TMT Investments PLC Disposal of investment in VitalFields
23 November 2016 - 8:37PM
RNS Non-Regulatory
TIDMTMT
TMT Investments PLC
23 November 2016
23 November 2016
TMT INVESTMENTS PLC
("TMT" or the "Company")
Disposal of investment in VitalFields
TMT Investments PLC, the AIM-traded venture capital company
investing in high-growth, internet-based companies across a variety
of core specialist sectors, is pleased to announce that The Climate
Corporation, a subsidiary of Monsanto Company, has acquired
VitalFields, one of its portfolio companies.
The acquisition by Monsanto represents the ninth profitable exit
by TMT from its investment portfolio since its admission to AIM in
December 2010.
Incorporated in Tallinn, Estonia, WeatherMe OÜ, trading as
VitalFields, simplifies the many farming tasks involved with
spraying, fertilizing and sowing thanks to its app and web
interfaces. Examples of the multiple capabilities that VitalFields
offers to farmers include plant disease and growth phase modelling
(tracking climatic patterns and analyzing farmer's input to assess
risks) and farm management functionality (from planning and
managing farm activities to stock management and P&L
reports).
TMT originally invested EUR100,000 in the form of a convertible
note in VitalFields in December 2013, which it subsequently
converted into equity when VitalFields raised further capital in
2015.
Alexander Selegenev, executive director of TMT, commented:
"Assessing viable exit opportunities for our investments is a
fundamental part of our investment strategy. Across all industry
sectors, large corporations are acquiring nimble start-ups that
have demonstrated their ability to build significant customer bases
thanks to dramatic product improvements, be it through better data
management, ease of use or making it more efficient to do the same
job."
Alexander Selegenev added: "We see that the more likely
acquisition targets for major corporations are companies combining
outstanding management with leading technology and business
solutions. This is why we place a special emphasis on the founders'
team when investing, as top class management will have the ability
to develop leading products that outshine their peers and attract
the attention of acquirers. We are very pleased to see that one of
the world's leading agricultural sciences companies has further
validated our exit strategy".
TMT has invested in over 40 companies to date, mainly in the
SaaS, Big Data, E-commerce and Mobile sectors. Previous exits from
TMT's investment portfolio to major corporations include the sale
of task management app Astrid to Yahoo in May 2013 and the sale of
creative photo sharing app Kanvas to AOL in April 2015.
For further information contact:
TMT Investments Plc +44 1534 281 843
Alexander Selegenev alexander.selegenev@tmtinvestments.com
www.tmtinvestments.com
Kinlan Communications Tel. +44 20 7638 3435
David Hothersall davidh@kinlan.net
About TMT Investments
TMT Investments PLC invests in high-growth, internet-based
companies across a variety of core specialist sectors and has a
significant number of Silicon Valley investments in its portfolio.
Founded in 2010, TMT has net assets of US$53m and has invested in
over 40 companies to date. The company's objective is to generate
an attractive rate of return for shareholders, predominantly
through capital appreciation. The company is traded on the AIM
market of the London Stock Exchange. www.tmtinvestments.com
About VitalFields
WeatherMe OÜ, which trades as VitalFields, is incorporated in
Tallinn, Estonia and is a digital agriculture company offering an
easy-to-use farm management system for farmers to plan, manage and
analyze their field activities, including simplified tracking and
reporting of all crop inputs to help ensure compliance with
European Union environmental standards. Founded in 2011 VitalFields
is available in seven European countries: Austria, Estonia,
Germany, Poland, Romania, Switzerland and Ukraine. For more
information, please visit www.vitalfields.com.
About Monsanto Company
Monsanto is committed to bringing a broad range of solutions to
help nourish our growing world. We produce seeds for fruits,
vegetables and key crops - such as corn, soybeans, and cotton -
that help farmers have better harvests while using water and other
important resources more efficiently. We work to find sustainable
solutions for soil health, help farmers use data to improve farming
practices and conserve natural resources, and provide crop
protection products to minimize damage from pests and disease.
Through programs and partnerships, we collaborate with farmers,
researchers, nonprofit organizations, universities and others to
help tackle some of the world's biggest challenges. For more
information, please visit discover.monsanto.com and
monsanto.com.
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
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November 23, 2016 04:37 ET (09:37 GMT)