Tungsten Corporation, the shell company founded by financial services entrepreneurs Edmund Truell and Danny Truell, is to burst onto the world stage (in theory, at least) with the breathless announcement that it is to (a) acquire OB10, the UK-based, self-styled ‘world’s largest e-invoicing business’; (b) acquire a ‘duly authorised UK bank’; (c) licence the Spend Analysis software product from AIM-listed e-commerce marketplace minnow @UK; and (d) list on AIM. Phew! OB10 is backed by secondary buyout private equity firm, Azini Capital.
Tungsten will pay £99m to acquire OB10 of which £73m will be cash. Tungsten hopes to raise up to £160m in a placing ahead of a proposed listing on AIM targeted for October.
How much money this new business combination will generate remains a complete mystery for now. The only beneficiary with a number to play with is @UK, which expects its licensing arrangement with Tungsten to generate a maximum (note) of £3.4m over the five-year life of the deal. @UK made net losses of £0.8m on revenues of £2.2m last year (and see here).
I really can’t wait to see the prospectus.