REG - RC Fornax plc - First Day of Dealings on AIM

RC FornaxAnnouncement

05/02/2025 07:00

For best results when printing this announcement, please click on link below:
https://newsfile.refinitiv.com/getnewsfile/v1/story?guid=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20250205:nRSE9155Va&default-theme=true

RNS Number : 9155V  RC Fornax plc  05 February 2025

5 February 2025

RC FORNAX PLC

("RC Fornax" or the "Company")

FIRST DAY OF DEALINGS ON AIM AND COMPLETION OF FUNDRAISING

RC Fornax plc (AIM:RCFX), the UK-based, highly accredited engineering
consultancy providing high-impact work package solutions for critical military
platforms, is pleased to announce that the admission of its ordinary shares of
0.25 pence each ("Ordinary Shares") to trading on AIM, a market operated by
the London Stock Exchange, will take place today ("Admission").

Admission follows the successful completion of a fundraising of £6.15 million
(before expenses) through a placing of new and existing Ordinary Shares with
certain institutional and other investors (the "Placing").

Dealings in RC Fornax's Ordinary Shares on AIM will commence at 08:00 a.m.
today under the TIDM "RCFX" and ISIN code GB00BTTQ2F04.

RC Fornax Highlights

·    Comprehensive Defence Solutions for Critical Platforms: RC Fornax
defines and executes engineering design projects under statements of work
("SoW"). The Company specialises in supporting critical military platforms.

·    Veteran-Founded, UK-Focused Excellence: RC Fornax is a proud,
veteran-founded small-medium enterprise (SME) primarily focussed on supporting
the UK defence industry.

·    Transforming Delivery with Outcome-Driven SoW: At the heart of RC
Fornax's solutions is its ability to support customers in switching from
traditional labour-based contracts into fully managed outcome-based services
under SoW.

·    A rapid growth, market-disruptive, solutions provider in the defence
sector: The Company is profitable, having exhibited significant growth over
the past four years, since inception. RC Fornax has grown revenues by 100%
CAGR to FY24 and generated aggregate EBITDA of over £1.9 million.

·    Supporting the UK Ministry of Defence ("MoD") Targets with Bespoke
Solutions: RC Fornax has the ability to support the MoD's overarching
commitments to maximise the integration of SMEs and shorten supply chains. The
Board believes that positioning itself as an SME integrator will enable the
Company to deliver higher value projects to customers and to contract directly
with the MoD.

·    IR35 Compliance and Managed Services: Leveraging a combination of
internal knowledge and strategic partnerships, the Company addresses IR35
requirements effectively - a critical step which can be overlooked by other
firms that lack the necessary insight or capacity to manage these regulatory
intricacies. This enables both the client and project team to remain focused
on project objectives.

·    Trusted by Leading Defence Primes, Positioned for Continued Growth:
RC Fornax has developed a blue chip customer base that has long term
contractual/framework relationships and repeat business. Since inception, RC
Fornax has engaged directly as a preferred supplier with 10 well-recognised
blue chip defence businesses. The Company has won 22 new mandates since 1
September 2024 covering a range of critical defence projects with existing
clients.

·    Expansion into New Markets and Industries: While the defence industry
customer base was the original target market, the Company expects to see its
innovative and efficient business proposition adapt and grow in adjacent
markets, resulting in greater efficiency and cost savings for more customers.

·    The Future of Defence - Innovation and Technological Superiority: RC
Fornax is committed to becoming a driving force behind the future of the UK
defence sector. The Company intends to utilise approximately £2.2 million of
the Placing's net proceeds for the development of an advanced artificial
intelligence ("AI") tool, known as the Fornax Automatic Statement of work
Generator (Project FAS-G), designed to streamline the creation of SoW.

 

Placing Highlights

·    Successful fundraising included the placing of 15,846,153 new
Ordinary Shares ("Placing Shares"), raising gross proceeds of approximately
£5.15 million for the Company, and 3,078,457 existing Ordinary Shares ("Sale
Shares"), raising gross proceeds of approximately £1.00 million for certain
selling shareholders, in each case at a price of 32.50 pence (the "Issue
Price") per Ordinary Share.

·    At the Issue Price, the Company will have a market capitalisation on
Admission of approximately £18.15 million.

·    The net proceeds of the Placing receivable by the Company (together
with the Company's existing funds) are expected to be used primarily to:

o  accelerate the expansion of the business;

o  provide additional product development capabilities for the Company's
planned AI tool, Project FAS-G;

o  expand the Company's sales and marketing teams;

o  increase engineering and training capabilities, including developing
educational pathways and specialist capability units; and

o  for general working capital purposes.

·    Strand Hanson Limited acted as nominated and financial adviser to the
Company in connection with Admission.

·    Cavendish Capital Markets Limited acted as broker in connection with
the Placing and is acting as sole broker from Admission.

 

Paul Reeves, CEO of RC Fornax, stated: "I am delighted to announce our first
day of dealings on AIM. After serving in the Royal Air Force, my fellow
veteran, Daniel Clark, and I supported several tier 1 defence contractors
through consultancy roles and, during this time, identified some common
challenges. Together, we co-founded RC Fornax in 2020, with the aim of
tackling these challenges and ultimately assisting in improving the national
security of the UK. We believe that Admission to AIM will help accelerate the
growth of the business as we expand our role in supporting the UK defence
sector.

"It is of great importance that defence programmes are delivered on time,
within budget, and to the highest standards of quality and compliance. RC
Fornax is proud to work closely with its customers to help them transition
from traditional labour-based contracts to fully managed, outcome-focused
services, ensuring projects are delivered with greater efficiency and
accountability.

"We take immense pride in contributing to critical programmes that strengthen
the operational capabilities of the UK. The admission to AIM, alongside the
proceeds of the Placing, will allow us to accelerate our growth strategy by
investing in transformative technologies, such as our AI-driven Project FAS-G,
which will enable faster and more precise project delivery. It also positions
us to expand into new sectors, leveraging our expertise to deliver high-impact
solutions across a broader range of industries.

"Admission to AIM marks the beginning of a new chapter in our journey and I
would like to thank our team of advisers who have worked tirelessly on the
process. I would also like to thank our existing partners and customers; we
appreciate your continued support. Finally, I am pleased to welcome our new
investors to RC Fornax, and I look forward to you sharing in our success
during the next part of our journey."

 

Admission Document

The Admission Document, which contains further information concerning the
Placing and Admission, is available to download from the Company's website at:
www.rcfornax.co.uk (http://www.rcfornax.co.uk)

 

For additional information, please contact:

 

 RC Fornax plc                                              info@rcfornax.co.uk (mailto:info@rcfornax.co.uk)

 Paul Reeves - CEO

 Rob Shepherd - CFO

 Strand Hanson Limited (Nominated & Financial Adviser)      +44 (0)20 7409 3494

 Christopher Raggett

 Rob Patrick

 Harry Marshall

 Cavendish Capital Markets Limited (Broker)                 +44 (0)20 7908 6000

 Carl Holmes / George Lawson - Corporate Finance

 Dale Bellis / Harriet Ward - Sales and ECM

 BlytheRay (Financial PR)                                   +44 (0)20 7138 3204

 Tim Blythe                                                 rcfornax@blytheray.com

 Megan Ray

 Said Izagaren

 

About RC Fornax

RC Fornax is an established, highly accredited engineering consultancy, formed
to define and execute engineering design projects under Statements of Work
(SoW), enhancing and augmenting customer capabilities while improving project
efficiency.  A rapid growth, market-disruptive, solutions provider in the
defence sector, RC Fornax was founded by two ex-RAF engineers who spotted
deficiencies in the existing outsourced contract defence market. By leveraging
this experience, RC Fornax aims to become a challenger to the industry and
establish itself to be a best-in-class provider of services to the UK defence
sector, by offering a wider range of expertise and capabilities, with an
initial focus on systems, software and hardware engineering.

By utilising a well-established associate community approach to augment core
capabilities, RC Fornax defines and executes engineering design projects under
Statements of Work. Services are provided with the aim of supporting the whole
product lifecycle with expertise of systems, software, and hardware
engineering of high complexity and high integrity platforms.

 

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  MSCUSRWRVSUURAR