Small Cap Update…

03/07/09 | Jubilee’s tie-up with Braemore
Jubilee Platinum today announced the terms of an offer to buy fellow mining company Braemore Resources in a deal touted to create “a sustainable force in the South African platinum industry”.

Jubilee is sitting on a major platinum and gold project at Tjate in South Africa and buying Braemore gives it an ideal route to smelt and refine what is believed to be up to 70m ounces of platinum group elements and gold.

Earlier this week, Braemore reinforced the terms of its licence over the specialist ConRoast technology being developed at South Africa’s mining body, Mintek. That move was a prelude to today’s deal, which will now see the relationship that has emerged between the two sides in recent months become a more significant force in the market.


02/07/09 | NCC profits
Paul Edwards, the finance director of IT services group NCC, told SmallCapNews.co.uk today that a strategic decision to move into niche sectors had ensured continued growth at the group, while many others in the market had struggled.

Unveiling a 17% rise in pre-tax profits to £12.3m and plans to wipe-out its £5.6m of debt by next summer, Mr Edwards insisted that focusing on low-cost, high value products had set the company in good stead. He said the doubts and uncertainties of customers wanting to protect their IT systems had helped to insulate NCC from the economic downturn.


01/07/09 | Freedom4 acquisitions
Telecoms services group Freedom4 has announced plans for a reverse takeover of SME-focused reseller Daisy, along with the purchase of the assets of managed services group Vialtus.

The £123m worth of acquisitions and an £83m share placing are likely to transform newly-formed Daisy Group into a major player in the SME and mid-market telecoms services space.

Peter Dubens, the company’s chairman, said it was looking to capitalise on a fragmented market and depressed valuations in the sector.


30/06/09 | HandMade talks
Shares in HandMade were suspended today as advanced discussions over what it described as “multiple corporate transactions and an associated fundraising” got in the way of it posting its annual results.

The international rights and film company said further news on the proposed deals – along with its full-year results – were likely to be revealed shortly.


29/06/09 | Altitude share suspension
Shares in AIM quoted promotional merchandise and marketing group Altitude were suspended from trading today. The move came after a tumultuous first-half for the company, which saw its CEO and FD resign and tricky accounting problem emerge.

That accounting problem came to light after a review identified material – but not cash-related – differences between the actual results and the preliminary results published on March 17, 2009.

Incoming FD, David Smith and CEO, Martin Varley, have been working with auditors from KPMG to rectify those problems but despite their best efforts are now set to miss the June 30 deadline for posting company accounts.