This week: Cashing in on Cashbox, monetising a Chinese herb and Next Fifteen moves into the consumer space
Angus & Ross (AGU, 2p / £4.9m)
The angels are watching over Angus & Ross. Under the threat of becoming insolvent from a looming $12.5m loan repayment due in July next year, the company has reached agreement with its creditor and restructured the loan into a convertible loan note. The transaction must be approved by shareholders, who also have to vote in favour of a waiver of the requirements to make a general offer under the City Code, as Cyrus Capital will end up with a holding in excess of 70 per cent of the company?s voting share capital. Nevertheless, this facilitates the company?s efforts in achieving the project finance necessary to put the Black Angel Mine into production. Appropriately enough, the company is proposing to change its name to Angel Mining.
ASG Media (ASG, 1.4p / £2.2m)
ASG Media, which operates digital screens in shopping malls and leisure locations and was until recently known as Avanti Screenmedia, has issued a funding update – again. This time Neo Media Group is providing £75,000 of loans, which can be converted into shares at 1p per share in 12 months? time. Neo Media is a Swiss digital screen specialist and its chief executive and chairman, Christian Valglio-Giors, is non-executive chairman of ASG. Following the announcement, Neo Media, if it converts its loans, would own 61 per cent of ASG. Amidst all the financial goings-on, it?s easy to overlook the fact that digital out-of-home retains a key attraction as a means to advertise to a mainstream market in an age of media fragmentation. But, with the retail sector struggling, ASG having made a £1.6m operating loss in the six months to 31 December 2008, and uncertainty over its financial structure, this may be a punt too far for cautious investors.
Cashbox (CBOX, 4p / £5.8m)
Cashbox, the UK?s largest independent operator of ATM machines, continued to pump out good news this week. The company announced that it has been awarded the contract for managing the ATM estate of pub group Tattershall Castle. The estate currently consists of some 120 machines and these will be integrated onto Cashbox's operating platform in the near future. In addition, the company also announced five-year contracts with London Town, Reel Cinemas…
