New Investment – Volograms Limited

Posted on 29th July 202029th July 2020 by shardadmin

New Investment – Volograms Limited

Released 07:00:10 29 July 2020 | RNS Number : 4006U | Sure Ventures PLC | 29 July 2020

Sure Ventures plc (‘Sure Ventures’ or ‘the Company’)

New Investment-Volograms Limited

Sure Ventures plc, a London listed venture capital fund which invests in early stage software companies in the rapidly growing technology areas of Augmented reality (‘AR’), Virtual Reality (‘VR’), Internet of Things (‘IoT’) and Artificial Intelligence (AI), are pleased to update the market on a new portfolio company .

Through our exposure to Sure Valley Ventures (‘SVV’), the venture capital firm that invests in early stage software companies, we are pleased to announce that SVV led a new €1.5 million investment round for Volograms Limited (“Volograms”). Atlantic Bridge University Fund and Enterprise Ireland have also made follow-on investments as part of this round.

Volograms is a reality capture and volumetric video company which is a spin-out from Trinity College, Dublin. Volograms’ technology enables users to capture volumetric holograms (or volograms) of real people. By inserting the ‘Volograms’ into videos, people can create their own immersive Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) content for use in apps, social media and VR headsets.

The funds raised will accelerate Volograms’ ambition to bring AR capture closer to everyone by helping it to integrate its technology into personal mobile devices. The mobile AR market is forecast to grow from the one billion compatible devices and over $8 billion in revenue in 2019 to 2.5 billion compatible devices and $60 billion in revenue by 2024.

Founded in 2018, Volograms, is already a market leader in volumetric video. The Company has worked on projects for customers including Samsung, The London College of Fashion and The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. Other providers of volumetric video capture require a person to travel to a specialist studio (often overseas) which is typically comprised of up to 100 cameras. This approach demands a significant investment of time and money. Alternatively, Volograms’ current technology can achieve high-quality AR image and video capture using far fewer cameras and different camera setups thus reducing the cost for the creators.

Sure Valley Ventures Managing Partner Barry Downes said: “This is another step in our strategy to provide our investors with exposure to high growth, futuristic technologies, such as Volograms. The mobile Augmented Reality market is experiencing significant growth. Volograms’ ground breaking technology will enable mobile phone users to take AR pictures and videos, then view, edit and share them with others. This can be done directly or through social media platforms.

“The technology behind this new mobile “AR camera” has been developed by a team that are already world leaders in the field of volumetric high-end dynamic AR content. We believe that Volograms is opening a new market category for AR photos and video. This category will have much greater appeal for content creators and social media users than the existing static 3D content solutions on offer. Volograms’ technology will usher in the rapid expansion of the mobile AR industry. We are delighted to back the talented Volograms team and partner with Atlantic Bridge and Enterprise Ireland to help them to revolutionise mobile AR.”

Volograms CEO Dr. Rafael Pagés said: “We are really excited that Sure Valley Ventures has joined our journey, together with Atlantic Bridge and Enterprise Ireland. We are now ideally positioned to continue growing our team and scaling our technology. Having a real person in AR or VR unleashes the full potential of these technologies as it makes immersive experiences more human. Our volumetric video technology helps creators blur the lines between real, augmented, and virtual realities. This investment will allow us to continue towards our mission to bring this technology to everyone.”

Atlantic Bridge Venture Partner Chris Horn commented: “Volograms is extremely well placed in the Augmented Reality market with leadership technology. Sure Valley Ventures has a strong record in successfully backing emerging leaders in virtual reality software companies, and we are delighted that they are joining with us to grow Volograms into a global leadership position.”

ENDS

For further information, please visit www.sureventuresplc.com or contact:

Gareth Burchell

Sure Ventures plc

+44 (0) 20 7186 9918

VR Education – Partial sale of share and update

Posted on 22nd June 2020 by shardadmin

VR Education – Partial sale of share and update

SURE VENTURES PLC | Released 07:00:08 22 June 2020 | RNS Number : 5782Q | Sure Ventures PLC

Sure Ventures plc (‘Sure Ventures’ or ‘the Company’)

Sure Ventures plc, a London listed venture capital fund which invests in early stage software companies in the rapidly growing technology areas of Augmented reality (‘AR’), Virtual Reality (‘VR’), Internet of Things (‘IoT’) and Artificial Intelligence (AI). We are pleased to provide an update on one of its Investments held through its commitment in Sure Valley Ventures Fund (“SVV”).

Given the significant progress that VR Education has made and the appreciation in its share price since it listed on AIM in March 2018, SVV has sold 3,362,000 shares realising gross proceeds of £522,422 in order to realise the cost of its original investment. SVV still believes that the company has significant growth potential and so plans to retain 10,578,580 shares, amounting to a 4.38% shareholding in the company which was worth around £1.82 million at the closing mid-market price on Friday 19 June 2020 of 17.25 pence. The current share price of VR Education represents some 465% of the original price at which SVV made its investment.

The funds realised from the sale of shares will be distributed to the investors in SVV as is the usual practice when realisations are made, and so Sure Ventures PLC expects to receive around £ 135’000 shortly. This is the second distribution that Sure Ventures PLC will have received from its investment in SVV since its commitment in the fund, the first being 1.6 million euros relating to the sale of Artomatix in December 2019.

VR Education, is a leading virtual reality technology company focused on the education and enterprise training space recently announced that HTC Corporation (“HTC”) has agreed to invest €3.0 million in the company and enter into a strategic partnership for the distribution and license of the company’s ENGAGE platform globally through HTC enterprise sales channels. HTC’s investment follows the success of the 2020 HTC VIVE Ecosystem Conference which was hosted on the company’s ENGAGE platform in March 2020.

Further details about VR Education can be found at www.vreducationholdings.com.

SURE VALLEY VENTURES FUND

Sure Ventures has a 7m million commitment to Sure Valley Ventures Fund representing an interest of approximately 25.9% of the underlying portfolio companies detailed in this announcement.

Gareth Burchell-Director Comment “The Strategic investment from HTC both adds validity to the technology that has been so successfully developed by the team at VR Education and accelerates the ability to scale the commercial traction of the ENGAGE platform on a global basis. We would like to congratulate Dave Whelan and the team on what is a major collaboration with a global leader in VR technology and look forward to what the future holds for the business in a post COVID 19 communication environment. The decision to return the initial investment in VR Education to its investors, whilst maintaining a meaningful stake in a company that we believe has a major opportunity to achieve significant growth, is one the board of Sure Ventures supports whole heartedly”.

ENDS

For further information, please visit www.sureventuresplc.com or contact:

Gareth Burchell	Sure Ventures plc	+44 (0) 20 7186 9918

Notes to Editors

Sure Ventures plc listed on the London Stock Exchange in January 2018 giving retail investors access to an asset class that is usually dominated by private venture capital funds. Sure Ventures is focusing on companies in the UK, Republic of Ireland and other European countries, making seed and series A investments in companies with first rate management teams, products which benefit from market validation with target revenue run rates of at least £400,000 over the next 12 months. Website: https://www.sureventuresplc.com/

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 or visit www.rns.com.

END

Buymie Series A Funding Round

Posted on 15th June 202015th June 2020 by shardadmin

Buymie Series A Funding Round

SURE VENTURES PLC | Released 07:00:09 15 June 2020 | RNS Number : 8908P | Sure Ventures PLC

Sure Ventures plc (‘Sure Ventures’ or ‘the Company’)

Sure Ventures plc, a London listed venture capital fund which invests in early stage software companies in the rapidly growing technology areas of augmented reality (‘AR’), virtual reality (‘VR’), Internet of Things (‘IoT’) and Artificial Intelligence (AI). We are pleased to provide an update on one of its Investments held through its commitment in Sure Valley Ventures Fund (“SVV”).

Buymie has just announced a new funding round to raise €5.8 million, led by a new investor, Wheatcroft Group, the food and agricultural arm of the Grosvenor Estate. This new funding has been raised at a valuation that represents a 204% increase to Buymie’s valuation at the time of SVV’s initial investment of €300,000 (made in March 2020). This funding round has also been supported by a number of existing investors, including SVV who is investing a further €620,000.

Over the last 18 months, Buymie has expanded dramatically to meet the increasing demand for grocery home delivery, a trend which has heightened during the Covid-19 pandemic. Buymie works closely with its retail partners, including Lidl and The Co-op, to help them provide a same-day delivery service to their customers, enabling them to compete with Amazon, which has significant ambitions to lead in same-day grocery delivery.

The business launched in the UK in May 2020, with The Co-op and other UK retailers, marking the company’s first expansion outside Ireland. The service is currently available in the Bristol metropolitan area. The funds recently raised will enable Buymie to continue rapid market expansion both in Ireland and in the UK, with 15 other cities currently being considered.

SURE VALLEY VENTURES FUND

Sure Ventures has a €7m million commitment to Sure Valley Ventures Fund representing an interest of approximately 25.9% of the underlying portfolio companies detailed in this announcement.

Gareth Burchell-Director Comment “We are very pleased to share this news with investors and to congratulate the Buymie team on landing both the deal with the Co-Op and for raising capital at a 204% premium to the seed round completed in March 2020. The COVID-19 environment has highlighted the demand for their service both from consumers and retailers alike. This cash will enable Buymie to continue to expand at what can only be described as a “rapid” pace. This is not just a COVID-19 story for us, we believe the consumer trend being displayed will be here to stay”.

ENDS

For further information, please visit www.sureventuresplc.com or contact:

Gareth Burchell	Sure Ventures plc	+44 (0) 20 7186 9918

Notes to Editors

END

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Portfolio Update

Posted on 26th May 2020 by shardadmin

RNS Number : 8316N

Sure Ventures PLC

26 May 2020

Sure Ventures plc (‘Sure Ventures’ or ‘the Company’)

Portfolio Update – VR Education & Buymie

View RNS PDF here

Sure Ventures plc, a London listed venture capital fund which invests in early stage software companies in the rapidly growing technology areas of Augmented Reality (‘AR’), Virtual Reality (‘VR’), Internet of Things (‘IoT’) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Fintech. We are pleased to provide an update on its investment portfolio.

VR Education Holdings – http://immersivevreducation.com/

On the 20^th of May 2020 VR Education announced that HTC Corporation (‘HTC’) has agreed to invest €3.0 million in the Company (the ‘Subscription’) and that HTC and the Company are entering into a strategic partnership for the distribution and license of the Company’s ENGAGE platform globally through HTC enterprise sales channels.

This investment, which is subject to GM approval on the 11^th of June 2020, will give HTC a 20% stake in the enlarged share capital of the company. This is a major milestone for the company and has led to a significant interest in the share price of the company, which closed at 14p as at 22/05/2020. VR Education ran the 2020 HTC VIVE Ecosystem Conference alongside HTC and hosted the event on the Company’s ENGAGE platform in March 2020.

We would like to congratulate Dave and Sandra Whelan for securing a global partner to fast track the commercialisation of the Engage platform.

Buymie

On the 28^th of April 2020 we announced that an investment was made by Sure Valley Ventures in home grocery delivery company Buymie. It was announced on the 22^nd of May 2020 that Buymie has teamed-up with Co-op to offer same-day home grocery deliveries to over 200,000 households across Bristol. The move is the first partnership in the UK for Ireland based Buymie whose mobile app allows customers to book personalised online home grocery deliveries.

This is a major development for Buymie and another indication of the pace of growth being experienced in the home delivery industry. We would like to congratulate the founders and the team for their success in signing such an agreement in the UK with such a recognisable brand. This agreement validates the ability of Buymie to “punch above its weight” and scale alongside leading industry players.

SURE VALLEY VENTURES FUND

Sure Ventures has a 7m million commitment to Sure Valley Ventures Fund (‘Sure Valley’) representing an interest of approximately 25.9% (assuming no other funding commitments are made) of the underlying portfolio companies detailed in the announcement.

END

Sure Ventures plc – Follow-on Investment in Admix

Posted on 15th April 202015th April 2020 by shardadmin

RNS Number : 6452J

Sure Ventures PLC

15 April 2020

SURE VENTURES PLC / ISIN: GB00BYWYZ460 / Ticker: SURE / Market: SFS / Sector: Investment

15^th April 2020

SURE VENTURES PLC (‘Sure Ventures’ or ‘the Company’)

Follow-on Investment in Admix (Web link)

SURE VENTURES PLC, the London listed venture capital fund, which invests in early stage software companies across a range of verticals, is pleased to announce that Sure Valley Ventures (‘Sure Valley’), in which it holds a 25.9% interest, has participated in a Series A investment round in Admix (Wam Group ltd), who has raised up to $6.1m dollars.

Admix has built a monetization platform for the next generation of entertainment, from traditional gaming to emerging channels such as Esports and VR/AR content. The company continue to enhance and develop a “marketplace” connecting gaming/content developers with advertisers who want to buy non-intrusive, in game/content-ad formats for their brands. Admix have made strong progress monetising their business model and this Series A investment round will give them the capital to scale their platform.

Sure Valley was an initial seed investor in November 2018, investing an amount of circa £ 400,000 in and this Series A round represents a 450% unrealised gain. Sure Valley Ventures has committed a further £443,259. in the series A round and currently holds a 7.02% stake in Admix.

Gareth Burchell-Director Sure Ventures PLC

“We would like to congratulate Co-Founders Joe Bache-Morris and Sam Huber (CEO) on achieving their series A funding round and look forward to seeing them continue on their successful growth path in the coming months and years. The “marketplace” they have created is an efficient and hugely scalable tool, allowing both content producers and advertisers to conduct business seamlessly. Given the challenging economic environment we find ourselves in, home content consumption and brand placement within that content is more important than ever .”

– ENDS –

For further information, please visit www.sureventuresplc.com or contact:

Gareth Burchell	SURE VENTURES PLC	+44 (0) 20 7186 9918
Isabel de Salis / Melissa Hancock	St Brides Partners (Financial PR)	+44 (0) 20 7236 1177

END

Sure Ventures plc – Placing

Posted on 13th March 202016th March 2020 by shardadmin

RNS Number : 1323G

Sure Ventures PLC

13 March 2020

SURE VENTURES PLC

PLACING

Sure Ventures plc (“the Company”) is pleased to announce that it has raised gross proceeds of £ 250,000 by way of a private placing with one Institutional Investor. The Ordinary Shares have been issued at 100p each, which after the costs and expenses of the issue represents a premium to the last published NAV per share of 95.74p per share.

Application has been made in respect of 250,000 Ordinary Shares to be admitted to trading on the Specialist Funds Segment of the Main Market of London Stock Exchange plc (“Admission”). Admission will become effective and dealings in the Ordinary Shares will commence at 8:00 a.m. (London time) on17th of March 2020.

Following Admission, the Company will have 5,119,956 Ordinary Shares in issue. The total number of voting rights of the Company will be 5,119,956. This figure may be used by shareholders as the denominator for the calculations by which they will determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest in, the Company.

For further information, please contact:

Issuer

Sure Ventures plc

Gareth Burchell

0207 186 9900

Placing Agent

Shard Capital Partners LLP

Damon Heath

0207 186 9900

END

New Investment in Getvisibility, an AI Security Company

Posted on 10th March 202010th March 2020 by shardadmin

SURE VENTURES PLC / ISIN: GB00BYWYZ460 / Ticker: SURE / Market: SFS / Sector: Investment

10 March 2020

Sure Ventures plc (‘Sure Ventures’ or ‘the Company’)

New Investment in Getvisibility, an AI Security Company

Sure Ventures plc, a London listed venture capital fund that invests in early stage software companies across a range of high-tech verticals, is pleased to announced that Sure Valley Ventures (‘Sure Valley’), it which it holds a circa 25.9% interest, is leading a €1,250,000 investment round in Getvisibility, an AI security company.

Overview

Sure Valley has invested €750,000 in Getvisibility as part of €1,250,000 investment round
Proprietary software that leverages AI to discover, classify and protect critical data
Notable blue-chip client base and strong pipeline of new business opportunities
Capital raised will be used to accelerate international go to market initiatives.

Please click here to view.

Update on Investee

Posted on 15th January 2020 by shardadmin

RNS Number : 8058Z | Immotion Group PLC

15 January 2020

Immotion Group plc

(“Immotion Group”, the “Company”)

Immotion confirms Q1 2020 installations

Immotion Group, the UK-based immersive virtual reality (“VR”) ‘Out of Home’ entertainment group, is pleased to announce it has signed contracts in the past week with the London Eye, a further four aquariums and with its first European zoo partner. Additionally, the Company has agreed terms, subject to contract, with a further nine aquariums and five entertainment sites. The aggregate total across the sites (contractually agreed and subject to contract) is 93 headsets, all of which are scheduled to be installed during Q1 2020.

Please click here to view.