Risk warning: The value of investments and derived income can fall. Investors may get back less than they invested.

Shard Capital Partners named on UK Investment Support Directory

We’re thrilled to share that Shard Capital Partners have been selected to be part of the UK Investment Support Directory – a government initiative to promote expertise of businesses and connect with investors from across the globe.

“It is another way DIT [ Department of International Trade ] is helping support foreign investment by streamlining connections between UK businesses and overseas investors.” Director General for Investment, Mark Slaughter. https://bit.ly/2QFAkbS

An introduction to Stocks & Shares ISAs: Part 1 of our end of tax year series

This article is not advice or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any investment. All trading involves risk.

 

Now is the time to prepare for the end of the tax year with an Individual Savings Account, commonly referred to as ISA – a beneficial vehicle for long-term savings, sheltered from taxation.  ISA’s enable individuals to save or invest money without paying income or capital gains tax on investment returns accrued.  For each tax year, there’s a limit to the amount that can be invested through an ISA, termed the annual allowance. For the 2018/19 tax year, the allowance is £20,000.

It should be remembered though that tax rules are liable to alteration, and personal circumstances can affect how beneficial they are.

 

Stocks and Shares ISAs

Stocks and Shares ISAs were introduced in 1999 and provide retail investors resident in the United Kingdom with one of the most tax efficient investment wrappers available: returns generated are free from Capital Gains Tax, while dividends received within an ISA will remain tax free and won’t impact your dividend allowance.

Whilst Cash ISAs are the most popular, interest rates are poor currently, and have been for a while.  Stocks and Shares ISAs are not limited by these rates in the same way, and as long as you are happy with the level of risk, they can offer an effective and efficient vehicle for saving.

Within a Stocks and Shares ISA it is possible to hold a variety of investments, including funds, shares and corporate bonds, amongst others, protecting any returns from tax.  They are generally regarded as being most effective for longer term investing, as they can produce significantly higher returns.  It should be remembered however that there is an element of risk involved with Stocks and Shares ISAs; the value of your investment can go down as well as up, so it is possible to lose money.

 

Junior Stocks and Shares ISAs (JISAs)

Junior Stocks and Shares ISAs allow parents or guardians with parental responsibility to invest in a tax efficient investment wrapper on behalf of a child. The parent or guardian responsible maintains control of the Junior ISA until the child turns 18 years of age, but as soon as a subscription has been made the money becomes the child’s.  JISAs were introduced on 1 November 2011 and replaced the old Child Trust Fund Schemes.  The Junior ISA allowance for current tax year which runs from the 06th April 2018 to the 05th April 2019 is £4,260

 

Who can open an ISA?

The individual must be:

  • 16 years or above for a cash ISA
  • Your child must be under 18 years for a Junior ISA
  • 18 years or above for a Stocks and Shares ISA
  • Resident in the UK
  • A Crown servant (E.g. Diplomatic or overseas civil service) or their spouse or civil partner if not residing in the UK

 

The Shard Capital Stockbroking team are highly experienced in portfolio management and diversification and can tailor an investment solution for an individual looking to start or grow their ISA.

If you would like more information on a stocks and shares ISA or an alternate investment solution, please contact the Shard Capital Stockbroking team.

 

 

Important Investment Information –

“This document has been prepared and issued by Shard Capital Partners LLP (“Shard Capital”), which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

This document is a marketing communication and not independent research. As such, it has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research.

This document is published solely for information purposes and is not to be construed as a solicitation or an offer to buy or sell any securities, or related financial instruments. It does not constitute a personal recommendation as defined by the Financial Conduct Authority, nor does it take account of the particular investment objectives, financial situations or needs of individual investors. The information contained herein is obtained from public information and sources considered reliable. However, the accuracy thereof cannot be guaranteed.

The information contained in this document is solely for use by those persons to whom it is addressed and may not be reproduced, further distributed to any other person or published, in whole or in part, for any purpose, at any time, without the prior written consent of Shard Capital. This document may not be distributed to any persons (or groups of persons) to whom such distribution would contravene the UK Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. Moreover, this document is not directed at persons in any jurisdictions in which Shard Capital is prohibited or restricted by any legislation or regulation in those jurisdictions from making it available. Persons into whose possession this document comes should inform themselves about, and observe, any such restrictions.

Shard Capital or its employees may have a position in the securities and derivatives of the companies researched and this may impair the objectivity of this report. Shard Capital may act as principal in transactions in any relevant securities or provide advisory or other service to any issuer of relevant securities or any company connected therewith.

None of Shard Capital or any of its or their officers, employees or agents accept any responsibility or liability whatsoever for any loss however arising from any use of this document or its contents or otherwise arising in connection therewith. The value of the securities and the income from them may fluctuate. It should be remembered that past performance is not a guarantee of future performance. Investments may go down in value as well as up and you may not get back the full amount invested. If you are unsure of the suitability of share dealing specifically for you then you should contact an Independent Financial Adviser, authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority. By accepting this document, the recipient agrees to the foregoing disclaimer and to be bound by its limitations and restrictions.

Shard Capital has in place a Conflicts of Interest Policy relating to its research and marketing communication activities, and disclosure and conflicts in general is available on request.”

Harvest Minerals Limited – Corporate and Operational Update

Harvest Minerals Limited, the AIM listed natural fertiliser producer, is pleased to provide an update on activities at its producing Arapua Fertiliser Project (‘the Project’) in Brazil.

A version of this announcement, including pictures, is available on the company website www.harvestminerals.co.uk.

 

Overview

·     Excellent progress enlarging modular processing plant – equipment due to arrive on site next week and will be fully installed this quarter

·     Continued expansion of sales and marketing team and new sales office established

·     Working closely with Agrocerrado on sales strategy and providing its sales team with commercial and technical training on KPfértil

·     Submitted a further application to MAPA to register the Arapua Processing Unit as a fertiliser producer, which will potentially save time should the Company wish to register KPfértil as a fertiliser

·     Commenced work on the Environmental Report, a constituent of the Feasibility Study that will be submitted to the Brazilian Department of Mines (“DNPM”) as the final part of the application for the Full Mining Licence

·     Agronomic test work ongoing, including long-term trials on coffee at the Veloso Agropecuária plantations, new trials on grass for pasture and coffee trials with two coffee co-operatives

·     Presenting at the UK Investor Show on Saturday 21 April 2018

Harvest’s Executive Chairman, Brian McMaster, said, “We have continued to gain momentum through the first quarter and now into the second. The expansion to both our sales team and processing plant provides us with the capacity to continue to grow our sales and revenues, which remains a key focus for 2018. Although the confirmation of KPfértil as a remineraliser hasn’t been as efficient as we would have liked, it has not impacted our ability to sell our product. I’d again like to thank all our shareholders for their continued support and we look forward to meeting many of you at the UK Investor Show tomorrow.”

Sales & Marketing

Since the start of the year, Harvest has continued to expand its sales and marketing team and has established a sales office close to the Project in Carmo do Paranaíba, the local municipality.

As previously announced on 7 March 2018, the Company signed a large sales contract with Agrocerrado Produtos Agrícolas e Assistência Técnica LTDA (‘Agrocerrado’), a major distributor of fertiliser and agriproducts in the region surrounding Harvest’s Arapua project.  Since then, the Company has been working closely with Agrocerrado on its sales strategy and providing its sales team with commercial and technical training on KPfértil; this was completed at the last of its 13 stores this week.

Furthermore, in association with Agrocerrado, Harvest has produced new marketing material, some of which is available to view on the Company’s website at http://www.harvestminerals.net/media.

Operations

The Company has made excellent progress enlarging its modular processing plant, which will take annual processing capacity to over 320,000 tonnes.  All necessary equipment and machinery for the new plant expansion has been fabricated and all the required civil works have now been completed.  The equipment is due to arrive on site next week and will be fully installed this quarter.  Meanwhile, the current Trial Processing Plant continues to operate.

MAPA and Registration

All the requested information has been submitted to MAPA for the registration of KPfértil as a remineraliser and the Company is awaiting confirmation of approval.  Additionally, the Company has submitted a further application to MAPA to register the Arapua Processing Unit as a fertiliser producer.  Whilst this won’t provide any immediate benefit, it will potentially save time should the Company wish to register KPfértil as a fertiliser.

As part of this process, the Company has re-registered, with the DNPM, the ownership of the Project under Triunfo Mineracao do Brasil Ltda, following the previously announced merger of its subsidiary, Triunfo Fertilizantes & Mineracao Ltda into Triunfo Mineracao do Brasil Ltda, in September 2017.

Mining Licence

As recently announced, the Final Exploration Report has been approved by the DNPM and the Company has now commenced work on the Environmental Report, a constituent of the Feasibility Study that will be submitted to the DNPM as the final part of the application for the Full Mining Licence. Meanwhile, the Company continues to operate under the existing Environmental License for trial mining granted in December 2015 for four years.

Following the grant of the Full Mining Licence, the Company intends to consider the Project to have reached commercial production and will make a payment of US$1m and a 2% net smelter return (royalty) to the original vendors of the Project.  In the Company’s AIM admission document, this payment was stated as being due to RV2 Rio Verde Mineracao Ltda, but as this company ceased trading in mid-September 2015, this payment when due shall be made directly to the original vendors, Fernando Pereira da Rocha Thomsen and Janine Tavares Camargo.

Agronomic testwork

The Company continues to conduct its programme of agronomic test work which includes:

·     Long-term trials on coffee at the Veloso Agropecuária plantations

·     New trials including on grass for pasture – notably, pasture is not usually fertilised as traditional fertilisers that are prone to leaching make ineffective economically, however, KPfértil as a slow release multi-nutrient fertiliser does not experience leaching and thus should be a suitable alternative; as ~50% of farmland is used for pasture, this could be a significant market for KPfértil

·     Coffee trials with two coffee co-operatives: the Association of coffee growers from Patos de Minas (‘ASOPATOS’) and the Association of coffee growers from Araguari (‘ACA’), which represent 25,000ha and 30,000ha of coffee respectively

UK Investor Show

Harvest will be presenting at the UK Investor Show on Saturday 21 April 2018 and welcomes the opportunity to meet shareholders who are available to attend. The presentation which will be given at this event is available on the Company’s website: http://www.harvestminerals.net/investor-presentations.

 

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of EU Regulation 596/2014

For further information please visit www.harvestminerals.net or contact:

Harvest Minerals Limited

Brian McMaster (Chairman)

Tel: +44 (0) 20 7317 6629

Strand Hanson Limited

(Nominated & Financial Adviser)

James Spinney

Ritchie Balmer

Tel: +44 (0) 20 7409 3494

Shard Capital Partners

(Broker)

Damon Heath

Tel: +44 (0) 20 7186 9900

St Brides Partners Ltd

Isabel de Salis

Tel: +44 (0) 20 7236 1177

(Financial PR)

Gaby Jenner

Notes:

Harvest Minerals (HMI.L) is a Brazilian focused fertiliser producer advancing the 100% owned Arapua Fertiliser Project, which produces KPfértil, a proven, multi-nutrient, slow release, organic fertiliser and remineraliser.  KPfértil offers many economic and agronomic benefits and addresses the significant demand for locally produced fertiliser in Brazil, with its abundant agricultural land; currently, the country imports 90% of the potash it uses but has a target to be self-sufficient in fertilisers by 2020.  Covering 14,946 hectares and located in the heart of the Brazilian agriculture belt in Minas Gerais, Arapua is a shallow, low cost mine with an indicated and inferred resource of 13.07Mt at 3.1% K2O and 2.49% P2O5.  This is based on drilling just 6.7% of the known mineralisation, leaving significant upside potential. This resource is equivalent to over 29 years’ production and the known mineralisation expected to support 100+ years’ production at 450,000 tonnes per annum.

This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange

Pixar Animation Studios co-founder appointed advisor to VR Education

Suir Valley Ventures first investment, VR Education Holdings has today announced the appointment of Mr. Loren Carpenter, co-founder of Pixar Animation Studios and Academy Award winner, as an advisor to the company.

 

Speaking about the appointment via the London Stock Exchange, Mr Carpenter said,I’ve been thoroughly impressed with the meticulous approach VR Education has taken in all of their projects.  It’s refreshing to see such attention to detail and I admire how much the company has achieved from its inception, just three years ago.

Mr Carpenter offers decades of experience to VR Education including being the co-invention of the Reyes rendering algorithm which is used in 3D computer graphics to render photo-realistic images, and as one of the authors of the PhotoRealistic RenderMan, a software used to render all of Pixar’s movies.

David Whelan, CEO of VR Education, saidWe are incredibly pleased to have Loren – a luminary of the industry on board. Having grown Pixar from a small company to a multi-billion-dollar business by the time it was acquired by Disney, his advice will be invaluable to VR Education when we take our next steps. As always, our mission remains to provide world class educational platform and experiences to people across the globe and we’re thrilled that now we have Loren to assist us.

Pixar Studios is a subsidiary of The Walt Disney company and has been a pioneer in computer-generated animated movies. Pixar launched its first feature film in 1995 with the release of their first feature film, Toy Story. Not only was Toy Story the world’s first computer animated feature film, it was also the highest grossing film of the year making over $362 million worldwide. Pixar’s own IPO took place just days later and was the largest IPO of the year.

Head of Stockbroking at Shard Capital, Gareth Burchell, commented, “The appointment of Mr. Loren Carpenter as an advisor is an outstanding sentiment to the potential for VR Education and their VR experiences revolutionising education. We are extremely impressed with their growth and their future ahead.”

 

Sources:

http://www.londonstockexchange.com/exchange/news/market-news/market-news-detail/VRE/13596086.html

www.pixar.com

Maximise your savings before the end of the tax year with a stocks and shares ISA

This article is not advice or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any investment. All trading involves risk. Losses can exceed deposits.

An Individual Savings Account, known as an ISA, can be a great option for an individual to maximise their savings. Up to £20,000 per tax year can be subscribed to the tax-free wrapper. And with the end of the tax year fast approaching, now is the time to act if you have not yet exhausted your ISA allowance.

A stocks and shares ISA is an attractive solution as the returns on investments can offer higher returns than alternative investments. With a stocks and shares ISA, an individual doesn’t pay income tax on any interest or dividends received within the wrapper, nor any Capital Gains Tax on investment returns. Any Income or Capital Gains received within an ISA won’t impact the annual ISA allowance.

Cash ISAs are the most popular ISA solution, although interest rates can be unattractive and sometimes offer lower interest rates than a traditional bank savings account.  However, the benefit of ISA’s is that there is no ‘all in’ decision to be made. Individuals can choose to split their ISA allowance across different kinds of ISA options, meaning, they can combine a cash ISA with a stocks and shares ISA.

A stocks and shares ISA can include shares in companies, government and corporate bonds, gilts, and collective’s (unit trusts and investment trusts), allowing an individual to form a diversified investment portfolio.

In the current tax year (up to 05 April 2018) and the coming tax year, individuals can save up to £20,000 in an ISA account. However, the ISA will roll over and new subscriptions are added to the previous tax year which can result in a larger investment pot.

With considerable tax benefits and potential better returns from suitable investments, a stocks and shares ISA can offer a great solution for those looking to plan for their future or utilise savings on top of an existing pension plan. You can also plan for your child’s future by utilising a Junior ISA (JISA) which allows up to £4,128 to be subscribed in the current tax year. Whilst a stocks and shares ISA can offer enticing returns, individual due diligence is always necessary prior to any investment being made. The value of an investment may go down as well as up and you may not get back the money you invested.

We looked at a comparison between £10,000 invested, 8 years ago in a traditional bank savings account, cash ISA, and stocks and shares ISA.

  • The stocks and shares ISA had an annualised return of 4.89%. This was based on the FTSE 100 Index Total Return (inc dividends) and generated a £6,119 return from the original investment.
  • The cash ISA had an annualised negative return of -0.72% and made a loss of £697, due to inflation.
  • The standard bank savings account also had annualised negative return with a loss of £1,253, also due to inflation.

 

Information and details are correct as of 14 March 2018. Past performance is not a guide for future returns.

 

Information and details are correct as of 14 March 2018. Past performance is not a guide for future returns.

 

The Shard Capital Stockbroking team are highly experienced in portfolio management and diversification and can tailor an investment solution for an individual looking to start or grow their ISA.

If you would like more information on a stocks and shares ISA or an alternate investment solution, please contact the Shard Capital Stockbroking team.

 

Important Investment Information –

The views above are published solely for information purposes and are not to be construed as a solicitation or an offer to buy or sell any securities, or related financial instruments. It does not constitute advice or a personal recommendation as defined by the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) or take into account the particular investment objectives, financial situations or needs of individual investors. The views above are based on public information and sources considered reliable.

These estimates are not a reliable indicator of future performance. Yields are variable and not guaranteed. All investments should be held for the long term as their value can fall as well as rise, therefore you could get back less than you invest.

If you are unsure about the appropriateness of an investment for your circumstances, please seek financial advice. No view is given on the present or future value or price of any investment, and investors should form their own view on any proposed investment. This publication has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and is considered a marketing communication. It is not subject to any prohibition on dealing ahead of the dissemination of investment research. Figures correct as at 14th March 2018 unless otherwise stated. This publication is issued by Shard Capital Partners LLP, 20 Fenchurch Street, London, EC3M 3BY United Kingdom who are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

 

 

 

Suir Valley Ventures first investment lists on AIM

Suir Valley Ventures, the entrepreneur-led venture capital fund launched in partnership with Shard Capital Partners LLP in February 2017, is pleased to announce that VR Education Holdings (‘VRE’), its first investment made in March last year, listed on AIM today.

VRE is looking to transform education through the utilisation of virtual reality (‘VR’).  It has already won multiple global accolades for its Apollo 11 and Titanic simulations and is working closely with leading institutions including the BBC and Oxford University.  VRE will now prioritise the worldwide roll-out of ENGAGE, its leading digital education platform, providing students, educators and corporate trainers with an amazingly visual and realistic alternative to attending bricks and mortar institutes.

As part of the Admission process, VRE, chaired by Richard Cooper, previously FD of FTSE 250 multinational company, GVC Holdings plc, and led by husband and wife team David and Sandra Whelan, raised £6 million before expenses, through an oversubscribed placing of 60,000,000 new ordinary shares at a placing price of 10p each, implying a market capitalisation of circa £19.3 million on Admission.  Suir retains a 7.22% interest in VRE.

Barry Downes, the CIO of Suir Valley Ventures, said, “This is excellent news; I offer my congratulations to David and Sandra and to the whole VRE team for the terrific job they’ve done, growing the company exponentially in just three short years since its inception. This has been a fantastic investment for the fund; we remain committed to finding similar businesses that utilise the best talent in the AR/VR, IoT and FinTech sectors in the future.”