Capital for Colleagues Plc - Portfolio Update - Investment in Bright Ascension Limited

Capital for Colleagues plc / EPIC: CFCP / Market: AQSE / Sector: Financials

12 October 2023

CAPITAL FOR COLLEAGUES PLC

(`Capital for Colleagues', `C4C' or the `Company')

PORTFOLIO UPDATE - INVESTMENT IN BRIGHT ASCENSION LIMIITED

Capital for Colleagues, the investment vehicle focused on opportunities in the Employee Owned Business (`EOB') sector, is pleased to announce an update in respect of its investee company, Bright Ascension Limited (`Bright Ascension' or `BAL').

Bright Ascension is an industry-leading space-software technology provider, offering unique off-the-shelf software products and solutions for the delivery of space-based services, both on spacecraft and on the ground.

Capital for Colleagues is pleased to announce that the Company has successfully led a funding round of £1.5 million for BAL.

Capital for Colleagues is investing a further £750,000 in BAL, alongside Bill Ainscough, a non-executive Director of the Company, and TJ Morris Limited, a significant shareholder in C4C, both of whom are investing £375,000.  The committed funds are initially being provided to BAL as loans, which will in due course be reclassified as loan notes convertible into ordinary shares in BAL. The loan notes will be convertible within the next three years, at a value dependent on the achievement of key milestones by BAL.

Bill Ainscough is a non-executive Director of Capital for Colleagues and his co-investment alongside the Company is therefore a Related Party Transaction for the purposes of the Aquis Growth Market Apex Rulebook. The Directors of the Company, other than Mr Ainscough, having exercised reasonable care, skill and diligence, consider that the co-investment by Mr Ainscough is fair and reasonable as far as the shareholders of the Company are concerned.

Commenting on the investment in Bright Ascension, Alistair Currie, Chief Executive of Capital for Colleagues, said:

"We are delighted to have successfully led this significant investment into Bright Ascension alongside existing stakeholders in Capital for Colleagues. Our combined investment will enable Bright Ascension to finalise the initial release of its ground-breaking HELIX suite of products, which will offer a comprehensive end-to-end space software solution, covering the entire mission lifecycle. HELIX is set to launch in the coming months and has been selected to form the foundation for the 3-4 year OS2-VOLT mission, led under the ESA ScyLight Programme. The OS2-VOLT mission is led by another C4C investee company, Craft Prospect Limited. The mission is designed to evaluate and test radical new real-time techniques and technologies in low Earth orbit, aiming to demonstrate products and services within a Versatile Optical Laboratory for Telecommunications."

Commenting on the investment, Peter Mendham, Chief Executive Officer of Bright Ascension, said:

"We are very pleased to have secured additional funding, a pivotal step in ensuring the smooth progress of the initial HELIX suite release in preparation for its upcoming launch. We know there is a strong demand in the market for an integrated all-encompassing solution that seamlessly bridges the gap between space- and ground-based software development. The forthcoming OS2-VOLT mission serves as a powerful testament to this demand and provides us with the perfect platform to showcase the remarkable capabilities and advantages of optimising integration between spacecraft development and the efficient delivery of data insights to end-users."

**ENDS**

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

Capital for Colleagues

Capital for Colleagues is an investment company focused on the UK EOB sector. The Company has a proven management team, with a wide network of contacts and affiliates, as well as established access to investment opportunities, enabling the Company to execute its strategy and capitalise on EOB-focused investment opportunities. In addition, the Company educates and assists companies that are looking to launch employee ownership schemes, advising them, amongst other things, on how to secure investment and achieve their objectives.

Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) Disclosure

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of the Market Abuse Regulation EU 596/2014 as it forms part of retained EU law (as defined in the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018).