REG - Blue Star Capital - Half-year Report
27/06/2024 07:00
For best results when printing this announcement, please click on link below:
http://newsfile.refinitiv.com/getnewsfile/v1/story?guid=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20240627:nRSa0487Ua&default-theme=true
RNS Number : 0487U Blue Star Capital plc 27 June 2024
Blue Star Capital plc
("Blue Star" or "the Company")
Half-yearly Results for the six months ended 31 March 2024
Blue Star Capital plc (AIM: BLU), the investing company with a focus on
esports and blockchain and its applications within gaming and payments,
reports its half-yearly results for the period ended 31 March 2024.
Financial Highlights:
· The Company incurred a pre-tax loss for the period of £191,824
(H1 2023: loss £1,165,942).
· The cash position of the Company at 31 March 2024 was £39,909,
compared with £155,563 as at 31 March 2023. The value of the portfolio of
quoted investments held by the Company at 31 March was approximately
£5,157,000.
· The sales process with SatoshiPay is ongoing. SatoshiPay is
currently incubating a third De-Fi project which is expected to launch in the
second half of 2024.
· The NAV per share as at 31 March 2024 was 0.1p.
For further information, please contact:
Blue Star Capital plc 0777 178 2434
Anthony Fabrizi
Cairn Financial Advisers LLP +44 20 7213 0880
Nominated Adviser
Jo Turner / Liam Murray
Axis Capital Markets Limited +44 (0) 20 3026 0449
(Sole Broker)
Ben Tadd / Lewis Jones
About Blue Star Capital
Blue Star is an investing company with a focus on new technologies. Blue
Star's investments comprise SatoshiPay Limited, an incubator and service
provider to de-fi businesses using blockchain technology; Dynasty Gaming &
Media Pte. Ltd., whose B2B white label platform is a full-stack gaming
ecosystem; Paidia, a female focussed gaming platform; and Sthaler Limited, an
identity and payments technology business which enables a consumer to identify
themselves and pay using just their finger.
Chairman's Statement
The results for the first half of the year show little change from the year
end position with all valuations of the Company's investments remaining
unaltered, apart from exchange rate movements. The Board has minimized the
expenses of running the company wherever possible and has not taken any
salaries in cash since 1 February 2024. The sales process for SatoshiPay,
which is still ongoing, started later than hoped and has also been slower than
expected. There is no guarantee this will process will lead to an acceptable
offer and no obligation on the Board or SatoshiPay to accept any offer, but
the Board continues to believe this is the only viable way of independently
valuing its stake in SatoshiPay.
Below we provide the following portfolio company highlights, inclusive of
updates, for the six-month period ended 31 March 2024.
SatoshiPay
SatoshiPay's mission is to connect the world through instant payments. To
achieve this ambition, SatoshiPay is building a portfolio of businesses
around blockchain technology and decentralised finance. The first project
incubated by SatoshiPay was the Pendulum Network Project ("Pendulum") which
was established in June 2021.
Pendulum, a smart-blockchain infrastructure technology company, aims to
decentralise forex and traditional finance, by providing the missing link
between fiat currency and De-Fi ecosystems through a sophisticated smart
contract network.
In the period under review, Pendulum has achieved a number of key operational
milestones, most notably its blockchain bridge connecting the Stellar and
Polkadot networks, 'Spacewalk', went live on the Pendulum network in March
2024. Pendulum describes Spacewalk as a trust-minimised decentralised bridge
between the Polkadot and Stellar ecosystems, enabling efficient transfers of
fiat-backed stablecoins and cryptocurrencies, and serves as a critical link
that allows the Pendulum chain to leverage the vast array of fiat-backed
stable tokens available on the Stellar blockchain, paving the way for the
development of a fiat-based decentralised finance ecosystem.
The second project incubated by SatoshiPay was Nabla.fi. Nabla is a
next-generation decentralised exchange designed to optimise swap rates and
consequently provide attractive FX rates on-chain. Nabla, which is about to be
launched on Pendulum, features oracle-guided pricing and single-sided
liquidity provision to achieve this capital efficiency.
SatoshiPay is also incubating a third project designed to complement Pendulum
and Nabla. This innovative platform will enable users to seamlessly swap
stablecoins for local fiat currencies at significantly lower costs than
current market rates. This presents a substantial opportunity in a rapidly
growing market, with cross-border stablecoin payments valued at $27 billion in
2023 and projected to reach $137 billion by 2028. This growth highlights a $14
billion volume in the on/off-ramp market opportunity over the next four years.
SatoshiPay's strategy is to build a network of projects across
the decentralised finance space with the ultimate goal of advancing foreign
exchange ("Forex") trading into the blockchain space and to integrate a
tranche of the US$6.6 trillion traded daily in Forex markets.
Dynasty Gaming and Media ("Dynasty")
In November 2023, Dynasty announced a major fundraise and merger with Googly,
its Indian partner. This merger was driven by Dynasty's new business model,
introduced earlier in 2023 and following which Dynasty believes it has created
one of the world's leading gaming/esports platforms offering:
· Enterprise grade international esports tournament engine
accredited and endorsed by major international games publishers including
Riot, Activision and Supercell to run professional leagues and mass market
grassroots esports feeder leagues.
· The only enterprise grade esports platform and gaming shop that:
o supports international standard professional esports tournaments for both
PC and Mobile games, the world's fastest growing gaming sector;
o is optimised for key hyper-growth 'mobile first' markets. Dynasty
optimised its mobile experience to 30MB, perfect for mobile first markets
such as India, Africa, SEA and LATAM; and
o incorporates a payment wallet, subscription engine, digital voucher and
top up shop, with full security accreditation.
· The ability to deliver and launch a fully branded, fully
functional partner platform within 4 weeks. This has been enabled by a single
code cloud-based code structure. Full customer relationship management
campaign engine to increase monetisation and engagement.
· Unique User Generated Tournament engine that allows users to
create entry fee and prize pool tournaments, sharing in platform monetisation.
· An enterprise grade esports and gaming shop with an AI Academy,
allowing players to improve in game performance.
Dynasty's directors consider India to be one of the fastest growing gaming
markets in the world with more than 500 million gamers presently which is
expected to grow to 700 million in the coming years. Dynasty advises that it
has started to make progress in entering India's video gaming sector and,
despite some early challenges, has acquired more than 23,000 fully registered
users during its beta phase at a customer acquisition cost ("CAC") of c.
US$0.80 per user. Dynasty has also recently finalised agreements with Razorpay
as its payment gateway partner and expects to have its payment gateway live
and operational imminently which will enable Dynasty to start monetising its
Beta users while simultaneously commencing customer acquisition activities at
scale.
On 16 January 2024, the Company announced that Dynasty had 'soft-launched' a
new platform Lightning Dragon, in the Philippines. The platform has been in an
extended Beta phase while it introduced payment gateway partners and content
providers. Dynasty advises that it has now integrated PayMaya into its
platform, one of the Philippines's leading e-wallet and payment gateway
providers with 45m users. Dynasty expects Lightning Dragon's to launch, with
two major publisher-led prize pool events, within the next few months and its
in-country partner, the Vera Media Group, has committed to a considerable
marketing and promotional spend that the Dynasty board expects to drive
significant platform growth.
On 6 June 2024, Dynasty announced that it had agreed to acquire Let's Play
Live ("LPL") in an all-share transaction. Dynasty has been operating its
Australia & New Zealand platform business under a 50/50 joint venture with
LPL since May 2023.
LPL is the largest gaming tournament operator and broadcaster in Oceania, and
the fastest growing in Southeast Asia, and the exclusive partner for many of
the world's leading publishers operating major gaming events in the region,
including Epic Games, EA, Riot Games, and Supercell.
Dynasty advises that the acquisition of LPL which is expected to complete
imminently will provide it with strategic and highly complementary
capabilities in the areas of tournament organisation, production, and
broadcast and it will also deliver exclusive game event IP from the world's
leading games publishers.
Although the Board is supportive of Dynasty's actions over the last year, the
lack of cash resource within Blue Star has meant our shareholding has been
significantly diluted and now stands at approximately 2.4 per cent.
Other investments
The Company also holds small positions in Sthaler, a Digital Identity business
which enables an individual to identify themselves using the unique vein
patterns within a finger; and Paidia, a female focused gaming platform with a
highly engaged and fast-growing community with major strategic partnerships
signed with leading brands including e.l.f. Cosmetics, Razer, and Xbox.
The Company's ongoing future and viability is now inextricably aligned with
SatoshiPay with approximately 90 per cent of the current NAV based on
SatoshiPay's carrying value. The Board had hoped to have established greater
visibility on SatoshiPay's potential value by now but the sales process
remains ongoing. On a more positive note, we are encouraged by the anticipated
launch of the third incubated De-Fi business which could have a material
impact on the perception and valuation of SatoshiPay. In the meantime, the
Board will continue to carefully manage the Company's cash over the next few
months until the position with SatoshiPay becomes clearer.
Anthony Fabrizi
Executive Chairman
Statement of Comprehensive Income
for the six months ended 31 March 2024
Unaudited Audited
Six months ended 31 March Year ended
30 September
2024 2023 2023
Note £ £ £
Revenue - - -
Loss on disposal of investments (17,536) (81,491) (122,196)
Fair valuation movements in financial instruments designated at fair value (65,069) (730,155) (5,762,911)
through profit or loss:
(82,605) (811,646) (5,885,107)
Share based payment - (243,248) (243,248)
Administrative expenses (109,578) (111,626) (201,118)
Operating loss (192,183) (1,166,520) (6,329,473)
Finance income 359 578 1,065
Loss before and after taxation and total comprehensive income for the period (191,824) (1,165,942) (6,328,408)
Loss per ordinary share:
Basic and diluted loss per share 3 (0.004p) (0.02p) (0.13p)
The loss for the period was derived from continuing operations and is
attributable to equity shareholders.
Statement of Financial Position
as at 31 March 2024
Audited
Unaudited
Six months ended 31 March Year ended
30 September
2024 2023 2023
£ £ £
Non-current assets
Financial assets at fair value through profit or loss 5,157,541 10,389,061 5,291,806
Convertible loan note 60,303 - -
5,217,844 10,389,061 5,291,806
Current assets
Trade and other receivables 17,012 16,700 6,459
Cash and cash equivalents 39,909 155,563 63,158
56,921 172,263 69,617
Total assets 5,274,765 10,561,324 5,361,423
Current liabilities
Trade and other payables 37,242 69,511 32,076
Total liabilities 37,242 69,511 32,076
Net assets 5,237,523 10,491,813 5,329,347
Shareholders' equity
Share capital 4,992,774 4,892,774 4,892,774
Share premium account 9,575,072 9,575,072 9,575,072
Other reserves 243,248 243,248 243,248
Retained earnings (9,573,571) (4,219,281) (9,381,747)
5,237,523 10,491,813 5,329,347
Statement of changes in equity
as at 31 March 2024
Share capital Share premium Other reserves Retained earnings Total
£ £ £ £ £
Six months ended
31 March 2024
At 1 October 2023 4,892,774 9,575,072 243,248 (9,381,747) 5,329,347
Loss for the period and total comprehensive loss - - - (191,824) (191,824)
Shares issued in the period 100,000 - - 100,000
At 31 March 2024 4,992,774 9,575,072 243,248 (9,573,571) 5,237,523
Six months ended
31 March 2023
At 1 October 2022 4,892,774 9,575,072 - (3,053,339) 11,414,507
Loss for the period and total comprehensive loss - - - (1,165,942) (1,165,942)
Share based payment - - 243,248 - 243,248
At 31 March 2023 4,892,774 9,575,072 243,248 (4,219,281) 10,491,813
Year ended
30 September 2023
At 1 October 2022 4,892,774 9,575,072 - (3,053,339) 11,414,507
Loss for the year and - - - (6,328,408) (6,328,408)
Total comprehensive loss
Share based payment - - 243,248 - 243,248
At 30 September 2023 4,892,774 9,575,072 243,248 (9,381,747) 5,329,347
Statement of cash flows
for the six months ended 31 March 2024
Unaudited Audited
Six months ended Year ended
31 March 30 September
2024 2023 2023
£ £ £
Operating activities
Loss for the period (191,824) (1,165,942) (6,328,408)
Adjustments for:
Finance income (359) (578) (1,065)
Fair value losses 65,069 730,155 5,762,911
Loss on disposal of investments 17,536 81,491 122,196
Share based payment - 243,248 243,248
Working capital adjustments
(Increase)/Decrease in trade and other receivables (10,553) (8,628) 1,613
Increase/(Decrease) in trade and other payables 5,166 (907) (38,342)
Net cash used in operating activities (114,965) (121,161) (237,847)
Investing activities
Proceeds from sale of investments 51,660 189,571 213,365
Purchase of convertible loan note (60,303) - -
Interest received 359 578 1,065
Net cash (used in)/generated from investing activities (8,284) 190,149 214,430
Financing activities
Proceeds from issue of equity 100,000 - -
Net cash generated from financing 100,000 - -
activities
Net (decrease)/increase in (23,249) 68,988 (23,417)
cash and cash equivalents
Cash and cash equivalents at 63,158 86,575 86,575
beginning of the period
Cash and cash equivalents at 39,909 155,563 63,158
end of the period
Notes to the Interim Financial Statements for the six months ended 31 March
2024
1. Basis of preparation
The principal accounting policies used for preparing the Interim Accounts are
those that the Company expects to apply in its financial statements for the
year ending 30 September 2024 and are unchanged from those disclosed in the
Company's Report and Financial Statements for the year ending 30 September
2023.
The financial information for the six months ended 31 March 2024 and for the
six months ended 31 March 2023 have neither been audited nor reviewed by the
Company's auditors.
2. Critical accounting estimates and judgements
The Company makes certain estimates and assumptions regarding the future.
Estimates and judgements are continually evaluated based on historical
experience and other factors, including expectations of future events that are
believed to be reasonable under the circumstances. In the future, actual
experience may differ from these estimates and assumptions. The estimates and
assumptions that have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to
the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities within the next financial year
are discussed below:
Fair value of financial instruments:
The Company holds investments that have been designated at fair value through
profit or loss on initial recognition. The Company determines the fair value
of these financial instruments that are not quoted, using valuation
techniques, contained in the IPEVC guidelines. These techniques are
significantly affected by certain key assumptions. Other valuation
methodologies such as discounted cash flow analysis assess estimates of
future cash flows and it is important to recognise that in that regard, the
derived fair value estimates cannot always be substantiated by comparison with
independent markets and, in many cases, may not be capable of being realised
immediately.
In certain circumstances, where fair value cannot be readily established, the
Company is required to make judgements over carrying value impairment, and
evaluate the size of any impairment required.
3. Loss per ordinary share
The calculation of a basic loss per share is based on the loss for the period
attributable to equity holders of the Company and on the weighted average
number of shares in issue during the period.
This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact
rns@lseg.com (mailto:rns@lseg.com)
or visit
www.rns.com (http://www.rns.com/)
.
RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services. For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange use the personal data you provide us, please see our
Privacy Policy (https://www.lseg.com/privacy-and-cookie-policy)
. END IR SEDFAMELSELMRecent news on Blue Star Capital
See all newsREG - Blue Star Capital - Result of AGM
AnnouncementREG - Blue Star Capital - Final Results
AnnouncementREG - Blue Star Capital - Debt Settlement and Issue of Equity
AnnouncementRCS - Blue Star Capital - SatoshiPay Update
AnnouncementREG - AIM - AIM Notice - 03/03/2025
Announcement