Oberon AIM VCT plc
For the six months to 30 June 2024
Chairman’s Statement
At its recent AGM, the Company (Trust/OVCT/Fund) changed its name from New Century AIM VCT2 plc to Oberon AIM VCT plc on 3 July 2024. The new ticker for the Company is OVCT.The board see this as a new dawn for the Trust.
There are very few attractive tax efficient investments in the UK market, however, with the UK government having recently approved the extension of the ‘sunset clause’ for the VCT regime for a further 10 years until 5 April 2035 (which has also recently been ratified by the EU), the VCT sector is one of them.
Furthermore, while there are numerous VCTs investing in unlisted equities, there are currently only 7 VCTs in existence that invest in listed (i.e. stockmarket) AIM stocks. The board’s view is that the transparency of the underlying investments in an AIM VCT, (and daily valuations), give investors an attractive, transparent and understandable tax efficient investment (which is arguably more attractive than other non-listed VCT competitors).
Prior to the AGM we wrote to shareholders explaining that we, as a board, wished to use the opportunity to create an attractive vehicle into which current and new shareholders could invest. Our proposal was to relaunch the VCT, by committing resources into the VCT’s long term future to enable us to provide an attractive and tax efficient investment proposition for our shareholders. The resolutions were strongly supported with over 75% of shareholders voting for all resolutions, backing us to expand the Trust and invest in its future.
Following this approval by the Company’s shareholders, we are now looking to grow the VCT and take advantage of what the directors feel is the over-due end of a long bear market in smaller companies. The AIM market has been underperforming over a long period and, as with almost all cycles, we believe this will change and the small cap/AIM market should begin to recover. As a result, the Oberon VCT is one of the few companies, with very attractive tax incentives, in a position to take advantage of this situation.
The AIM Allshare index has performed relatively poorly over the last one, three and five years, however the board believe (as has been experienced in most market cycles over the last few decades) that the tide is turning and that opportunities are now beginning to appear. We do not believe that the small cap and entrepreneurial market is dead nor do we think that for some reason this time is ‘different’- we firmly believe this sector will recover.
As part of this drive to grow your company, provide more opportunities, and make the Trust more attractive, I am pleased to say that your board, in partnership with Oberon Investments Limited (OIL), our Investment Manager, has come to an agreement that Oberon will charge no investment management fees for the next 12 months. Oberon will also be underwriting the directors’ costs (which we have continually kept very low) to the tune of £5,000. As a result, the directors
have agreed to take no remuneration from the Company for the next 12 months as we grow the Trust to a commercial level.
To take advantage of this, we are now implementing a number of changes:
- Towards the end of 2024, we expect to issue a new prospectus, outlining the new approach of the Fund and the potential opportunity these tax incentives and the current levels of the AIM market may offer. This will give the Trust the option to bring in new investors, which, in turn, will provide new opportunities and liquidity to take advantage of new issues in the AIM market.
- The result of a successful fundraise will also reduce the costs of the Company as a percentage of our market capitalisation.
- We understand that OIL will be giving further guidance on its commitment and investment into our Fund offering, both with regard to a new, larger investment team, under the guidance of Simon Like (the Investment Manager), along with further financial support to the Trust as it grows to a commercial size.
- In addition OIL is looking to invest in the expansion of the research and investment capability of the Trust byunderwriting research and due diligence costs on its new investments.
- We will also look to add to the board composition under the guidance of myself as Chairman and the current team of directors.
As a result of the combined efforts of the board and our colleagues at OIL, we feel there is now a fantastic opportunity for the Trust. While there is no certainty about the future, following a number of years of underperformance of small caps and the AIM market, the board feels that history is in our favour and that we may be coming towards the end of a long bear market cycle. Should this be the case, we feel the re-launch of the Trust is well timed and your Fund is well placed to profit from this. We will be issuing updates on a regular basis over the next few months and we look forward to what we feel is a very exciting opportunity.
Finally, I would like to thank the board, all our partners and suppliers and our shareholders, all of whom have been very supportive.
Geoffrey Gamble
Chairman
13 September 2024
Investment Manager’s Review
The Net Asset Value (NAV) of your fund declined by 16.2% to 33.2p, compared to the FSTE AIM Allshare index which was essentially flat over the same period. It should be borne in mind that your Company can not invest in some of the strongly performing areas of the market such as the Oil & Gas and Mining sectors.
We made two new investments in the period, investing in Directa Plus plc and EDX Medical plc. We feel both investments offer exciting growth opportunities for your Fund.
Directa Plus plc is a leading producer and supplier of graphene nanoplatelets based products for use in consumer and industrial markets. The company currently has a patent portfolio of 98 granted patents plus 38 patents pending. Thecompany is transitioning from a learning and discovery company to one with a greater focus on becoming more commercial and a growth business. We have participated in a fundraising for this company to assist with growth capital to accelerate its path to profitability.
EDX Medical plc develops innovative digital diagnostic products and services to support personalised treatments for cancer, heart disease and infectious diseases. The business was founded by Professor Sir Christpher Evans OBE, a medical and life sciences entrepreneur with more than 30 years’ experience. This company seeks to efficiently improve the detection and characterisation of diseases in order to personalise treatment in a timely manner. Early detection of diseases is considered to be the most impactful way of reducing deaths and lowering the cost of healthcare globally.
We also increased our holdings in two existing investments, being Strip Tinning plc and Seeen plc. We sold holdings in five companies where we either exited or top-sliced a holding. Since the period end, we have continued to top slice and bank profits on five investments and we have also made three further investments. We have added to the position in Abingdon Health plc and have invested in 2 new companies, being Getech Group plc and Earnz plc. The investments in both Getech Group plc and Abingdon Health plc are pleasingly at a premium to the price recently invested in, and Earnz plc is currently level. We are excited about these investments and believe they will add value to the portfolio in the months ahead.
One of the fund’s existing investments, Intelligent Ultrasound Group plc announced in July 2024 that it had agreed to sell part of its business for £40.5m to GE Healthcare Technologies Inc, which was a substantial premium to its value at the time. Indeed, the company is still only valued at £32.8m, a discount of 19% to the value of the business being sold, and that ignores the value of the remaining businesses within the company. It is situations like this which, in our view, highlight some of the outstanding undervalued opportunities that are currently available in the AIM Market.
Unaudited Balance Sheet
| Category | Interim Accounts as at 30 June 2024 (£’000) |
Final Accounts as at 31 December 2023 (£’000)* |
Interim Accounts as at 30 June 2023 (£’000) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fixed Assets Investments |
1,686 | 1,994 | 1,838 |
| Current Assets Debtors |
172 | 243 | 405 |
| Current Liabilities Creditors: amounts due within one year |
(8) | (30) | (34) |
| Total Net Assets | 1,850 | 2,207 | 2,209 |
| Capital and Reserves Share capital |
557 | 557 | 557 |
| Share premium | 547 | 547 | 547 |
| Capital redemption reserve | 171 | 171 | 171 |
| Special distributable reserve | 2,775 | 2,775 | 2,915 |
| Capital reserve – realised | (227) | (287) | (281) |
| Capital reserve – unrealised | (1,695) | (1,309) | (1,487) |
| Revenue reserve | (278) | (247) | (213) |
| Net Asset Value per share (pence) | 33.2p | 39.6p | 39.6p |
*Audited
Unaudited Statement of Comprehensive Income
(Incorporating the revenue account)
| Category | 6 month period ended 30 June 2024 | Year to 31 December 2023* | 6 month period ended 30 June 2023 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue (£’000) | Capital (£’000) | Total (£’000) | Revenue (£’000) | Capital (£’000) | Total (£’000) | Revenue (£’000) | Capital (£’000) | Total (£’000) | |
| Realised gains | – | 6 | 6 | – | 145 | 145 | – | 27 | 27 |
| Unrealised losses | – | (324) | (324) | – | (318) | (318) | – | (381) | (381) |
| Income | 11 | – | 11 | 29 | – | 29 | 11 | – | 11 |
| Investment management fees | (2) | (7) | (9) | (6) | (17) | (22) | (3) | (8) | (11) |
| Other expenses | (40) | – | (40) | (115) | – | (115) | (66) | – | (66) |
| Return on ordinary activities | (32) | (325) | (357) | (92) | (190) | (282) | (58) | (362) | (420) |
| Tax on ordinary activities | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Return on ordinary activities after taxation | (32) | (325) | (357) | (92) | (190) | (282) | (58) | (362) | (420) |
| Return per ordinary share in pence | (0.57) | (5.84) | (6.41) | (1.72) | (3.55) | (5.27) | (1.14) | (7.06) | (8.20) |
*Audited
All revenue and capital items in the above statement are from continuing operations in the current six-month period. No operations were acquired or discontinued in the current period. Other than that shown above, the Company had no recognised gains or losses. Accordingly, the above represents the total comprehensive income for the period.
The weighted average number of shares in issue during the period was 5,574,403.
| Share Premium Account | Redemption Reserve | Special Distributable Reserve | Capital Realised | Capital Unrealised | Revenue Reserve | Total | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| As at 1 January 2024 | 557 | 547 | 171 | 2,775 | (287) | (1,309) | (247) | 2,207 |
| Realised gains on disposals in period | 6 | (325) | 6 | |||||
| Unrealised losses | (325) | |||||||
| Transfer of unrealised gain to realised on disposal of investment | 61 | (61) | ||||||
| Net revenue before tax | (32) | (32) | ||||||
| New shares issued | ||||||||
| Capital element of investment management fee | (7) | (7) | ||||||
| At 30 June 2024 | 557 | 547 | 171 | 2,775 | (227) | (1,695) | (278) | 1,850 |
| As at 1 January 2023 | 507 | 382 | 171 | 2,915 | (62) | (1,345) | (155) | 2,413 |
| Realised loss on disposals | 145 | 145 | ||||||
| Unrealised losses | (318) | (318) | ||||||
| Transfer of unrealised gain to realised on disposal of investment | (354) | 354 | ||||||
| Net revenue before tax | (92) | (92) | ||||||
| New shares issued | 50 | 165 | 215 | |||||
| Capital element of investment management fee | (17) | (17) | ||||||
| Dividends paid | (139) | (139) | ||||||
| At 31 December 2023 | 557 | 547 | 171 | 2,775 | (287) | (1,309) | (247) | 2,207 |
| Called-up share capital | Share Premium account | Capital Redemption reserve | Special distributable reserve | Capital Realised | Capital Unrealised | Revenue reserve | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| As at 1 January 2023 | 507 | 382 | 171 | 2,915 | (62) | (1,345) | (155) | 2,413 |
| Realised gains on disposals | – | – | – | – | 27 | (381) | – | 27 |
| Unrealised gains | – | – | – | – | – | (381) | – | (381) |
| Transfer of unrealised loss to realised on disposal of investment | – | – | – | – | (238) | 238 | – | – |
| Net revenue before tax | – | – | – | – | – | – | (58) | (58) |
| New shares issued | 51 | 165 | – | – | – | – | – | 216 |
| Capital element of investment management fee | – | – | – | – | (8) | – | – | (8) |
| At 30 June 2023 | 557 | 547 | 171 | 2,915 | (281) | (1,487) | (213) | 2,209 |
| Security | Cost | Valuation 30 June 2024 | % Cost | % Valuation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Non-qualifying Investments | 31,273 | 8,584 | 0.88 | 0.46 |
| Uninvested funds | 171,312 | 171,312 | 4.82 | 9.23 |
| Total | 3,552,230 | 1,856,912 | 100.00 | 100.00 |
| Qualifying Investments | ||||
| AIM Quoted | ||||
| Abingdon Health plc | 35,218 | 3,650 | 0.99 | 0.20 |
| Actual Experience plc | 63,174 | 0 | 1.78 | 0.00 |
| AFC Energy pic | 50,254 | 52,438 | 1.41 | 2.82 |
| Audioboom Group plc | 39,287 | 38,796 | 1.11 | 2.09 |
| Aurrrigo International pic | 75,387 | 67,500 | 2.12 | 3.64 |
| Belluscura plc | 52,263 | 17,333 | 1.47 | 0.93 |
| Blackbird pic | 18,845 | 17,775 | 0.53 | 0.96 |
| Brighton Pier Group plc | 35,379 | 9,680 | 1.00 | 0.52 |
| Clean Power Hydrogen plc | 50,253 | 10,811 | 1.41 | 0.58 |
| Cloudbuy plc | 41,896 | 0 | 1.18 | 0.00 |
| Cloudified Holdings plc | 85,234 | 0 | 2.40 | 0.00 |
| Coral Products plc | 25,104 | 27,103 | 0.71 | 1.46 |
| Cordel Group plc | 30,656 | 21,858 | 0.86 | 1.18 |
| Creo Medical Group plc | 20,504 | 8,589 | 0.58 | 0.46 |
| CyanConnode Holdings plc | 204,219 | 6,404 | 5.75 | 0.34 |
| Deepverge pic | 93,203 | 0 | 2.62 | 0.00 |
| Destiny Pharma | 175,882 | 28,540 | 4.95 | 1.54 |
| Direct Plus plc | 30,158 | 26,667 | 0.85 | 1.44 |
| DP Poland plc | 25,631 | 17,850 | 0.72 | 0.96 |
| Eden Research plc | 29,852 | 19,647 | 0.84 | 1.06 |
| EDX Medical Group pic | 50,002 | 34,375 | 1.41 | 1.85 |
| Feedback plc | 100,511 | 43,104 | 2.83 | 2.32 |
| Fusion Antibodies pic | 7,540 | 258 | 0.21 | 0.01 |
| Gfinity plc | 33,229 | 414 | 0.94 | 0.02 |
| Haydale Graphene Industries plc | 75,387 | 44,850 | 2.12 | 2.42 |
| Huddled Group | 33,420 | 12,976 | 0.94 | 0.70 |
| i-Nexus Global pic | 30,153 | 949 | 0.85 | 0.05 |
| Inspired Energy pic | 33,641 | 76,650 | 0.95 | 4.13 |
| Intelligent Ultrasound Group pic | 124,786 | 83,823 | 3.51 | 4.51 |
| Kinovo plc | 52,465 | 51,300 | 1.48 | 2.76 |
| Libertine Holdings plc | 125,628 | 9,313 | 3.54 | 0.50 |
| LifeSafe Holdings plc | 75,387 | 42,188 | 2.12 | 2.27 |
| Light Science Technologies Holdings plc | 25,127 | 71,625 | 0.71 | 3.86 |
| LungLife Al Inc | 20,104 | 1,705 | 0.57 | 0.09 |
| Security | Cost | Valuation 30 June 2024 | % Cost | % Valuation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| M Winkworth plc | 52,260 | 123,500 | 1.47 | 6.65 |
| Marechale Capital plc | 75,752 | 10,500 | 2.13 | 0.57 |
| Microsaic Systems plc | 142,261 | 53 | 4.00 | 0.00 |
| Mirriad Advertising Ltd | 30,154 | 561 | 0.85 | 0.03 |
| MyHealth Checked plc | 103,202 | 38,766 | 2.91 | 2.09 |
| N4 Pharma plc | 40,204 | 1,600 | 1.13 | 0.09 |
| Nexteq plc | 8,091 | 22,400 | 0.23 | 1.21 |
| PHSC plc | 40,203 | 36,800 | 1.13 | 1.98 |
| Polarean Imaging plc | 7,539 | 823 | 0.21 | 0.04 |
| The Property Franchise Group plc | 25,114 | 98,100 | 0.71 | 5.28 |
| Pulsar Group plc | 10,053 | 22,250 | 0.28 | 1.20 |
| Rosslyn Data Technologies plc | 98,606 | 27,126 | 2.78 | 1.46 |
| Scancell Holdings plc | 20,877 | 16,125 | 0.59 | 0.87 |
| SEEEN plc | 125,640 | 53,333 | 3.54 | 2.87 |
| SkinBio Therapeutics plc | 75,383 | 34,460 | 2.12 | 1.86 |
| Solid State plc | 19,459 | 118,000 | 0.55 | 6.35 |
| Sorted Group Holdings plc | 72,643 | 3,491 | 2.05 | 0.19 |
| SRT Marine Systems plc | 4,523 | 7,600 | 0.13 | 0.41 |
| Strip Tinning Holdings plc | 66,148 | 73,450 | 1.86 | 3.96 |
| SysGroup plc | 45,232 | 25,500 | 1.27 | 1.37 |
| Tan Delta Systems plc | 11,239 | 5,160 | 0.32 | 0.28 |
| Trellus Health plc | 25,128 | 963 | 0.71 | 0.05 |
| Verici Dx plc | 101,506 | 21,813 | 2.86 | 1.17 |
| XP Factory plc | 31,006 | 3,199 | 0.87 | 0.17 |
| Total qualifying investments | 3,202,000 | 1,593,742 | 90.14 | 85.83 |
| AQSE Quoted Investments | ||||
| SulNOx Grp plc | 17,204 | 39,375 | 0.49 | 2.12 |
| TruSpine Technology pic | 100,283 | 26,250 | 2.82 | 1.41 |
| Total qualifying investments | 117,487 | 65,625 | 3.31 | 3.53 |
| Unlisted Investments | ||||
| LightwaveRF plc | 30,158 | 17,647 | 0.85 | 0.95 |
| Total qualifying investments | 3,349,645 | 1,677,014 | 94.30 | 90.31 |
| Security | Cost | Valuation 30 June 2024 | % Cost | % Valuation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Non-Qualifying Investments | ||||
| AIM Quoted | ||||
| Audioboom Group plc | 1,163 | 244 | 0.03 | 0.01 |
| 1,163 | 244 | 0.03 | 0.01 | |
| Non-Qualifying Investments | ||||
| UK Listed | ||||
| Twentyfour Income Fund Ltd | 9,852 | 8,340 | 0.28 | 0.45 |
| 9,852 | 8,340 | 0.28 | 0.45 | |
| Non-Qualifying Investments | ||||
| Unlisted Investments | ||||
| Mar City plc | 10,053 | 0 | 0.28 | 0.00 |
| Sorbic International plc | 10,205 | 0 | 0.29 | 0.00 |
| 20,258 | 0 | 0.57 | 0.00 | |
| Total non-qualifying investments | 31,273 | 8,584 | 0.88 | 0.46 |
Notes to the Accounts
This interim financial information and the unaudited interim accounts for the six months to 30 June 2024 from which it has been extracted, are the responsibility of the directors and were approved by them on 5 September 2024, do not constitute statutory accounts within the meaning of Section 434 of the Companies Act 2006 and have not been delivered to the Registrar of Companies.
The Company is an investment company as defined in Section 833 of the Companies Act 2006. The unaudited interim accounts have been prepared in accordance with the Financial Reporting Council’s (FRC) Financial Reporting Standard 104 Interim Financial Reporting (January 2022) and with the Statement of Recommended Practice for Investment Companies re-issued by the Association of Investment Companies in November 2014 and updated in July 2022.
The unaudited interim accounts have been prepared using accounting policies that the Company applied in the accounts for the year ended 31 December 2023, incorporating FRS 102 The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland. The Company considers these accounting policies will be used in the accounts for the year ending 31 December 2024.
Listed, AIM or AQUIS Markets – traded investments are stated at market value, which is based upon market bid prices in an active market at the balance sheet date. These would all meet tier 1 of the fair value hierarchy. At the 1 January 2024 and 30 June 2024 there were 5,574,403 shares in issue. The average weighted number of shares in issue in the period was 5,574,403.
Net Asset Value per share at 30 June 2024 was 33.2p (at 31 December 2023: 39.6p; 30 June 2023: 39.6p). No dividend was paid in the period, but a final dividend for the year ended 31 December 2023, of 2.5p per share (totaling £139,360) was paid on 26 July 2024.
On 3 July 2024, following approval at the Company’s AGM on 28 June 2024, the Company changed its name to Oberon AIM VCT plc. There have not been any other significant events since the balance sheet date. Oberon AIM VCT plc is managed by Oberon Investments Limited (‘OIL’). Under the terms of the new management agreement, OIL is entitled to a fee (exclusive of VAT) equal to 1% of net assets of the Company for H1’24, which will increase to 1.25% in Q3 and Q4. This will then increase to 2.0% of net assets from the start of calendar 2025. However, an agreement has subsequently been reached between the Company and OIL, as mentioned in the Chairman’s Statement, that this fee is going to be waived for the next 12 months.
During the period the management fee was £9.8k (the year ended 31 December 2023, £22.1k; the period ended 30 June 2022, £10.7k). Bearing in mind that the assets of the Company consist mainly of marketable securities, the directors are of the opinion that at the time of approving this interim financial information, the Company has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. For this reason, they continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing this interim financial information. Copies of the Interim Report to Shareholders have been sent to shareholders and are available at the Company’s Registered Office:
Tricor Secretaries Ltd, 7th Floor, 50 Broadway, London SW1H 0DB.
Oberon AIM VCT plc
Directors, Investment Managers and Advisors
| Directors | Geoffrey Charles Gamble (Chairman) John Beaumont Ian Cameron-Mowat Simon Like |
| Secretary and registered office | Tricor Secretaries Ltd 7th Floor, 50 Broadway London SW1H 0DB |
| Registrar | Neville Registrars Limited Neville House Steelpark Road Halesowen West Midlands B62 8HD |
| Solicitors | Wedlake Bell LLP 71 Queen Victoria Street London EC4V 4AY |
| Investment Manager and Broker | Oberon Investments Limited 1st Floor 12 Hornsby Square Southfields Business Park Basildon Essex SS15 6SD |
| Auditor | Moore Kingston Smith LLP 6th Floor 9 Appold Street London EC2A 2AP |