LONDON, UK: Sivota Plc, the special opportunities investment vehicle focused on Israeli technology-related companies, has completed the acquisition of a majority stake in Apester Ltd, a digital marketing engagement platform.
Under the terms of the Acquisition agreement, the Company will receive Preferred Seed Shares in the capital of Apester for an aggregate price of US $12.0 million. This reflects a pre-money valuation of Apester of $16.0 million on a fully diluted basis.
The issue of the Preferred Seed Shares will provide the Company with 57.5 per cent. of Apester’s voting rights. The investment proceeds are to be used by Apester for its working capital requirements as well as for specific repayments of certain liabilities agreed by Sivota.
The cash consideration for the Acquisition will be funded through a £11.5 million (gross) placing and direct subscription of 11,500,000 new ordinary shares of one pence each in the Company (“New Ordinary Shares”) from existing and new investors in Sivota (the “Fundraising”).
The issue price is 100 pence per New Ordinary Share (“Issue Price”). The placing is being conducted by Canaccord Genuity Limited (“Canaccord”) as Sole Bookrunner and Broker (the “Bookrunner”) and the subscription is being conducted directly by the Company. The placing has been conducted in accordance with the terms and conditions set out in the Appendix.
Apester will be Sivota’s first acquisition and is closely aligned with Sivota’s strategic principles. Sivota is keen to leverage Apester’s existing assets whilst applying forward thinking leadership and insight in order to increase value for Sivota’s shareholders over time.
Due to delays in the anticipated publication of the prospectus to be approved by the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) (the “Prospectus”), the Company’s listing on the standard segment of the Official List and trading on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange will remain suspended pending the publication of the Prospectus providing further detail on Apester and the Company as enlarged by the Acquisition. The Company is targeting publication of the Prospectus in June 2022.
As a result of the suspension, the New Ordinary Shares will not be capable of being traded on the London Stock Exchange and will not be subject to an application for such trading until the suspension is lifted and trading restored. However, the New Ordinary Shares will be issued to investors on 20 May 2022. Applications will be made to the FCA for the New Ordinary Shares to be admitted to the Official List of the FCA and to the London Stock Exchange plc to be admitted to trading on the London Stock Exchange’s main market for listed securities following publication of the Prospectus.
Ziv Ben-Barouch, Chief Executive Officer of Sivota, commented: “We are pleased with the acquisition of a majority holding in Apester. The strength of Apester’s technology stack represents a significant growth opportunity.
“Apester’s unique data capabilities allows clients to use publishers’ own data without any reliance on cookies, which is in accordance with the latest evolution of online data collection methods and privacy regulations. We see this capability as a competitive advantage that will drive Apester’s growth and position within the digital experience platform market. “
Sivota Plc is a platform which leverages the significant technology investment potential between the UK and Israel, identifying unique opportunities and then leveraging the Company’s experience to introduce change and growth. Sivota’s first acquisition is Apester, a digital experience end-to-end software platform.
Apester is a digital experience end-to-end software platform that enables brands to engage and understand customers across all digital media channels, in turn increasing lead generation, brand uplift, conversion and sales for its customers.
Apester is a simple, cost effective and scalable technology. Code free, it allows untrained users to create interactive experiences in a matter of minutes and then to distribute it across multiple digital media channels, and later gather data and analyse it to improve performance. The platform provides tools to create a range of personalised interactive experiences and applications, including customer surveys, mobile landing pages, onboarding forms, interactive videos, polls, quizzes, custom applications and web stories.
Apester’s suite of software applications also includes a Data Management Platform that allows customers to collect, store and ‘own’ Zero Party and First-Party engagement data generated from experiences and applications created on Apester while adhering to compliance and privacy regulations. AI analytics help to create valuable insight into customer trends, sentiment and preferences, enabling brands and publishers to better understand their customers and to accelerate their business performance.
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