Category: Market News

Delta Gold Technologies (AQSE:DGQ) (USOTC:DGQTF) has taken a major step in its growth strategy with its recent listing on the OTCQB Venture Market, significantly expanding its visibility and access to U.S. investors. The move comes as the London-based company accelerates its work in quantum computing and next-generation technology development.

Speaking on The Watchlist, CEO Michael Jones highlighted the strategic importance of entering the U.S. market. “The U.S. is enormously important for the quantum computing business,” Jones said. “Many of the world’s largest players are based there. If we’re going to build a truly global company, we have to be present in the U.S. market.”

Building at the Foundations of Quantum Computing

Delta Gold’s work sits at the most fundamental level of quantum technology: the creation of a stable, scalable qubit, the basic unit of quantum information. Unlike traditional computers, which use binary bits (0s and 1s), quantum computers rely on qubits, which can exist in multiple states at once.

“We’re right at the base physics of how you actually create a qubit,” Jones explained. “It’s very exciting work, and it’s happening at the level of fundamental science.”

Rather than rushing directly into product development, Delta Gold is focused first on building defensible intellectual property. The company expects this foundational work to translate into patents, licensing opportunities, and strategic partnerships over the next two to three years.

Collaboration with the University of Toronto

A key part of Delta Gold’s strategy is its research partnership with the University of Toronto, one of the world’s leading institutions in quantum science. The collaboration is structured through a three-year, C$3 million research sponsorship agreement.

Under the terms of the deal:

• Delta Gold funds C$1 million per year in research.
• The company receives 100% ownership of the resulting intellectual property worldwide, in perpetuity.
• The university receives a royalty on any future revenue or commercial sales derived from the research.

“We’ve already funded the first year and we’re well capitalized to complete the remaining two years,” said Jones. “In return, we get full global IP rights, which allows us to invest in research and capture long-term value.”

Path to Revenue

While the company is still early in the development cycle, Delta Gold sees multiple routes to monetization. Licensing its IP is a key goal in the medium term, alongside potential partnerships with industry players as its technology matures.

“We’re keeping the business model relatively open,” Jones said. “As we develop the fundamental science, that will convert into patent protection and then into potential licenses and strategic collaborations.”

A Global Vision

With operations rooted in London, research in Canada, and now a presence in U.S. capital markets, Delta Gold is positioning itself as a globally oriented quantum technology company.

“The OTCQB listing isn’t just about visibility,” Jones noted. “It’s about engaging U.S. investors, building partnerships, and putting Delta Gold where the quantum conversation is happening.”

As the race to develop practical quantum computing continues, Delta Gold Technologies is betting that strong academic partnerships and a disciplined IP strategy will place it in a powerful position for the next wave of technological breakthroughs.

London-listed aircraft leasing company Avation PLC (LSE:AVAP) has taken another step forward in executing its long-term fleet strategy, announcing a second aircraft placement with Cambodia Airways. The deal highlights both the strength of Avation’s customer relationships and the company’s disciplined approach to growth.

Speaking with HotCopper’s Watch List, Avation’s Investor Relations Director Tim Bacchus explained why repeat customers are so valuable in the aircraft leasing business.

Why Repeat Customers Matter

According to Bacchus, working with the same airline across multiple transactions significantly reduces both costs and operational risk.

“When you have a repeat customer as an aircraft lessor, you get a number of benefits. One of the key things is you essentially lower the cost of the scale of a transaction.”

Using the same legal documents, lease templates, and manufacturer specifications across multiple aircraft placements improves efficiency. In this case, Avation is working with ATR as the aircraft manufacturer, allowing both Avation and the airline to standardise aircraft configurations and streamline negotiations.

There’s also a long-term advantage: lower transition costs. When a lease expires, it’s far cheaper to keep an aircraft with the same airline than to move it to a new operator. That reduces downtime, re-marketing costs, and technical repositioning expenses.

While repeat business does increase exposure to individual customers, Avation is balancing this by diversifying its airline base. The company now works with 16 airlines across 15 countries, including its first customer in South America, and continues to expand geographically.

Disciplined Fleet Growth

The Cambodia Airways aircraft represents the fourth delivery from Avation’s ATR order book and the second placed with Cambodia Airways. Bacchus emphasised that this reflects “measured, disciplined growth” rather than aggressive expansion.

Avation currently has nine ATR aircraft on order, which will be added to the fleet by the end of its fiscal year in June 2028. This will grow the fleet from 33 aircraft today to 42 aircraft over the next few years.

Beyond that, Avation holds 24 purchase rights with ATR, giving the company flexibility to pursue further growth post-2028 as market conditions and capital availability allow.

Long-Term Value for Shareholders

The strategic importance of these placements goes beyond simple fleet expansion. New ATR aircraft are typically leased on 12-year contracts, which materially improves the company’s average remaining lease term.

At present, Avation’s average remaining lease term sits at just over four years, below many listed peers. As the new aircraft enter service, that average will increase significantly, locking in longer-dated, contracted cash flows.

“The longer lease remaining term is a good thing for shareholders,” Bacchus said, as it provides clearer visibility on future revenue and strengthens the company’s net asset value (NAV) growth story.

A Clear Path Forward

Taken together, the repeat placement with Cambodia Airways, the steady rollout of ATR aircraft, and the extension of long-term leases underline Avation’s strategy:

• Build scale carefully
• Strengthen customer relationships
• Improve cash-flow visibility
• Grow NAV in a disciplined way

For investors, the message is clear. Avation is building a well-defined, long-term value story based on stable earnings, diversified customers, and a carefully managed fleet expansion.

Hargreave Hale AIM VCT plc (LSE:HHV) reported a difficult first quarter of its 2025/26 financial year, with unaudited net asset value per share declining by 1.25p to 35.21p and a NAV total return of -3.43%. Performance was impacted by a weak AIM market and subdued UK economic conditions.

Qualifying investments were slightly negative overall. Strong gains in Hardide, Skillcast, and Tortilla Mexican Grill were more than offset by sharp falls in defence and diagnostics holdings Cohort and Diaceutics, along with weakness in Property Franchise Group. The non-qualifying portfolio provided some stability, particularly through fixed income holdings and UK small-cap funds. The VCT remained well above the HMRC qualifying threshold at 84.11%, increased its exposure to qualifying assets and fixed income, and continued to deploy capital via new and follow-on AIM investments. During the period, it exited Polarean Imaging and a gold miners ETF and repurchased 2.6 million shares, with the shares trading at a modest discount to NAV.

After the quarter end, NAV per share recovered to 36.33p as at 31 January 2026. The trust also committed to making further qualifying investments, pointing to continued portfolio rotation and a cautiously optimistic stance despite ongoing UK macroeconomic pressures and a still-quiet IPO environment.

From an outlook perspective, the VCT benefits from a conservative, debt-free balance sheet, but this is offset by volatile earnings, a sharp revenue decline in 2025, and persistently negative operating cash flow. Technical indicators remain weak, suggesting oversold conditions and negative momentum, while a high dividend yield and recent corporate activity offer partial support.

More about Hargreave Hale AIM VCT plc

Hargreave Hale AIM VCT plc is a UK-listed venture capital trust investing primarily in smaller, high-growth companies quoted on London’s Alternative Investment Market. The trust offers exposure to early-stage and developing businesses through a diversified mix of qualifying and non-qualifying assets, including direct equity investments, UK small-cap funds, and fixed income, with the aim of delivering tax-efficient income and long-term capital growth under the HMRC VCT framework.

Ninety One Limited (LSE:N91) has disclosed that Sanlam Investment Holdings (Pty) Ltd has taken a significant beneficial interest in its shares on behalf of clients. The transaction lifts Sanlam’s aggregate holding in the relevant class of Ninety One Limited securities from zero to 19.9% of the company’s issued share capital.

The required regulatory notifications have been submitted to South Africa’s Takeover Regulation Panel, with Ninety One’s board confirming that the disclosure is based on information provided by Sanlam. The move introduces a sizeable new institutional shareholder to the register, which could influence shareholder dynamics and is likely to be viewed as a vote of confidence in the business.

From a market perspective, Ninety One’s overall investment case continues to be underpinned by strong financial performance and an attractive valuation, supported by constructive earnings commentary and recent strategic actions. While technical indicators point to some near-term caution, the group’s solid fundamentals and strategic positioning are seen as supportive of longer-term growth.

More about Ninety One

Ninety One plc and Ninety One Limited are dual-listed asset management companies incorporated in England and Wales and South Africa, with primary listings on the London Stock Exchange and the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. The group provides a broad range of investment products and services to institutional and retail clients, with shares trading under the ticker N91 in London and Johannesburg and NY1 for Ninety One Limited on the JSE.

GEO Exploration Limited (LSE:GEO) has approved a wide-ranging equity-based remuneration package for its board, opting to compensate executive and non-executive directors with shares rather than cash fees. The package includes the issue of new ordinary shares, the grant of 490 million new share options, and an extension to the expiry of warrants originally issued as part of a 2023 fundraising.

The measures materially increase directors’ exposure to the company’s equity while reducing near-term cash outflows. Following the changes, directors collectively hold around 14.4% of the enlarged share capital, rising to approximately 23.5% on a fully diluted basis. The options and share awards are subject to a mix of performance and time-based vesting conditions, designed to encourage long-term value creation and retain key management.

The warrant extensions, most of which are held by the chief executive and chief financial officer, together with the option grants, are classified as related-party transactions under AIM rules. These arrangements have been reviewed by the company’s nominated adviser and deemed fair and reasonable. The approach highlights GEO Exploration’s reliance on equity-linked incentives to preserve cash, support project development, and potentially generate future funding if warrants are exercised.

More about GEO Exploration Limited

GEO Exploration Limited is an AIM-listed resources company focused on early-stage exploration projects. Operating under the capital constraints typical of junior explorers, the group makes extensive use of equity-based instruments to remunerate and incentivise directors and staff, preserving cash for operational and strategic priorities while aligning management interests with those of shareholders.

Kore Potash Plc (LSE:KP2) has reported a change in the number of CHESS Depositary Interests representing its ordinary shares on the ASX, with CDIs falling to 582,964,712 at 31 January 2026 from 589,194,233 a month earlier. This represents a net reduction of 6,229,521 CDIs over the period.

The movement reflects transfers between ASX-quoted CDIs and ordinary shares traded on AIM and the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, rather than any issuance or cancellation of shares. Correspondingly, the number of directly held ordinary shares increased to 4,592,973,603. The update points to an internal rebalancing of how Kore Potash’s equity is held across its dual listings, with no impact on total share capital but potential implications for where trading liquidity is concentrated.

From an outlook perspective, the company continues to face financial challenges, including a drop in revenue to zero in 2024, ongoing losses, and recently negative operating and free cash flow. These pressures are partly offset by a deleveraged balance sheet following 2024. Technical indicators remain broadly neutral, while valuation remains difficult to justify given negative earnings and the absence of a dividend.

More about Kore Potash Plc

Kore Potash Plc is a potash-focused mining company with ordinary shares listed via CHESS Depositary Interests on the Australian Securities Exchange and directly on London’s AIM and the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. The structure reflects a multi-market investor base supporting the development of the company’s fertiliser-related mineral assets.

Kosmos Energy Ltd (LSE:KOS) has disclosed a number of equity transactions involving senior executives under its long-term incentive arrangements. The update covers new grants of restricted share units, along with the vesting of previously awarded units and associated sales of common stock to meet tax withholding obligations.

The disclosures show that senior executives including SVP and General Counsel Josh R. Marion, Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer Ronald W. Glass, chief executive Andrew G. Inglis, and executive Neal D. Shah received significant new awards. These restricted share units are scheduled to vest in equal annual instalments between 2027 and 2029. At the same time, a portion of shares was sold following vesting events to satisfy tax requirements, rather than for discretionary disposal purposes.

The transactions highlight the continued use of equity-based incentives as a core element of Kosmos Energy’s executive remuneration framework, designed to align management interests with those of shareholders. The disclosures were made in line with EU market abuse regulations governing transparency around director and executive dealings.

More about Kosmos Energy

Kosmos Energy Ltd is an independent oil and gas exploration and production company with a primary focus on offshore assets. Listed on the New York Stock Exchange, the group uses share-based incentive plans, including restricted share units, as a key component of compensation for its executives and senior management.