Katalysen Ventures publishes report for the Third Quarter 2024

Katalysen Ventures AB (publ) hereby publishes the report for the Third Quarter 2024. The full report is available immediately as an attached document, and on the company's website. Below is a summary of the report.

KPIs at End of Period:

• Number of ventures in portfolio at end of period: 26 (26)
• Estimated portfolio market value at end of period: 144 MSEK (147 MSEK)
• Cash resources in bank at end of period: 0.1 MSEK (3.6 MSEK), with additional cash added after the period

General Financial KPIs:

Important events during the period:

Important events after the period:

10-04: Katalysen announced that it has continued to increase its stake in InvitePeople. Katalysens total stake in InvitePeople is now approximately 16.9% of which around 14.8% is through shares. Katalysen is expecting both significant short- and long-term results from its investment in InvitePeople, a leader in hybrid event software for enterprises. With over 100 clients, including major brands like IKEA and Deutsche Bahn, and a strong presence in the Swedish and German markets, InvitePeople is well-positioned for growth and the ongoing consolidation in the event software industry.

Report from CEO Peter Almberg

During Q3, we continued to split our time between hands-on support for our current portfolio ventures, and the development of new transactions using our updated venture developer approach. While cash remains scarce, our expertise as early-stage investors has allowed us to navigate this challenge effectively. Whilst on hold for more material exits, we are moving closer to a better liquidity position and self-financing by making smaller asset sales from the portfolio, and via the early exercising of Katalysen warrants by investors. This has helped strengthen our cash position after the end of the Q3 period, though liquidity remains a constraint.

It is worth repeating that our evaluation of ventures today centers on four key themes, which combine to create so-called special situation opportunities:

• Financial Stress: Ventures and their key stakeholders often face financial stress, leading to conflict and stalling cooperation. We work to alleviate these stresses, resolve conflicts, and restore collaborative momentum.
• Collaboration: Often, ventures lack effective collaboration, limiting their potential. We strive to foster collaboration between existing and new stakeholders, underpinned by shared interests.
• Filling Expertise Gaps: Ventures frequently need specialized skills or an entrepreneurial boost. We deliver critical expertise through our own team, and our network of experts, co-developers, and co-investors.
• Removing Barriers: High-potential companies often benefit more when their investors focus on “removing barriers to growth” rather than “creating conditions for growth,” and we help unlock these paths to profitability.

In Q3, our portfolio value decreased by 2.3% to 144 MSEK, primarily due to dilution in one venture and revised market valuation multiples applied to two others. For the dilution event, Katalysen chose not to participate in a recent share issue, instead directing capital toward opportunities with greater long-term potential. While this decision had a short-term impact on portfolio value, it is encouraging to see the venture secure independent funding. Regarding the two ventures affected by updated valuation multiples, we want to clarify that the adjustments stem from new market valuation data, not from the operational performance of the ventures, which remains strong. 

During Q3, we also strengthened our position in InvitePeople (Matchmeeting AB), acquiring additional shares and warrants. As a leader in hybrid event software, InvitePeople serves over 100 clients, including IKEA and Deutsche Bahn, and maintains a robust presence in Sweden and Germany. The company is well-positioned to benefit from growth and consolidation within the event software sector.

We also welcomed Legalbuddy to the portfolio, a Swedish legal-tech leader offering a comprehensive legal platform tailored for SMEs. After Q3, Legalbuddy reached a significant milestone by partnering with Administer, Finland’s top provider of financial management services, marking their expansion into the Finnish market.

Our portfolio ventures, Flinker and Sharpfin, continue to thrive through strategic partnerships. Flinker has partnered with Nordiska (https://www.nordiska.se/en/), and Sharpfin with Fondo (https://fondo.se/en/), broadening their reach and enhancing their offerings. These alliances reflect Katalysen’s commitment to scaling impactful solutions through partnerships that yield long-term value.

QuTEM and S4DX, two recent additions acquired via Venture Targeter transactions, continue to show promising progress. QuTEM remains on target with our forecasts (even breaking sales records in October), and S4DX is consistently outperforming projections. We expect these ventures to contribute significant value to our portfolio in the next 12 months.

In Q2, we created and initiated a management buyout case to acquire a stake in a profitable, fast-growing financial company from a major shareholder of the financial company (the major shareholder being in liquidation). This transaction is proceeding as expected, with more details anticipated by year-end.

Together with a well-established real estate company, we have also advanced our Property Targeter initiative in Sweden. Thorough due diligence has reinforced our belief that real estate presents a favorable environment for our expertise in venture development and experience in special situation investments. We hope to share further details on this promising initiative soon.

Key Highlights for the Period:

• Portfolio value decreased by 2.3% due to a dilution event and lower industry multiples in valuations.
• Streamlined operations continue to pay off. Compared to last year, Q3 saw group operating expenses decrease by 35% and personnel costs by 17%.
• Our deal pipeline remains robust, with several opportunities under evaluation.
• We increased our cash position after the period, however still constrained. 
• Multiple portfolio companies are in discussions with potential industry partners, buyers, and larger investors (such as VC and PE firms). We are actively engaged in these discussions, and confident that some of them will yield significantpositive outcomes.

I am proud of our incredible team and their dedication, and I feel confident that together we now have the right foundation in place to deliver significant positive results over the next 12 months. Thank you for your continued support!

This disclosure contains information that Katalysen Ventures AB is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation (EU nr 596/2014). The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact person, on 19-11-2024 07:47 CET.

For more information on Katalysen Ventures, please contact:
CEO Peter Almberg
Phone: +46 76 860 37 00
E-mail: contact@katalysen.com
Web: www.katalysen.com

About Katalysen Ventures: Katalysen Ventures, founded in 2016 in Stockholm, is a publicly listed venture developer focused on supporting entrepreneur-led ventures. We specialize in removing growth barriers by resolving financial stress, fostering collaboration, and providing specialized expertise through our network. With offices in Stockholm and Geneva, we strive to be the best-possible long-term partner for both our portfolio companies and co-investors, driving innovation and achieving exceptional returns.