Weekly Brief 6th March 2020

Although spring has not quite sprung just yet (only another three weeks left!), the sunny weather today breaking through the weeks of rain and grey makes spring seem almost palpable.

St David, the patron saint of Wales and whose feast day was celebrated on Sunday, is clearly watching over us by filling the shops and parks with his and Wales’ national emblem – joyously bright daffodils.  And he is worth celebrating if only for his final words: ‘Be joyful, keep the faith and do the little things that you have heard and seen me do’.  Plenty to celebrate this week, with the UN’s International Women’s Day on Sunday and its campaign ‘Each for Equal’, emphasising the difference an individual’s actions can make at the centre of this year’s celebration of women and girls.  And those with little ones are sure not to have been allowed to miss World Book Day yesterday, scrambling with face paint and super glue to put together any outfits remotely related to a book. It’s certainly all for a worthwhile cause, the charitable efforts of the UNESCO worldwide day of reading has provided around 15 million children in the country with the opportunity to read through the generosity of National Book Tokens. And what better way to celebrate it than by reading our clients’ news?

 

Client News:

MGC Pharma (ASX: MXC) signed a binding amendment to the supply and distribution agreement with Brazil-based ONIX, establishing minimum order volumes and pricing of MGC Pharma’s EU GMP cannabinoid derived medicines. This is a significant milestone for MGC Pharma and importantly, will have an immediate positive impact on the Company’s cashflows.

Cora Gold Limited (AIM: CORA) commenced a test work programme in conjunction with Hummingbird Resources Plc relating to a bulk sample programme with the objective to explore the amenability of the oxide ore at Cora’s Sanankoro Project.  Cora will work with their largest shareholder towards finding the opportunity to potentially deliver a high-grade concentrate which will bring low capex and positive cash flow.

Katoro Gold Plc (AIM: KAT) announced that following last week’s positive progress update on its Blyvoor JV gold project and its draw down of £400,000 from Sanderson Capital Partners Ltd as part of a loan facility to fund the JV, Sanderson Capital has now elected to convert the full remaining balance of £300,000 due, pursuant to the Sanderson convertible loan note.  Accordingly, Katoro will issue 20,000,000 new ordinary shares to Sanderson.  Following this conversion, the Sanderson convertible loan note will have been fully paid and settled, with no outstanding balance remaining.

Catena Group Plc (AIM: CTNA) has agreed to acquire a 9.1% interest in Insight Capital Partners Limited for £1.5 million, as well as securing an option to increase the holding to 30.2%. Insight is an artificial intelligence company that delivers bespoke analytical tools to financial services clients, and the investment has placed Catena in a good position to capitalise on the exponential growth in the machine learning sector.  Catena raised gross proceeds of £1 million by way of a subscription ordinary shares at a price of 25 pence per share, and has constituted a £2 million loan note, £0.5m of which was used towards the acquisition of the holding in Insight Capital.

 

In the press this week…

Jubilee Metals (AIM: JBM) features in Daily Mail’s Small Cap Share Ideas.

CEO of Kodal Minerals (AIM: KOD), Bernard Aylward, was interviewed by Crux Investor

 

You may have missed…

War Paint: makeup for men, and the latest cosmetics counter in John Lewis’ flagship store following its successful first year after winning Dragon’s Den.

Is two better than one? Link between sex chromosomes and longer lifespans has been discovered.

Ultra-high net worth individuals (assets over $30m) have increased 6% over the last year, meaning there are more UHNWIs worldwide than the populations of Iceland, Malta or Belize.

Papillon the infamous bear is out of hibernation and roaming around the Italian region of Trentino

Mittens the cat has become Wellington, New Zealand’s biggest celebrity.

A modern day miracle: wine pours from taps in Italian village.

 

Although it may seem like another ‘Hallmark celebration’ to market products under the guise of celebrating women (like BrewDog’s pink beer ‘for girls’), International Women’s Day has its origins in the radical socialist and labour movements of the 20th century, first officially appearing in 1911 with over a million people across Europe holding rallies to advocate for women’s rights.

It was started after Clara Zetkin suggested an international day for women at the 1910 International Conference of Working Women in Copenhagen, at which the 100 women in attendance from 17 different countries agreed upon unanimously before the 1911 celebration. The focus then was on voting rights but now it has moved towards a focus on intersectionality and a call to action. In 1975, the United Nations made International Women’s Day official, aiming to draw attention to women’s struggles globally and particularly in under developed countries. This year’s campaign states: ‘We are all parts of a whole. Our individual actions, conversations, behaviours and mindsets can have an impact on our larger society. Collectively, we can make change happen. Collectively, we can each help to create a gender equal world.’ The women’s rights movement has reached an unprecedented level in the last few years after the 2017 #MeToo viral campaign growing to a global scale, and continues to grow as we have entered into what is referred to as the ‘fourth-wave feminist movement’, characterised by using the power of the internet to empower women of all backgrounds all over the world. So, in honour of International Women’s Day, here are some interesting reads:

These are the brands that are supporting International Women’s Day.

Some poems and messages to celebrate the women in your life.

Listed status has been given to a hostel in Cheshire that housed the Women’s Land Army.

Three passenger trains will be run by all-female crews by LNER today.

These are Veuve Clicquot’s sustainable businesswomen of the year.

The theme of this year’s International Women’s Day explained.

These Estonian women run what is considered as the last matriarchy in Europe.

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