Intellectual property commercialisation firm, Powerhouse Ventures Limited (PVL), today lists on the ASX after a successful capital raise giving it a market capitalisation of approximately A$30million (shares priced at A$1.07).
Dr Stephen Hampson, Managing Director, said: “The response to the offer has been very encouraging and has resulted in an excellent shareholder register, with a good balance of institutional and retail holdings from Australia and New Zealand.
“Importantly, our institutional investors are long-term investors and they understand the patient capital model we apply to commercialising university-generated intellectual property.
“The roadshow indicated strong interest in our approach to commercialisation – a model we have successfully applied to commercialising over 19 university-sourced IP rich ventures in New Zealand.
“The capital raised will enable us to invest in identified opportunities at Australian and New Zealand universities over the coming year. We will shortly make a number of announcements in this regard.
“We are confident that we have both the university relationships and the cash to support our objectives and to enable us to deliver value to shareholders. The team at Powerhouse is well aware that the hard work starts now.”
It is estimated that approximately A$10 billion is spent annually on research funding for universities in New Zealand and Australia. This provides Powerhouse with the opportunity to identify and transform the IP resulting from this research into globally successful businesses.
Dr Hampson acknowledged the continued support from New Zealand cornerstone investor, Canterbury Development Corporation (CDC), which retains a 25% shareholding in Powerhouse.
