Imperial: Microsaic Systems plc successfully raises £4M in connection with forthcoming admission to AIM

Microsaic Systems plc, the developer of miniaturised chip-based scientific instruments, is pleased to announce that it has raised gross proceeds of £4 million by way of an institutional placing in connection with the forthcoming admission of its shares to trading on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange. 

The Business

Microsaic is the first and only company to have successfully miniaturised mass spectrometry (“MS”) through the development of its patented chip-based technologies (ionchip®, spraychip® and vac-chip®). The Company’s first product, the Microsaic 3500 MiD®, was launched in January 2011. It is a desktop MS system that is smaller, lighter, more energy efficient and cheaper to run than legacy conventional MS systems.

•       Mass spectrometry is widely accepted as a ‘gold-standard’ method for identifying chemicals. As a result, this technique is used routinely by chemists across a range of sectors including government, energy, utilities, pharmaceuticals, environmental, food and drink, healthcare and industrial chemicals.

•       The total MS market was worth c. US$3.3 billion p.a. (August 2010) and is forecast to grow 8.5% between 2010 and 2011 (Mass spectrometry market data, SDI, March 2011). More than two-thirds of this highly diversified market is directly or indirectly tied to government, healthcare and regulation-driven demand, such as drug development, diagnostics, food and environmental safety testing.

•       Working with blue-chip partners in the analytical instruments sector, Microsaic aims to introduce compact, deployable MS products, based on its core technology, into a series of target markets and applications to replace existing MS systems and expand the global MS installed user base by meeting the significant unmet demand from within other markets. The Company aims to generate recurring revenues through chip consumables.

•       In addition, the Company continues to innovate and develop next generation products designed to reach wider markets and target additional applications, providing even greater sensitivity for detecting very low concentrations of chemicals (e.g. contaminants, harmful substances or clinical biomarkers) in complex samples (e.g. urine, blood plasma and food).

•       Microsaic Systems was established in 2001 as a spin out from Imperial College London. 

•       Microsaic’s technologies are protected by 88 patent applications worldwide of which 36 are granted.

Details of Placing

The Company has raised £4 million through a placing of 12,500,000 new shares to institutional investors at 32p per share. On Admission, which is expected on 11 April 2011, Microsaic will have a market capitalisation of approximately £12 million.

The Microsaic ticker will be MSYS, and its ISIN number will be GB00B547ZY09. It is expected that dealings in the Company’s ordinary shares will commence on 11 April 2011.The net proceeds of the Placing will be used by the Company to fund capital expenditure, manufacturing, sales and field support and new product development, as well as ongoing working capital requirements.

Commenting on the success of the IPO, Alan Finlay, chief executive of Microsaic Systems plc, said:“We are delighted with the outcome of our roadshow with institutional shareholders. The level of interest and enthusiasm endorses our investment proposition and supports our strategic objective of becoming a key player in the multi-billion dollar scientific instrumentation market.”