Benchmark has raised £27.5 million and joined the stock market to invest in ‘high quality’ scientific research and development.
The business, which develops services in the food, agriculture, aquaculture and sustainability business sectors, reported revenues of £27.5 million and pre-tax profit of £4.3 million for the year ending 30 September 2013.
Benchmark currently has three divisions: Animal Health, Technical Publishing and Sustainability Science. Its business includes the development, manufacture and commercialisation of animal health vaccines, medicines, biocides and diagnostics.
It is hoped that the move to the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) will help the company to enter new segments which ‘fit synergistically with its existing businesses’.
Alongside the £27.5 million it has raised through the sale of new ordinary shares, existing shareholders have sold shares worth £17.6 million. According to a statement, the companied £45.1 million is the largest fundraising in the healthcare sector this year on AIM.
More on recent AIM admissions:
- Venture capital-backed Applied Graphene Materials picks AIM
- Charlie Muirhead’s Rightster debuts on AIM
- Reverse takeover for AIM-listed Trakm8
Malcolm Pye, CEO of Benchmark, says that the ‘quality and breadth’ of the new shareholder base is evidence of the confidence people have in the company.
‘Our goal has always been to become a world-leading specialist in the development of a sustainable food chain with a particular focus on the development of aquaculture health.
‘The AIM market will provide Benchmark with access to capital and tradable equity, enabling us to pursue a strong pipeline of potential new products and technologies and continue to build the group by acquisition.’
