The Guardian: Rachel Reeves says GDP figures ‘are disappointing’ after UK economy shrinks for second month running.
Comment: Given that the unspoken policy of the government, indeed any Labour government is to crash the economy, it must indeed be disappointing that GDP is only down 0.1%, rather than the 0.3% the previous month. The UK economy is by this evidence amazingly resilient given all the deliberately disastrous policies being thrown at it, plus tariffs.
Sundae Bar (SBAR), the unified marketplace for AI Agents, announces that following the completion of its WRAP Retail Offer, the Company has begun the implementation of its Bitcoin Treasury Management Policy by acquiring Bitcoin for its treasury reserves. Additionally, further to the announcement on 30 June 2025 the Company’s TAO Strategies partnership has delivered strong performance growth, with subnet emissions increasing from τ9 TAO daily (as reported on June 30th) to τ15 TAO daily (equivalent to approximately $5,490 USD daily).
Comment: The trick for companies switching to a cryptocurrency treasury policy is to make sure it does not look like “me too” and to give the impression that one end of a Bitcoin from the other. The other point to note here is that TAO appears to be a perpetual money machine.
Ajax Resources Plc (AQSE: AJAX) the natural resources investment company, provided an update on various corporate and operational developments. Environmental Impact Study (“EIS”) for the Eureka copper and gold project in Argentina. Second closing of Subscription anticipated to occur on or around 25 July 2025. Intention to list on Euronext Growth Oslo.
Comment: AJAX hits the ground running as far as its new life as a project developer, getting all the bells and whistles ready for Eureka. Pleasingly, the share price appears to be stirring positively on these developments.
The Smarter Web Company (AQUIS: SWC), a London listed technology company, announced the purchase of additional Bitcoin as part of “The 10 Year Plan” which includes an ongoing treasury policy of acquiring Bitcoin. Details are as follows: Number of Bitcoin Purchased: 275 Bitcoin. Average Purchase Price: £79,563 per Bitcoin ($108,182 per Bitcoin). Amount Purchased: £21,879,927. Total Bitcoin Holdings: 1,275 Bitcoin.
Comment: The ongoing purchase of Bitcoin finds the strategy of SWC looking rather good given the latest jump for the cryptocurrency to record highs. One could say that the company could be up as much as 10% on its purchases. In addition, all the treasury companies buying Bitcoin must be making it being a store of value a self fulfilling prophecy.
Petro Matad (MATD), the AIM quoted Mongolian oil company, announced that following the accelerated bookbuild which was announced at 4:35 p.m. on 10 July 2025, the Company has conditionally raised gross proceeds of GBP 2.84 million. The proceeds of this capital raise will be allocated to Heron-1, Heron-2, Gazelle-1, Gobi Bear-1. MATD said “With success in the testing operations, these wells can quickly be brought on stream through the existing production facilities at Heron-1 and can add to the Company’s production revenue in the short term.”
Comment: Shares of MATD have been drifting rather alarmingly in the recent past, something which makes the latest fundraise a relief to get away. There is plenty of work to be done at the company’s various projects, and MATD needs to win.
URU Metals Limited (URU) reported assay results and geological interpretations from a two-hole drilling programme at the Zeb Nickel Project in Limpopo, South Africa. Drilled vertically, the holes validate the Zeb geological model, and confirms the presence of thicker, higher-grade nickel-copper-PGE (“Ni-Cu-PGE”) horizons beneath the historic open-pit resource and demonstrates that mineralisation remains open both along strike and at depth.
Comment: Although the share price has been something of a white knuckle ride in the recent past, the overall trend here has been upward. This is despite or perhaps because of some crackpot blogging commentary the company appears to get around the time of a full moon.
Oracle Power (ORCP), an international project developer, provide the following update on its progress during Q2 2025 in respect of its project portfolio across Western Australia and Pakistan. ORCP said “Q2 2025 has seen further progress for Oracle across multiple fronts. At the Northern Zone, we continue to be encouraged by the robust drilling results, the expansion of the gold system and the high metallurgical recoveries, all of which build confidence as we progress toward a maiden Mineral Resource Estimate. At Blue Rocks, the identification of new copper zones adds further potential to our exploration portfolio. We are also pleased with the support received from the Government of Sindh to extend the validity of key project permissions for our renewable energy and green hydrogen initiatives.”
Comment: ORCP has certainly pivoted successfully towards project development in Australia, rather than just Pakistan, so much so that if anything came of the renewable projects there it would be a bonus, as much as a surprise.
Solvonis Therapeutics (SVNS), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel medicines for addiction and mental health disorders, announces that it has raised gross proceeds of £1.0 million through a direct subscription at a price of 0.3 pence per Subscription Share. The Issue Price is approximately a 3.5% premium to the closing price of 0.29 pence per share on 10 July 2025. The net proceeds of the Subscription will be deployed to accelerate Solvonis’ AI supported central nervous system drug discovery programme, which is initially focused on major depressive disorder and stimulant use disorder, being two therapeutic areas with significant unmet needs and limited innovation.
Comment: Shares of SVNS have doubled since the beginning of last month, as the message regarding the company’s blockbuster drug developing strategy has successfully hit the market. The massive unmet need in SVNS’s main two candidates suggests further significant upside for the stock.
Westminster Group (WSG), a leading supplier of managed services and technology-based security solutions worldwide, announced that it has secured a £500,000 credit facility from Pantheon A Family Office Limited, Westminster’s strategic investor. The credit facility will provide the Company with a flexible financing option for short term financing, if required.
Comment: This would appear to be a decent growing pain RNS announcement today, in terms of the company having a facility to dip into given the speeding up of contract wins in the recent past, and should WSG need extra cash to fulfil them.
BP (BP.) announced its 2Q25 bp Trading Statement. Reported upstream production in the second quarter is now expected to be higher compared to the prior quarter, with production higher in oil production & operations, primarily in bpx energy, and slightly higher in gas & low carbon energy.
Comment: Although it is difficult to believe that the recent Shell / BP M&A rumour provided by the Wall Street Journal was not at least partly based in fact, we see that BP is getting along quite nicely even without walking hand in hand with Shell.
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.
