Friday, March 29, 2024

Dual-listing in UK for Canadian firm Yooma

Yooma Wellness Inc, a Canadian manufacturer and distributor of cannabidiol ingredients and branded products, has announced a UK dual-listing on the Aquis Stock Exchange Growth Market, while its shares continue to trade on the Canadian Securities Exchange.

According to a statement from Yooma, this dual-listing is a first for a North American cannabis company.

Corporate finance and investment house, Chrystal Capital Partners LLP, acted as the European capital markets adviser to Yooma on a £7.5 million financing, concurrent to the dual-listing. According to Chrystal, this is the largest ever capital-raise for a cannabis firm on Aquis, and the fourth largest Aquis financing in 2021.

Yooma’s statement explains that the funds were raised “through the placing of 14,250,522 common shares (‘placing shares’), at a price of C$0.90 (£0.5232) per share (the ‘placing price’). Investors have been granted a half warrant (‘warrants’) exercisable at a price of C$1.35 (£0.7849) per share. Yooma has granted 7,125,249 warrants in total, which will expire three years after listing on AQSE, as well as 232,220 non-transferrable warrants at $0.90/share with a two-year expiry to certain eligible persons who provided finance and investor introduction services in connection with the financing.”

In addition, an option has been granted (to Friday 17 September) which, if exercised, would raise an additional £5 million gross proceeds for Yooma.

According to Chrystal, “The fundraise also attracted strong support from the UK’s leading institutional cannabis investor, AIM-quoted investment company Seed Innovations Ltd, alongside other UK institutional investors, professional family offices and ultra-high-net-worth individuals.”

Lorne Abony, Yooma’s CEO comments, “Yooma’s listing on the AQSE provides us with a solid foundation on which to execute our growth strategy in the UK, Europe and beyond. Our strategic focus on value-accretive acquisitions throughout the world will help to solidify Yooma’s place as a global wellness leader.”

Yooma’s stated mission is “to build a vertically-integrated global leader in the manufacturing, marketing, distribution, and sale of wellness products including hemp seed oil and hemp-derived and cannabinoid (CBD) ingredients. The company leverages strategically curated sales channels and e-commerce networks to deliver a diverse mix of wellness products through operating subsidiaries in the United States, United Kingdom, France and Japan.”

Chrystal Capital reports that its cannabis corporate finance advisory team (CCCA) has closed 17 cannabis deals for nine companies in the last five years, four of which have been agreed in the past eight months. According to Tristan Gervais, head of CCCA, “Our unique cannabis sector expertise, together with our extensive relationships with cannabis investors, continues to deliver much-needed growth capital to this exciting, fast growing industry.”

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