Yesterday Roadside (ROAD) announced its intention to raise approximately £20 million, at an issue price of 60.0 pence.
The Group proposes to use the net proceeds of the Fundraising to acquire the entire share capital of Gardner Retail Ltd, together with its subsidiaries (“Gardner Retail”), pursuant to the binding share purchase agreement entered into by the Company (the “Gardner Retail SPA”), as previously announced on 24 December 2025 (the “Gardner Retail Acquisition”). The principal terms of the Gardner Retail Acquisition remain unchanged from those previously announced with the balance of the estimated net consideration of £17.8 million due to the vendors of Gardner Retail on completion, alongside the assumption of £3.2 million in debt facilities. The acquisition of Gardner Retail marks an important first step to Roadside building a scaled portfolio of energy forecourt and convenience retail assets.
Comment: Given the massive rally for ROAD shares both last year and to start 2026, it would have been rude for the company not to raise a significant amount of cash to deliver on its aggressive growth strategy. Scaling up will be important this year, and the latest fundraise enables the company to do just that.
Delta Gold Technologies (Aquis: DGQ), a technology company developing intellectual property in the quantum computing (“QC”) sector, announced it has raised £1,922,500 through direct subscriptions with the Company. Delta has agreed to a strategic raise of £1,922,500 through the issue of 5,492,853 new ordinary shares of 0.2p each representing 8.51% of the enlarged issued share capital of the company at an issue price of 35p per share. The company welcomes Purebond Ltd to its shareholder register. Purebond Ltd sits alongside current sophisticated and professional investors, furthering the robust financial foundation necessary to accelerate the Company’s QC growth initiatives.
Comment: As stated here previously DGQ has played a blinder since it came to market, with the fundraise on a sharply rising share price underlining this. The presence of Purebond as an investor, who apparently coined it in Guardian Metal (GMET) is an additional badge of honour and should entice others to follow the winner.
Trellus Health plc (TRLS), a healthcare company delivering Trellus Elevate®, a digital platform that integrates data analytics with personalised, scientifically proven resilience programmes and value-based solutions to manage complex chronic conditions, announced a six-month contract extension with Johnson & Johnson Health Care Systems (“J&J”) to continue to provide Trellus Elevate™, supporting patients with moderate to severely active inflammatory bowel disease who are prescribed a J&J therapy for treatment of IBD. The collaboration with J&J, initially signed in January 2025, has been extended to mid-2026 with the same economic terms, including a fixed monthly management fee.
Comment: To give one an illustration of how reticent to give small caps the credit they are due, shares of TRLS were loathed to rise in the wake of the J&J connection last year. This year it might be the case that TRLS gets the love it deserves.
Petro Matad (MATD), the AIM quoted Mongolian oil company, provided the following operational update. All production revenue withheld by PetroChina during 2025 has been paid – totaling $1.03 million. The wording of the contract to cover the 2026 Oil Sales Agreement is being finalised. Block XX production continues in line with expectations. Farm-out discussions with one counterparty are nearing completion. The 200MW Hybrid renewable energy project is progressing well.
Comment: Being Big In Japan is one thing, but it would appear that MATD being big in Mongolia comes a close second. Helpful here is the way that the company is firing on several cylinders with the run up to a farmout being a decent near term sizzle.
Crimson Tide plc (TIDE), the provider of the mpro5 operational compliance platform, announced the renewal of a 36‑month contract with Koenig & Bauer (UK) Ltd, part of Koenig & Bauer AG, one of the world’s oldest and most established printing press manufacturers. Koenig & Bauer has been a valued customer of Crimson Tide since the early years of the Company’s commercial operations. Over this time, they have adopted mpro5 in a highly specialised and unique way, integrating the platform deeply into their service and operational workflows. Their renewed commitment reflects the long‑standing partnership between the two companies and the continued relevance of mpro5 in supporting Koenig & Bauer’s operational excellence.
Comment: The market has been peppered with small caps delivering decent contract news, and perhaps should be rather more appreciative in some cases than it has. In the case of TIDE the shares hit our first technical target in December at 73p and are heading for the second one at 100p, hopefully in coming days.
Reabold Resources (RBD), the investing company focused on developing strategic gas projects for European energy security, noted that Beacon Energy PLC (BCE) has today published the Admission Document in relation to the Proposed Transaction including the significant strategic investment in LNEnergy Limited, announced on 7 October 2025, to raise gross proceeds of at least, in aggregate, approximately £3.75m.
Comment: It has been quite a journey for shareholders of RBS in recent years, and for the longest time it appeared that the company may not come out of the darkness into the light. However, fundamental and share price momentum is now building well.
AFC Energy (AFC), a leading provider of ammonia based low carbon hydrogen production and hydrogen-to-power solutions at a commercially viable price point, announced the agreement by the UK Environment Agency to revise AFC Energy’s Research and Development permit for the export and sale of low carbon hydrogen produced from the Company’s pilot ammonia cracking plant to hydrogen off-takers. This accelerates revenue generation by AFC Energy from low carbon hydrogen production by a number of months.
Comment: It would appear that the time has finally come for alternative energy providers such as AFC after years of waiting / delay. The market seems finally ready for this, and the share price since the summer has been in a saucer formation, ready to re-rate quite significantly.
Connecting Excellence Group Plc (AQSE: XCE), the international executive recruitment group with a long term, ambitious and disciplined Bitcoin treasury strategy, announced that the Company’s shares will begin trading today on the OTC Venture Market (“OTCQB”) in the United States, under the symbol “XCELF”. No new Ordinary Shares have been issued by the Company for this parallel trading of its shares. The OTCQB is a middle-tier market for entrepreneurial companies and is recognised by the Securities and Exchange Commission as an established public market.
Comment: A year or two ago just the whiff that a company may be heading to the OTCQB was a rocket launcher for the share price, as companies searched for the El Dorado of US investor liquidity. It is still a useful thing to do, but not quite the magic bullet it used to be.
Greatland Resources Limited (GGP) advised that Chief Operating Officer (COO) Simon Tyrrell has resigned and stepped down from his role. Mr Tyrrell is available to the Company until 30 June 2026 to assist with the transition of the role. Otto Richter has been appointed as Acting COO. Mr Richter has served as Greatland’s Group Mining Engineer since 2021 and has over 25 years of experience, predominantly in open pit and underground gold mining. During his time at Greatland, he has been a key member of the senior leadership team involved in operational and mine planning decisions and has a detailed understanding of the Company’s assets.
Comment: Of course, GGP is now such a colossus that the departure of just one man cannot change the momentum in any significant way. Indeed, even the departure of a dozen. Nevertheless, COO at the company is by definition a massive role and Simon’s shoes will not be easy for the new incumbent to step into.
Aferian (AFRN) announced that Miton are out and Timothy Brousse is in at 2.6% on the shareholder register.
Comment: One could see that AFRN shares have been trading heavy for quite some time. But with the logjam of Miton cleared, and a new investor in the mix, the nascent recovery for the shares in recent weeks should start to gather momentum.
Disclaimer & Declaration of Interest:
The information, investment views, and recommendations in this Zaks Traders Cafe interview are provided for general information purposes only. Nothing in this interview should be construed as a promotion or solicitation to buy or sell any financial product relating to any companies under discussion or referred to or to engage in or refrain from doing so or engage in any other transaction. Any opinions or comments are made to the best of the knowledge and belief of the commentator but no responsibility is accepted for actions based on such opinions or comments. The commentators may or may not hold investments in the companies under discussion.
