Vela Technologies Share Discussion Threads

[antonyvelatech] 26/10/2015 08:32

Good morning followers of this thread.

As Executive Director at Vela Technologies, I thought it might be if interest if I posted articles and related comment on companies and sectors in which Vela has invested.

Veal now has 9 investments. There has been a steady flow of company news on which we have issued RNSs but there has also been a lot of news around which does not warrant an RNS but will give investors a better understanding of what we are doing and may encourage a greater awareness of Vela among the investment community.

I will start posting very shortly.

Antony Laiker

[daicaprice] 23/10/2015 07:40

Director options granted at .205p Certainly got no problem with that.

DC

[daicaprice] 22/10/2015 13:14

A few bored sellers, but they are willing to take them @.19p

DC

[daicaprice] 21/10/2015 07:10

More good news from Nektan this morning.

DC

[daicaprice] 20/10/2015 12:01

Nice bit of volume today, yesterday's RNS finally been seen I guess.

DC

[daicaprice] 19/10/2015 13:02

Excellent news and a well worded and confidant statement, I'm happy and will add again as and when.

DC

[edcrane] 19/10/2015 12:18

Vela Technologies plc
("Vela" or the "Company")
Directors' dealings

The Board of Vela Technologies plc (AIM: VELA), the investing company focused on early-stage and pre-IPO disruptive technology investments, announces that the Directors of the Company, Antony Laiker and Brent Fitzpatrick, each acquired 2,900,000 ordinary shares of 0.1 pence per share in the Company ("Ordinary Shares") on 16 October 2015 at a price of 0.17 pence per Ordinary Share.

Following these purchases, Mr Laiker now has a beneficial interest in 28,316,724 Ordinary Shares, equivalent to 4.85% of the Company's issued share capital. Mr Fitzpatrick, whose shares were purchased by his wholly-owned company, Ocean Park Developments Limited, now has a beneficial interest in 4,400,000 Ordinary Shares, equivalent to 0.75% of the Company's issued share capital.

Antony Laiker, Executive Director, commented: "Since Vela published its corporate update in April we have updated investors on both new investments made and updates from certain of our portfolio companies. The board remains of the view that, based on a combination of valuation events in some of our unquoted companies together with the market value of our listed investments, the underlying value of the portfolio is significantly above the value attributable to Vela at the current time.

Vela has a spread of disruptive technology investments across what will hopefully be a total of nine companies should the current proposed investment in Blockchain Tech Ltd go ahead. Going forward we have high expectations for our investments as they progress and mature.

Brent and I therefore decided to make a further investment in Vela shares to support and highlight that the board are personally supporting their public statements."

[edcrane] 19/10/2015 10:21

KUL now 9.5 pence ... up 80% in 4 days since announcing their Blockckain investment last Wednesday

[edcrane] 19/10/2015 10:13

Interesting article on Blockchain .... explains it in really simple terms





Fintech is what’s really keeping bankers awake at night

The Australian
October 17, 2015 12:00AM

The pressing issue for banks today is capital of course, and figuring out who will bear the cost of having more of it. Westpac, for one, has decided that the cost is to be shared between shareholders and customers; the others now have to make their decisions.

But while that problem is difficult it’s pretty straightforward, and it’s not the thing that’s keeping bankers awake at night.

The really mind-bending topic for banks is fintech, and specifically block chain, otherwise known as distributed ledger technology.

What’s more, the pressure on banks to hold more capital is making them more vulnerable to attack from fintech and peer-to-peer disruptors that can get by with little or no capital at all. That’s what is keeping bankers awake.

Block chain is the business end of bitcoin — it’s the ingenious technology that makes crypto-currencies happen, but while bitcoin might or might not change banking, block chain definitely will, and not just banking.

This new manifestation of the digital revolution will change every part of the financial services industry. Every bank now has a team of people working on it — experimenting with distributed ledgers to try to understand the threats and, perhaps more importantly, the opportunities.

The opportunity is cost reduction and the threat is disruptive competition, and it’s too early to tell which will win.

Distributed ledgers are a bit hard to get one’s head around, especially for bankers (and commentators) who are used to ledgers that obediently sit in one place — in one book or on one computer.

But block chains are everywhere, which is why they are called distributed ledgers. A good, but still imperfect, way to think about it is that it’s a bit like Wikipedia, with entries that can be updated by anyone and are available to all, except that with block chain it’s not encyclopaedic information written in English but computer code.

The code is public, and shared by many computers. Any computer in the network can propose changes and a consensus is arrived at about which changes are valid and what order they are made in.

The network then updates all copies and keeps them synchronised. The “blockchain” stores all the updates so that any user can trace back who made what changes and when.

It’s both incredibly simple and mind-bendingly complex at the same time, but the essence of it is that the system can be truly peer-to-peer, person-to-person, and at the same time verifiable, secure and fully transparent.

That means it can be used as a means of financial exchange, which in turn means that third party settlement will no longer be required.

The first use of the idea was to create bitcoin, the “crypto-currency” invented in 2008 by Satoshi Nakamoto and which is now starting to gain traction as an alternative to money created by banks or printed by central banks.

At the moment the bitcoin price is around $US250 ($342). It has been extremely volatile in past, rising to well over $US1000 per unit as some speculators bet that it would keep rising in value. That was before anyone had worked out whether it was an investment or a medium of exchange.

It’s now clear that bitcoin is not the former, but the latter, a sort of tool for barter outside the financial system, and as a result the price has been stable for about six months.

In fact, it looks like bitcoins will simply become a sort of front end for block chains: so far bitcoins have mainly been used in international currency transfers, where dollars are converted into bitcoins and then instantly converted back into dollars in another place — essentially using the block chain to settle a transaction.

It allows for secure domestic or foreign exchange payments that don’t involve a third party and is quickly becoming a crowded field. The leader is probably Coinbase, which claims to have traded $US2.5bn worth of bitcoins across 32 countries.

But it’s also quickly becoming clear that the uses of block chains are much wider than just bitcoin.

Commercial banks, central banks, stock exchanges and the technology companies like Samsung and IBM now have labs exploring the uses of distributed ledgers to settle transactions, whether they are shares, derivatives, bonds or even property.

There are also several fintech start-ups that have developed versions of block chain technology, such as Ripple, Ethereum, Eris Industries and HyperLedger.

What they all have in common is the use of the basic distributed ledger, or transparent and verifiable spreadsheets, to exchange data and assets securely.

The most immediate is likely to be streamlining securities settlement and allowing automatic, instantaneous clearing between the two parties to a transaction, without the need for a clearing house.

The savings for banks and securities exchanges could be enormous, through bypassing the cumbersome and time-wasting payment and settlement systems.

It’s also expected that distributed ledgers will be able to support all types of contracts, which would lead to a huge variety of uses. All lending could be settled by blockchains as well as trade finance, swaps and derivatives … wherever counterparty risk exists.

According to one analyst, there is no reason block chains can’t be used to settle property transactions without any intermediaries, dramatically cutting costs.

A study commissioned by Santander Bank of Spain estimated banks could save up to $US20bn in cross-border payments and compliance costs alone.

Using distributed ledgers as a prime record would dramatically cut back office costs for banks, securities traders and exchanges.

But like all big cost reductions through digital disruption, block chain technology and fintech generally will also lower the barriers to entry.

New operators in all aspects of banking will use the cheaper technology to attack the banks’ stronghold with less capital.

Oh yes — capital, which the banks are being forced to have more of, raising their costs, and prices, and making them even more vulnerable to disruption.

[daicaprice] 15/10/2015 07:44

Nektan results out this morning

David Gosen, Chief Executive Officer, said:

"I am pleased to report Nektan's first full year results since our IPO. The Group has made considerable progress during the year and continues to see strong quarterly growth in Europe across all key performance indicators and strong momentum in the US, through Respin, our US joint venture.

Our pipeline remains very encouraging and, along with our existing partner base, emphasises the strength of our proprietary, scalable platform, content and sector expertise, all of which leave the Group well-positioned to benefit from the opportunities available to us in a growing market. We remain confident in our outlook for the full year and beyond as Nektan continues to strengthen its position and to deliver strong momentum in our key markets in Europe and the US."

For further information on the Group, please contact:

DC

[daicaprice] 14/10/2015 10:37

Blockchain update this morning.

DC

[daicaprice] 30/9/2015 07:44

It all keeps the story ticking over and we are now below last placing price, I'm hoping to pick a few more up before the weekend.

DC

[edcrane] 30/9/2015 07:32

News from 3Legs today ... here are the sums as I see it .... raised £800k at the beginning of the year, let's say there is £600k left. Raised £500k recently from Jim Mellon ... so total cash£1.1m.

Market cap last night was £1.3m

So there is a nominal value attributable to the listing NOR to Jim Mellon who has put more has put money into the investment made today by 3Legs on the same terms. In total it looks like Jim Mellon has invested now over £600k in 3Legs and SalvaRx in addition to owning 50% of it prior to this transaction

With all the noise around Jim Mellon, justified or not, you might think he might be worth a million or two on the value of 3Legs?

.... and I guess it's conceivable that 3Legs ultimately buy SalvaRx in time? Who knows

[daicaprice] 28/9/2015 07:36

RNS giving the Nektan news from Friday.

DC

[daicaprice] 25/9/2015 09:09

25 September 2015
Nektan PLC
("Nektan", the "Company" or the "Group")
Trading Update
Nektan PLC (AIM: NKTN), the leading international B2B mobile gaming platform and content provider, today issues a further update on trading ahead of its results for the full year ended 30 June 2015, which the Company expects to publish by mid-October 2015.

Nektan's US joint venture with Spin Games LLC, Respin LLC ("Respin"), continues to see considerable momentum building in the US from its first mover advantage. The first Respin gaming deployments with US land-based casinos are Xtraspin wheels, which are mobile technology enabled bolt-on modules to slot machines. Xtraspin wheels provide additional bonus opportunities for customers playing in-venue, offering casino operators an innovative solution to significantly improve the performance of their unsupported end of life slot machines.
· Xtraspin wheels are now live in 12 casinos across California and Nevada, tripling since the end of June (30 June 2015: 4)

· A total of 74 Xtraspin wheels are operational in these casinos (30 June 2015: 25)

· Casino operators are seeing revenue "coin in" uplifts in excess of 30% on slot machines with Xtraspin wheels

· A further 22 land-based casinos have now been contracted or have signed letters of intent for delivery of an initial additional 130 Xtraspin wheels

· Respin has recently been granted approval for its first patent for Xtraspin, helping to strengthen its first mover advantage

The Company also continues to see strong and consistent month on month growth in Real Money Gaming in Europe across all key performance indicators ("KPIs"). Net Gaming Revenues in the month of August alone surpassed the total revenues of the entire previous quarter, attributable in part to a continued increase in first time depositors and over 70% growth in deposit amounts made by players.

Gary Shaw, Executive Chairman of Nektan, said:

"I am pleased with Nektan's continuing progress and the strong momentum in our key markets in Europe and the US.

Respin continues to strengthen its performance in the US, with the uplift in revenues experienced by casino partners with Xtraspin wheels underlining the significant commercial opportunities which are further reflected in the continued growth of its casino contract pipeline. I am also encouraged by the strong month on month growth we are delivering in Europe across all our key performance indicators in our real money mobile gaming business.

The Board remains confident that the Company is well placed to deliver further growth and build on the momentum. I look forward to further updating shareholders by mid-October in our results for the full year ended 30 June 2015."

For further information on the Company, please contact:
Nektan
David Gosen, Chief Executive Officer
via Newgate below


Zeus Capital Limited (Nominated Adviser & Broker)
Nicholas How (Corporate Finance)
Adam Pollock (Corporate Broking)

DC

[edcrane] 25/9/2015 09:02

Brilliant news today on Nektan ....

US casino business looks like it will really take off over the next 12 months - casinos getting 30% more money in. Why wouldn't they want to?

Real money games - a cash cow

Recent research report from Cenkos talking about a potential £1bn value for Nektan is rather overdoing things but a market cap of just £35 seems way too cheap

[daicaprice] 23/9/2015 15:25

5m sell .18p, could do with a bit of news.

DC

[daicaprice] 21/9/2015 14:51

Mr 222,638 didn't last long did he, 16mins and got spooked by the 4.5m.

DC

[daicaprice] 21/9/2015 14:49

Someone transfers 4.5m into a SIPP or ISA on Friday afternoon and it brings a load of sellers out this morning, strange behaviour.

DC

[edcrane] 14/9/2015 12:34

Came across this ... interview with one of the founder's of Portr

[daicaprice] 09/9/2015 11:50

A few deserters this morning, could be another opportunity below placing price.

DC

[edcrane] 08/9/2015 09:01

A bit of good block chain press ....


UBS Develops ‘Settlement Coin,’ Bringing Block Chain To Financial Markets
Bitcoin Research, Fintech, News, World Finance
07/09/2015
by Elliot Maras

UBS is working on a block chain based “settlement coin” that financial institutions will use, according to The Wall Street Journal. Unlike bitcoin, the UBS “utility settlement coin” would link to real-world currencies and central bank accounts.

Oliver Bussmann, CIO of Switzerland-based UBS, said the coin will help establish the block chain in global finance. The currency, being developed with Clearmatics, a London-based firm that makes clearing machines for OTC markets, could reduce transaction settlement times. The coin could reduce settlement time from two or three days to a matter of seconds.

UBS’ new cryptocurrency lab in London is leading the initiative, according to Financial News, a London-based newspaper.

[edcrane] 01/9/2015 10:03

See newspaper article below. Barclays Bank throwing money at Block Chain