according to Rowe.

The company can create new superior variants of existing plant species by adopting and controlling a naturally occurring, but random process – the creation of polyploid plants.

In simple terms, polyploid plants absorb 50 per cent more carbon from the atmosphere year-on-year compared to non-polyploids. He says that they can then grow around 50 per cent faster for exactly the same expenditure of energy, and using the same quantities of water, nutrient and sunlight.

Roew also states that the technology has been verified by Adelaide and Queensland universities.

“Where nature works on a timeframe of eons, we are able to work on a timeframe of months,” Rowe said. “We have the ability to direct a natural process to rapidly and deliberately evolve faster-growing, tougher and more adaptable variants of any plant species.”

Polygenomx is refining its own proprietary lines of high value species - for renewable energy feedstocks in the biofuel and biomass industries; for pulp plantations; for construction timber; and for high value forestry, including Australian Teak, Kauri and Red Cedar.

To read the full article click here.

BlueMount Capital provides venture capital raising and Introduction services to companies seeking capital in the unlisted, pre-IPO and listed capital markets.

For more information please email BlueMount Capital

 

Bio Boost Set to Clean up Mining

A $7 million bio prospect that speeds up plant growth could be the solution to remove contaminants in waste process water in the mining industry.


PolyGenomX (www.assob.com.au/pgx) is a public unlisted company that has pioneered a method to deliver faster growth and higher yields from plants to be used for biofuels, such as jatropha and other species including sandalwood for oil.


Managing director Peter Rowe says a patent is pending and commercialisation is well underway as the company seeks to identify targets in the mining industry as a solution to sustainable water management.


“Process water from mines can contain a huge amount of salt and other contaminates that if not treated properly represent a major problem for surrounding ecosystems and in turn the industry as a whole,” says Rowe.


“Treatment of process water can be expensive, particularly in remote areas and in many cases the water cannot be recycled well enough for further use. The range of PolyGenomX solutions are significantly different to what’s currently used as it’s primarily biological in nature and can even rehabilitate a mine site back to its pre-existing vegetative state.”

To read the full article click here.

BlueMount Capital provides venture capital raising and Introduction services to companies seeking capital in the unlisted, pre-IPO and listed capital markets.

For more information please email BlueMount Capital

 

Australia’s mining mess remediated by biological boost

A ground breaking new technology could soon help one of the mining industries biggest environmental problems through plants tailored specifically to remove contaminants in waste process water. 

Australian company PolyGenomX has pioneered a method that delivers faster growth and higher yields from plants that can also be used to extract toxins from mining wastewater.

PolyGenomX managing director Peter Rowe says mining is one of the most important production activities in Australia, and the availability and proper management of water is key to its long-term sustainability.

“Process water from mines can contain a huge amount of salt and other contaminates that if not treated properly represent a major problem for surrounding ecosystems and in turn the industry as a whole,” Mr Rowe says.

“Treatment of process water can be expensive, particularly in remote areas, and in many cases the water cannot be recycled well enough for further use. 

“The range of PolyGenomX solutions are significantly different to what’s currently used as it’s primarily biological in nature and can even rehabilitate a mine site back to its pre-existing vegetative state.”

The core of the PolyGenomX technology is based around the activation of dormant parts of a plant’s DNA without genetically modifying it in any way.

The process essentially turbo charges certain naturally existing characteristics in a plant such as rapid growth properties and predispositions to thrive in various environments and soils.

“One of our many processes tailored to the mining industry is the ability to propagate trees that actively feed off salt and other contaminates, effectively stripping them out from the process water,” Mr Rowe says.

“This water can then be safely used to irrigate land and crops and even fed back into natural water courses without any recourse to the local ecosystem.

“Our technology provides water management practices that permit the mining industry to take a huge leap forward in efficient use of water resources.”

PolyGenomX has developed a number of other applications for plant use in the mining industry including controlling seepage from various areas on a site into the water table and solutions for holding ponds at the end of their life cycle.

It is currently in discussions to remediate a series of former mining sites that are presenting a number of environmental issues including the contamination of groundwater by chemicals leaching from mine tailings.

PolyGenomX is also considering the development of new bacteria-based soil-remediation technology in conjunction with the project.

Mr Rowe says the PolyGenomX technology can be adapted to a range of commercially produced crops including those used in renewable energy production and pulping through to construction and fine timber such as sandalwood.

“We have successfully developed a range of stable high-performance polygenomic species that grow faster and yield more than any comparable stock,” Mr Rowe says.

“We are able to offer a significant competitive advantage to our clients through unprecedented plant performance.

“This includes 30 percent plus faster plant growth and 30 percent plus reduction in production costs and cycles and enhanced environmental robustness.

“This all results in accelerated growth and production and significantly higher profits.”

The company will license the superior strains of plants developed to ethical producers, farmers and other partners involved in the production of commercial crops and environmental restoration.

PolyGenomX technology is a world first and has a patent pending.

BlueMount Capital provides venture capital raising and Introduction services to companies seeking capital in the unlisted, pre-IPO and listed capital markets.

For more information please email BlueMount Capital

 

PolyGenomX takes revolutionary Bio-Panning System to new levels

PolyGenomX Limited (ASSOB: PGX) reports that they have developed a revolutionary mine-site remediation system known as "bio-panning", with the use of specially modified Polygenomic plants in a purpose built forestry system.

This system enables the mining company to harvest any minerals or metals that may have been left in the tailings, as these are absorbed by the plants roots and then excreted through its leaves.

This system can be used for heavy metals like gold, lead, silver, copper and arsenic for reprocessing.

The Company states that one bonus of using the PolyGenomX bio-panning system lies in their tough, fast growing plants' ability to process 30% more carbon dioxide (and therefore emit 30% more oxygen) than any comparable plant species.

Click here for full article.

BlueMount Capital provides venture capital raising and Introduction services to companies seeking capital in the unlisted, pre-IPO and listed capital markets.

For more information please email BlueMount Capital

 

 

Where to go for capital? The options, the rules, the requirements for each

You’ve decided to offer equity in your company to investors in order to grow your business — but what’s the next step you need to take? In the third of this six-part series on raising capital, corporate advisor Dr Mark Rainbird discusses the avenues you have to distribute your offer to interested parties.

When you boil down the act of raising capital — regardless of how you choose to do it — it’s essentially about finding people who will support your company by giving you cash for shares. That’s it. There are several different ways that one can go about finding these individuals, however, and they all have their advantages and disadvantages.

Know Your Rules for Individuals

Investors don’t necessarily need to be obtained via an established platform like the ASX.

While you can make a personal offer to just about anyone you know, there are varying levels of disclosure that need to be made, as outlined in Section 708 of the Corporations Act.

While I’d strongly advise reading through the section yourself, the main thrust of it is that you don’t need to make disclosure if:

• the offer is considered to be a personal one, or;

• the investors are deemed sophisticated, or;

• the offer is made to someone within the management of the company itself (or a member of their family), or;

• the offer is made to a trust or company controlled by a person that meets some of the qualities that define sophisticated investors.

There are, however, further restrictions on these disclosure rules. Despite sounding like it might be a new cricket competition, the Twenty Twelve rule is one of the most significant within the capital raiser’s handbook.

Essentially, this dictates that when approaching retail investors, only 20 “concessions” are available to retail investors in a 12 month period. Additionally, Section 734 of the Corporations Act dictates that companies acquiring investors in accordance with the Twenty Twelve rule are unable to advertise or publicise their offer. It is important to note that you cannot “induce people to apply for shares.”

For more information please email BlueMount Capital

Click here for the full article

 BlueMount Capital provides venture capital raising and Introduction services to companies seeking capital in the unlisted, pre-IPO and listed capital markets. 

Queensland Company Leads Green Revolution

PolyGenomX (ASSOB Code: PGX), based on the Gold Coast, has pioneered a range ofprocesses that deliver faster growth and higher yields fromplants vital to a range of commercial applications and sustainable industries. 

The company’s ability to rapidly propagate fast-growing, robust and climate-tough trees and vegetation is a game-changer for the mass production of bio-fuels and feedstocks, says PolyGenomX managing director Peter Rowe. 

 "PolyGenomX has developed technology that allows us to activate dormant parts of a plant’s DNA without genetically modifying it in any way. 

 "This provides the ability to turbocharge certain characteristics naturally existing within a plant such as rapid growth properties and predispositionsto thrive in various environments and soils.

PolyGenomX will license the superior strains of plants developed to ethical producers, farmers and other partners involved in the production of commercial crops and environmental restoration.

Click here for full article. 

BlueMount Capital provides venture capital raising and Introduction services to companies seeking capital in the unlisted, pre-IPO and listed capital markets. 

For more information please email BlueMount Capital

 

 

Raising Capital: How to Get the Money You Need

Raising Capital: How to Get the Money You Need from Alternate Sources and Empower your Capital Raising with Crowd Sourcing, Social Proof and Social Media

In May, June  and July ASSOB will be running an updated version of the very successful seminars that were run last year. The first round of seminars in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane have all been booked out.
"Your presentation was excellent, and greatly appreciated, especially your understanding of social proof!  It is exciting. Thank you for sharing." K.S. Newcastle
"Excellent presentation today, I found it very informative." P.B. Ballarat
The updated version features the latest techniques in the areas of Crowd Sourcing, Social Media and Social Proof.
Social Proof is the most important driver when it comes to raising capital.
This is a good opportunity to invite your prospective clients along to a professional and convincing seminar on how your clients can raise funds on the ASSOB Capital Raising Platform.

Millions of dollars are raised through the ASSOB Platform annually. Our CEO Paul Niederer will address the functionalities, methodology and the opportunities that the ASSOB Platform has within the capital raising market in Australia.

Click here for more information. 

BlueMount Capital provides venture capital raising and Introduction services to companies seeking capital in the unlisted, pre-IPO and listed capital markets. 

For more information please email BlueMount Capital

 

 

Goal of 100 companies to receive equity funding in the 2011-12 financial year

The Australian Small Scale Offerings Board (ASSOB), Australia's unique capital raising platform for equity raisings for smaller companies, has set itself the target of helping 100 companies to raise up to $100 million in the 2011-12 financial year.

Conceived more than 20 years ago as an innovative mechanism for companies to raise equity capital, ASSOB has begun to accelerate its growth of new capital raisings in the past five years, having helped more than 200 companies to obtain in excess of $130 million in new equity capital during that time.

The CEO of ASSOB, Paul Niederer, commented that the GFC had exacerbated the difficulties that small companies faced in obtaining finance from traditional sources.   "Unless you had an asset such as a house with which to anchor your loan, the banks were simply not interested in making non-asset based lending to smaller businesses.  In effect, if business owners did not have a physical asset as collateral for a loan, they have generally found banks to be pretty unsympathetic to their financing needs."

ASSOB's capital raising forums will be held in Melbourne on Thursday afternoon, May 19; in Sydney on Wednesday, May 25^th;  Brisbane June 22^nd,  Adelaide 5^th & 6^th of July and Perth 6^th & 7^th of July. 

Click here for full article

BlueMount Capital provides venture capital raising and Introduction services to companies seeking capital in the unlisted, pre-IPO and listed capital markets.

For more information please email BlueMount Capital

 

New Capital Market Firm Launched to Take Advantage of Tight Monetary Market

A new capital market firm has been launched this week to take advantage of the continuing tight monetary market and the ongoing need for funds by businesses.

BlueMount Capital, formed by four leading business identities, aims to serve sophisticated investors and private and public companies to deliver a broad range of funding services.

The firm has opened offices in Brisbane, Perth and Sydney and will be the only mid-tier firm of its kind with a national presence.

Queensland managing director, Dr Mark Rainbird, a former executive with Melbourne IT and WebCentral and managing director for Brisbane based CITEC, says traditional funders are still exercising caution and becoming even more selective in who they fund which has created a widening gap in the capital market.

“The world-wide monetary market essentially hasn’t shifted its policy on lending since the GFC, however businesses are increasingly seeking growth capital,” Dr Rainbird says.

While we’re not the only one’s to recognise this, we have managed to bring together a unique and experienced team who have access to a wide range of funding opportunities.

“Our services are especially suited to growth companies which sit at the mid to top end of the business market and require access to investment facilitation and corporate finance."

The BlueMount Capital partners include Perth based Dr Saliba Sassine who has extensive experience in resources, energy and renewables; Sydney based Len McDowall, who was previously chairman and managing partner of chartered accountants Bird Cameron; and Barry Palte who has held previous executive roles with the Commonwealth Bank and MLC.

All are experts in raising capital for business expansion, mergers and acquisitions, debt raising and equity restructuring for private and public companies.

“BlueMount Capital offers expert services and assistance from floating a company on the ASX, pre-IPO plans, IPO opportunities, MBO's, private equity funding, wholesale investing and capital raisings,” Dr Rainbird says.

“The management team are specialists in all aspects of financial transactions and have successfully completed hundreds of deals in these fields.

“Our firm’s extensive global network of professionals will also ensure a comprehensive evaluation of the most sophisticated proposals.”

For more information visit www.bluemountcapital.com.

For more information please email BlueMount Capital

 

Global Technology Remains Open With Opmantek

An Australian company has acquired the intellectual property for one of the world’s leading open source software products in the field of network management.

Queensland based Opmantek (ASSOB: OMK) has acquired and launched a new release of one of the first developed open source software programs, Network Management Information System (NMIS), which is used by approximately 10,000 organisations worldwide.

NMIS is a network management software platform that has been developed over the last 12 years and is used to manage IT networks from 1 through to 75,000 devices.

Opmantek’s open source software is free to all users, however Opmantek has developed a unique business model to capitalise on the popularity of NMIS with support packages and add-on software modules allowing the company to provide enhanced service to users at a cost.

CEO Danny Maher says open source programs are extremely popular due to their low upfront and operational costs, however lack of commercial support does cause concern for some organisations.

Click here for full article

For more information please email BlueMount Capital

 

Opmantek Ltd has today reached its Minimum Subscription

Opmantek Ltd (ASSOB: OMK) has today reached its Minimum Subscription.  For the latest news on Opmantek please see www.assob.com.au/omk  

For more information please email BlueMount Capital

Are we the next Silicon City?

IT COMPANY Opmantek (ASSOB: OMK) is taking strong strides toward its Gold Coast base of operations.

“I have no doubt that the city is an attractive proposition for IT companies and within the next 20 years, I believe we will be one of the leading IT hubs in the country.”Mr Maher said the Gold Coast was a great location for the company to launch the new version of its software and associated commercial offerings.

“Opmantek leverages an extensive network of technology experts around the world.

“We also plan to open a satellite office at Silicon Valley in the United States and rotate our employees through it, introducing them to senior engineers and bringing their skills back to the Gold Coast.

Click here for full article

For mor information please email BlueMount Capital

Opmantek acquires NMIS intellectual property

Open source network management software developer, Opmantek (ASSOB: OMK), recently acquired the intellectual property of network management open source software platform, Network Management Information System (NMIS).

The Queensland-based company also launched a new release of the NMIS program, used by about 10,000 businesses internationally.

NMIS has been developed over the past 12 years and is used to run IT networks from one through to 75,000 devices.

Opmantek’s open source software is free to all users; however, it has formulated a business model to provide support packages and add-on software modules that allow companies to offer enhanced services to users at a cost.

Click here for full article

Opmantek says it's cracked the code

IT companies on the Gold Coast have struggled up until now to work out how to make a buck out of free software, but Opmantek (ASSOB: OMK) boasts it has cracked the code.

Opmantek, which will soon be based on the Coast after a deal announced with Gold Coast City Council, is using support packages and add-on software to charge users for the privilege of open source software.

Click here for full article

PGX - Minimum Subscription Attained

PolyGenomX Limited (ASSOB Code: PGX) has today reached its Minimum Subscription.

For the latest news on PolyGenomX please see www.assob.com.au/pgx  

ASSOB Pty Ltd today welcomes Bantix Worldwide Limited

Bantix has a stable of new technologies that have been and are in the processing of being developed and commercialised.

Mtech International Pty Ltd a subsidiary company, manufactures and markets a world class mosquito trap into 72 countries.

Protocorp Pty Ltd a subsidiary engineering and design company, develops Bantix and other company technologies to the stage of commercial manufacture.

Prototip Innovation Pty Ltd (50% owned by Bantix) is a patenting and trade mark company that helps to patent ideas, products and technologies.

Foot Tee Pty Ltd (30% owned by Bantix) is a company that Bantix designed and developed a new product for. Bantix manages the company and provides the marketing and manufacture of the product.

For more information on Bantix please see www.assob.com.au/btx

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Bio-fuel boost thanks to Coast company

THE viability of renewable energy production has gained a significant boost from a world-first technology developed by an innovative Gold Coast company.

PolyGenomX (ASSOB: PGX), an unlisted public company based at Bundall, has pioneered a range of processes that deliver faster growth and higher yields from plants vital to a range of commercial applications and sustainable industries.

According to PolyGenomX managing director Peter Rowe, it is a "game-changer" for the mass production of bio-fuels and feedstocks.

To Click here to see full article.

Have you got the right reasons to raise capital?

In the second of this six-part series on raising capital, corporate adviser Mark Rainbird talks about how to prepare your business for raising capital, while avoiding some of the mistakes commonly made by the inexperienced and naive.

In my previous article, I discussed that companies with access to capital will have a competitive advantage in the marketplace, even though capital is going to be harder to come by.
However, while capital raising can provide a myriad of new opportunities and strong competitive advantages for your business, it is not necessarily a panacea for whatever malaise your organisation might be experiencing.

It might sound like an obvious statement, but getting people to invest in your company requires a great deal of preparation – yet there are still plenty of companies that eschew the necessary groundwork.

Concrete reasons to raise

The first thing that needs to be established is whether engaging in such an action will actually benefit your company. Certainly, having a foundation of reliable shareholders can make a major difference to your ability to obtain equity in the future, but if you’re unable to demonstrate a strong reason to invest, you’re likely to fail in your endeavours.
Having a clear funding strategy that is linked to your company strategy is important. Unless you have a considered future plan for the capital once it’s been raised, there is every chance you may end up squandering it with little-to-no growth to show for it.
Prospective investors want to see a clear use of funds, and are generally looking for the funds to be utilised for profitable growth opportunities, to bring new products to market, to realise a significant opportunity, or to expand internationally. If you can present them with an opportunity like this then you have a much greater chance of success than if you offer them a role in your “rainy day fund”.

People power

Sure, you might have a great idea and your board members may be passionate about what you’re doing, but will their presence inspire confidence in prospective shareholders?
Before raising capital, it certainly pays to analyse the individual histories and competencies of each of your board members and work out which attributes will be most attractive to investors. In some cases, it can actually be best to remove members of your current board if they don’t actually bring any real value to your organisation.

However, true to the idiom “you can’t see the wood for the trees,” it can sometimes be difficult to separate the truly saleable qualities of your directors from the irrelevant ones. Often, the advice of a reasonably impartial (but well-informed) outsider can help you to distinguish the necessary contributors from not-so-necessary.

If the sum of your board’s credentials isn’t likely to amount to much in the eyes of the public, a necessary option is to supplement the current board skill set with professional non-executive directors. Many senior executives with board experience are available for such roles and can be found via your network or professional organisations such as The Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Make it worth their while to invest

You have got to be prepared to part with a reasonable portion of your business. Remember that investors are primarily interested in making a return on their money. As fascinating as your company’s story may be, if you can’t offer a financially attractive equity share you’re far less likely to succeed.
In order to be able to develop the appropriate share capital structure, it’s of the utmost importance that you’ve had some realistic, all-inclusive financial forecasts compiled; these will give your potential backers an understanding of how much their share of the company will be worth.
Once again, it seems like an obvious trap to avoid, but I’ve seen plenty of directors fall for the same mistake of overvaluing the company and, as a result, offer more expensive shares. You need to balance your passion and expectations for your company with an objective understanding of how attractive the opportunity is to investors. The larger the gap between your company’s balance sheet and the valuation, the harder it is to demonstrate good value to the investor.

The investor exit: have you got one?

Investors are looking to eventually realise their investment – have you realistically thought about how the company will exit?

Whether it’s through an initial public offering, management buyout or trade sale, your company should be able to demonstrate a clear path to achieve an exit for investors. It’s important to create a strategy that is based around your company’s current activities, mindful that it can be reviewed in the future should the need arise.
If the exit strategy you’ve outlined is not achievable – say, if there are multiple options with no clear direction and it doesn’t link to the funding or company’s overarching strategy – then investors will be very hesitant to hand over their money.

The most important thing when looking to raise capital is to maintain a sense of objectivity. Certainly, the extra money could be useful, but is it what’s really needed? Perhaps there are operational and management efficiencies that can be looked at first before asking investors to help you grow. If raising capital is the path that you choose, the ability to take a step back and realise what’s vital to investors is the most important course of action you can take.

Dr. Mark Rainbird is the managing director of Ramscove and has over 15 years of capital and M&A experience, and has held senior executive positions in private, private equity, ASX and Government organisations.

New company gives Coast IT boost

GOLD Coast City Councillor Susie Douglas is talking up the city as the next Silicon Valley after announcing a new IT company has been lured here.

Network Management Software company Opmantek (ASSOB: OMK), whose software is used by over 10,000 organisations globally, has confirmed its intention to base its operations on the Gold Coast.

Cr Douglas said attracting Opmantek was another big win for Council's Investment Attraction Program, which had already attracted IT giant IBM to the Gold Coast.

Click here to see full article.

PolyGenomX leading the way with elite polygenomic trees

PolyGenomX Limited (ASSOB: PGX) has developed biotechnology which produces stable, fertile polygenomic plants and trees that grow faster than peers, thrive in a wider range of environments, and can be specifically adapted to deal with salinity, soil deficiencies, drought or other man-made problems across the globe.

http://www.assob.com.au/pgx

Wurst-Meister now launching gourmet German food quick service restaurant franchise model

 Wurst-Meister Pty Ltd ACN 142 443 909 is developing an international gourmet quick service restaurant (QSR) producing (under contract/license) freshly grilled German gourmet sausages and sausage-related products/meals including non alcoholic beverages to consumers. Initially one restaurant outlet will be established to pilot and fine tune the offering, before expanding this QSR concept through a franchise model.

http://www.ramscove.com.au/investors-login.html

Got capital? Markets about to tighten. So start planning now.

Access to capital is what drives innovative companies. In this five part series, Dr Mark Rainbird proposes to share five vital steps towards getting and using capital successfully in a tight capital marketplace.
Everyone’s aware that obtaining capital is a tougher task now than it was before the 2008 global financial meltdown.
While there are constant murmurs about the markets bouncing back and lines of credit being freed up, those at the coalface will vouch that it remains tricky out there.
To make matters worse, a recent report by consultants McKinsey & Company indicates that capital is about to become more expensive. A predicted building boom in developing economies looks set to divert investment away from businesses in developed countries.
According to the report, companies with low overheads that can show stronger returns on invested equity will win in coming years as the people holding the pursestrings search for less capital-intensive operations.

What this means for your business

Capital raising — particularly when carried out by smaller companies — tends to occur in response to a particular need of the business, such as equipment or site purchase, working capital issues, merger and acquisition activity, or general expansionary activities.
While this makes perfect sense, there’s also significant value in building ongoing relationships with reliable sources of funding (both debt and equity), when not in immediate need, in order to provide your company with additional security in the future.
With such measures in place, businesses are able to respond quickly and effectively to market changes, capitalising on opportunities as they arise. In addition, capital will also be less expensive if sought strategically rather than from a reactionary position.
Having reliable lines of funding can reassure investors that your company will execute on its strategic business goals without having to resort to short-term, high-cost capital, or shareholders having to “stump up” more funds.
Having the right funding strategies, plus the right advisors and backers, will mean you don’t need to give away huge amounts of equity in your organisation to fulfil your goals.

The balance of economic power in the world is rapidly changing.

Companies from so-called developing countries are often running quite lean operations. In many cases, low wages, low material costs, and different taxation rules equals advantage over established companies from developed countries.
While it’s something that should be on everyone’s to-do list, working on your overheads and ensuring that you’re squeezing as much value from every dollar should be a priority this year if you’re seeking investment.
Keep in mind: they’ll have plenty of opportunities now to put money into companies with low capital outlay and high returns, so the more you can bring your business in line with this mode of operation, the stronger the chance that investors will want to work with you.
Over five articles in the coming weeks, I’ll discuss in more detail the vital steps towards getting and using capital successfully in these new, competitive markets.

Dr Mark Rainbird is the MD of Ramscove and has over 15 years capital and M&A experience, and has held senior executive positions in private, private equity, ASX and Government organisations.

PolyGenomXis now listed on the Australian Small Scale Offering Board

PolyGenomX Limited ACN 146 776 025 (ASSOB Code: PGX) has developed proven biotechnology processes that produce stable, fertile polygenomic plants and trees that grow significantly faster than their peers, thrive in a wider range of environments, and can be specifically adapted to deal with salinity, soil deficiencies, drought or other man-made problems.  Polygenomic trees contain extra copies of unaltered cellular genomes  which enable them to utilise more atmospheric carbon to grow 30% faster than other trees thus cutting years off the growth cycle of a wide range of commercial trees, from oilseed trees, to pulp to biomass, to carbon capture and storage, to high-value timber forestry.

Corporate Advisory | Capital | Introduction

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Unlisted Companies Provide Pathway To Next Blue Chips

Imagine investing $25,000 in the then start-up Google in 1998 at four cents a share - that investment would today be worth around $160 million.

We’ve all heard stories about someone investing in the early stages of a company and their investment paying off in spades, but who are these companies and how do you find out about them before everybody else?

Dr Mark Rainbird, managing director of the corporate advisory, capital and business introduction firm Ramscove, says while the unlisted public company sector is important for the growth of various industry sectors, it can also provide early stage investors with potentially huge returns.

“An unlisted public company is generally a small company not suitable for listing on a stock exchange, has shareholders and can raise funds for any commercial venture, however it cannot generally advertise for investors,” Dr Rainbird says

“Because of the nature of the legal restrictions around promoting investment in this sector, most opportunities in unlisted companies are never offered beyond friends, family or those associated with the company, which means many new investors never become aware of them.

“However there are an increasing number of people who are actively looking at the unlisted companies sector as part of their portfolio to be able to get in at an early stage and reap the eventual rewards.”

Australia’s unlisted companies account for around 43 percent of Australia’s GDP, a substantial contributor to the economy in terms of both finance and employment, and while not for everyone, an understanding of the sector can give investors an insight to the companies that are likely to become future initial public offerings and potentially the next wave of blue chips.

A range of investment opportunities exist from as little as $25,000 in companies looking to raise capital via a small scale offering (up to $5 million in equity), excluded offers (usually for larger amounts to sophisticated investors), convertible notes or debt instruments.

So how do you find out about these opportunities?

Dr Rainbird says a number of business advisors specialise in this sector and can help investors navigate through the maze of opportunities as well as the potential risks.

“If you’re not sure how to access these opportunities there are platforms such as the Australian Small Scale Offerings Board which provides investors a transparent way to compare and review potential investments,” Dr Rainbird says.

“For the right opportunity the returns can be just as significant as a stock exchange listing. Returns can be realised at “exit” via a trade sale or initial public offering, where retail investors are just entering the investment, an early stage investor may choose to exit some or all of their holding.

“Risk, however, forms a large part of investing in unlisted public companies so due diligence and advice from a professional advisor is a must before taking the plunge.”

As the unlisted companies market is extremely diverse and made up of a range of industries from start-ups through to mature public unlisted companies looking for growth capital and sound exit strategies, there is plenty of opportunity for an investment that meets an individual’s specific criteria and profile, Dr Rainbird says.

“Investors in unlisted companies can choose whether to be passive or proactive including participation at the board level or at the executive operating level, and the ability to help shape the investor exit. Many early stage companies welcome this involvement from a cornerstone investor,” Dr Rainbird says.

“This expertise and bringing new business networks, products, and business acumen to the table can add tremendous value to a company and there is potential to oversee your investment rather than being a minority shareholder in a large company as you would investing through an exchange.

“Some investors enjoy this participation to help move the company forward and being able to contribute their knowledge and skills, as well as getting a financial return.”

Dr Rainbird says funds needed are generally small and are in the $1 million to $5 million range, enabling investors to make either smaller or significant contributions.

“The use of capital raised through investment is usually deployed quickly for maximum benefit of shareholders to drive growth through new sales channels, gaining market access from global expansion, finalising R&D projects, IP protection, working capital or the acquisition of other products or businesses,” Dr Rainbird says.

“Many companies in the unlisted market are fast growing and profitable. They are creating innovation in their particular niche, are nimble, and are not constrained by large company structures and in many cases have access to a global markets.

“As opposed to debt funding, leveraging equity is a low risk strategy for companies maximising growth opportunities, therefore minimising company and investor risks.

“Given the current financial climate, with cash and listed companies proving volatile, the unlisted sector is offering excellent opportunities over and above the traditional investment channels.”

Corporate Advisory | Capital | Introduction

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Need money to fund a Technology Start-up?

Up to $18,000 in Startup Funding Available from TechStars: TechStars provides Startups with seed funding and three months of mentoring to help get ideas off the ground and greatly improve chances for business success and sustainability. TechStars typically funds web-based or other software technology companies located anywhere in the world; about 75 percent of accepted companies have received additional funding sources and/or immediately became profitable after completing the TechStars program.

Ramscove | Capital and Funding Strategies | Business Advisory | Director Services

http://www.ramscove.com.au/

How is your Capital Raising Going?

What factors are important in a successful capital raising?  While it is hard to be specific due to the fact that every capital raising "matter" is different.  We can however, engineer the factors that will make capital raising more likely to be successful.  These include:

• Structure of the business (private vs public unlisted vs public listed)
• The Board and Management team (who are investors placing their money with to protect it?)
• The capital or share structure of the offer
• The pricing of the offer (is it attractive to investors)
• The business proposition and leverage that the business has
• What is the exit for funders or investors - will they be stuck in funding a private company?
• The approach to investors

If your capital raising is not going as planned please contact us for a confidential discussion.

Ramscove | Capital and Funding Strategies | Business Advisory | Director Services
http://www.ramscove.com.au/

Small Business Capital Funding - The need to plan.

We are still getting unindated by small to medium businesses that are looking for capital or finance to expand their businesses.  A number of businesses need working capital to meet demand.  Others have run out of founders funds and are looking for more equity.  A range of businesses are seeking help once they have got into quite a bit of trouble with creditors, the bank and other stakeholders.

We advise business to get help early from professional advisors.  When looking for funds (either debt or equity) it is important to have the right fundamentals - a good Board, a solid managment team and good handle on the buisiness and an exit strategy for the investor or funder.  Get advice early and communicate with your stakeholders around your requirements.

All too often we see folk getting help too late without a proper funding and capital raising strategy in place.  Often companies rely on only one course of action leading to dissapointment when things get delayed or don't go "to plan".

Ramscove | Capital and Funding Strategies | Business Advisory | Director Services | http://www.ramscove.com.au/

Is credit starting to flow?

In the latest McKinsey Quarterly (see link), companies from around the globe are reporting that they are seeking external funds and this demand has increased significantly from previous surveys.

From our own experience we are seeing a strong demand for equity rather than debt.  The benefits of equity are that you don't have to pay it back, and from growing and emerging companies they can then leverage the eqity to obtain debt finance.  Credit still seems to be a problem in Australia and we are seeing a particular shortage for property developments.

We are also seeing a range of off-shore funders willing to invest in both ASX listed companies and public unlisted companies.  Some of the funding models are quite innovative and are relatively simple to procure.

Funding Strategies - Small Scale Offers

ASSOB ( www.assob.com.au) is the largest and most successful platform for showcasing investment opportunities in high-growth, unlisted Australian companies. The ASSOB platform supports companies from all sectors including mining, green technologies, energy, food & beverage, biotech, software / web / tech, finance, medical and many others. As a result of our association with ASSOB we can now facilitate capital raising listings for our clients onto ASSOB of between $500K and $2M+.

Companies wanting to list a capital raising offer (eg Offer Docs, IM, Prospectus etc) on ASSOB must first engage the services of an Accredited ASSOB Sponsor. Due to our ASSOB Accreditation we are pleased to now be in a position to offer the following additional services to our clients:

Assist companies with their ASSOB listing application;
Assist companies structure their ASSOB capital raising offer;
Assist companies prepare their ASSOB capital raising documentation;
Assist companies market their ASSOB capital raising offer;
Assist companies negotiate with potential investors;
Assist companies administer their ASSOB capital raising offer to ensure compliance;
Assist shareholders in unlisted companies to potentially exit their share-holdings via the ASSOB Secondary Sales functionality;
Assist advanced / profitable companies undertake an "ASSOB Compliance Listing” so existing shareholders can access the ASSOB Secondary Sales functionality.

“ASSOB is now one of the largest introducers of private investment to early-stage, high-growth companies through its network of accredited Sponsors and works within and relies upon the regulatory environment imposed by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and the Corporations Act 2001.”

 Contact us so we can prepare a draft Captial Raising Scenario for your business.

The economy seems to be turning

The US economy seems to be declining significantly less according to the Washington Post - see graph of Qtrly domestic product output (Aug 09). Stockmarkets also seem to be in a more positive mood and there seems to be more activity - companies are starting to hire and from my own activity and discussions in the market things seem to be picking up. With my recent trips to Sydney, I would say that Brisbane is lagging Syd (and Mel). Hopefully we all see the up-swing soon.

The Return of the Salesman

I noticed this article from Harvard Business School (http://hbswk.hbs.edu/) regarding "The Return of the Salesman". This article triggered me thinking about my own recent experience. When calling on organisations that find themselves in need of assistance, rather than wanting strategic advice and coaching on how to move forward and executing on their strategic initiatives, many are looking for the "silver bullet" - the super sales person! They are looking for assistance to sell their products and services and hence improve revenue and bottom lines. Well networked and with executive level experience, I happen to fit the bill quite nicely. The issue then becomes one executing the appropriate sales and channel strategies and the details around branding, channels to market, compensation and delivery.
If you are thinking of going down this path, we can make sure your overall strategy business strategy is sound, while providing advice and operational capability on achieving your sales goals!

Avoiding Corporate Collapse

The recent feature article "Avoiding Corporate Collapse" [Company Director, Vol 25, No 03 April 09] highlights the issues Directors face when companies find themselves in trouble. One of the biggest issues Directors face is whether the company is trading insolvently. The consequences of trading inolvently can be devistating both to the company, creditors, staff and Directors. The AICD has lauched a new "mirosite" providing information on "Directing in Difficult Times". The general advice is to seek advice early and to deal with the issues. In another article "Insolvency up as more hit by tax bills" [AFR, p7, April 9-13], it was discussed that SMEs were at increased risk of insolvency in the current market and things were expecting to get worse".

In these difficult times it pays to have the right strategies and capabilities, and to be seeking appropriate advice.

Corporate Governance and Company Performance

The Australian Government has recently published a paper that reviews Corporate Governance compliance in relation to financial performance. Follow the link for the paper (http://www.treasury.gov.au/contentitem.asp?NavId=035&ContentID=1495). Essentially the paper confirms the general view that strong corporate governance leads to better financial returns. "Our results suggest that companies demonstrating greater compliance with the ASX Corporate Governance Principles outperform less compliant companies in each of these three financial areas" (of shareholder performance, operating performance and one year sales growth for the top 300 Australian listed companies.

In a paper published by Julie Hudson (UBS Investment Bank, 2008) "Coporate Governance and Capital Markets"; the connection is again confirmed. "Weak corporate governance is accompanied by an increased risk of potentially unwelcome surprises" and guides investors to avoid companies with weak governance in terms of portfolio selection.

In my own experience as a Board Director, I would have to agree with the research. Companies exhibiting stong Board Governance and adherence to Governance principles such as those published by the ASX or AICD were on whole better performing than those that were "less compliant".

Given the strong impirical and "personal practical" evidence I am an advocate of professional Board Governance.

Working Capital and "Going Concern" Issues

The poll that I have been running on Linkedin has indicated that the majority of respondents beleive that more than 20% of companies have working capital issues. I was quite surprised at the result. KPMG has released a paper on advice for companies and directors on assessing whether an organisation is a "going concern". Given the high level of anxiety around working capital issues, it is a must read for executives and Board Directors. See - http://kpmg.com.au/Portals/0/09FR-07.pdf

What percentage of current organisations have working capital problems?

I am interested in understanding the level of "distress" in the market with regard to managing working capital and other operational issues. Some of the symptoms are company not paying their creditors on time and banks being reticent to lend for working capital problems. How do management cope and manage such situations?

Corporate Transformation and Advisory Services

Mark Rainbird has extensive corporate transformation and advisory experience. With over 10 years of Board, operational transformation and restructuring experience Mark can help your management team (and Board) execute and provide much needed capacity and capability in difficult and demanding times.

Mark has recently assisted a Mackay based Mining Services organisation to cut $600K per month from operating costs as the decline in mining services revenue impacted the company. This successful transformation involved leading the change management agenda and building a strong capable team to move the business forward.

Other transformation experience includes:

Re-focused operations while undertaking due diligence, merger / acquisition activities and a scheme of arrangement, leading to solid revenue bookings (dramatically exceeding plan), new products being launched, a customer service focus and a stronger team.

Undertook a major transformation involving concerted change management to deliver a $7M turnaround in profit year-on-year within a complex technology services company. Implementation involved delivery of business “building blocks” together with alignment of people and strategy.

Worked closely with clients to provide improved service levels while implementing improved management frameworks and reporting to drive operating efficiencies (utilisation and grade-of-service).

Grew an innovative mining services company from $25 to $50M in three years, by combining technical problem solving and commercial acumen to deliver strong business outcomes. Management of the bottom line, developing new opportunities and overseeing manufacturing were key elements to the success.

Partnered with Caterpillar to drive a leadership position in providing a “mine-to-market” technology portfolio (hardware and software) to dramatically lower mining costs. Provided leadership and execution of global roll-out including marketing and alliance programs.

Re-established mining business at CGEY through building strong client relationships and bold propositions. An innovative “Mining for Profit” strategy provided a catalyst for client engagement and delivery of core business and technology assignments.