Powerhouse raises A$10.2 mln in ASX listing, debuts at offer price

Wednesday 12th October 2016

Powerhouse Ventures, the Christchurch-based technology incubator, raised A$10.2 million in an initial public offering, with the shares debuting on the ASX at the offer price of A$1.07.

The company sold about 9.5 million shares at A$1.07 in the offer and NZ$1.25 million of convertible notes converted to 1.2 million shares, giving Powerhouse a market value of A$30 million. The IPO crossed the minimum amount Powerhouse was targeting, something chief executive Stephen Hampson was confident of achieving, but fell short of the A$20 million it hoped to raise.

"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," Hampson said in a statement. "The capital raised will enable us to invest in identified opportunities at Australian and New Zealand universities over the coming year."

The proceeds will largely go to expanding the firm's NZ$20.7 million investment portfolio across 19 early stage companies that are collectively worth NZ$133.6 million. About NZ$556,000 will cover the cost of listing.

Hampson said the company will make a number of investment announcements shortly.

Powerhouse is one of three technology incubators which accesses operational funding, pre-incubation grants, and repayable loans for start-ups they co-fund through government innovation funding agency Callaghan Innovation. Last week, the government said those companies would get an extra two years of funding.

Originally, Powerhouse had planned an NZX listing in New Zealand but decided instead to seek a sole Australian listing because of its bigger capital markets.

Powerhouse extended the IPO for a week to provide brokers headroom in getting retail investors on board and give institutional investors some time after reporting season.

Cornerstone investor Canterbury Development Corp, an agency of the Christchurch City Council, kept a 25 percent stake in Powerhouse.

BusinessDesk.co.nz

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