VANCOUVER, BRITISH
COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - May 19, 2010) - British Columbia Discovery Fund (VCC)
Inc.
is very pleased to announce that its portfolio company, Vivonet Inc.,
has completed a treasury and secondary offering of shares for gross proceeds of
US$8.5 million. Based on the purchase price for the shares, the aggregate gain
on BC Discovery Fund's investment in Vivonet is approximately $900,000. The increase to
the Fund's share value, or Pricing Net Asset Value per Share, attributable to
this Vivonet transaction is approximately $0.14 per share, or an approximate
increase of 2.0%. The financing was completed with Vancouver-based private
equity capital firm, Maxam Opportunities Fund LP, with Capital West Partners
having acted as financial advisor to Vivonet for the transaction.
Established in
1999, Vivonet is the restaurant industry leader in software as a service
(SaaS) solutions that enable, acquire and organize over one hundred million
transactions every month for customers in Canada and the United States. Vivonet provides Halo Secure Web Based point-of-sale (POS) and on-demand enterprise
management, POS, payment processing and performance benchmarking solutions for
its customers. Vivonet's unique ability to aggregate the transaction data
created by its customers allows their customers to benchmark their performance
against other users and the industry at large, leading to better performance
and higher business success rates. Vivonet expects to over double revenue in
2010 and for the fourth consecutive year has made the Ready to Rocket 25
list, recognizing Vancouver's highest growth companies.
"This financing
provides Vivonet with capital to fund its explosive growth, and to execute on
several market disrupting opportunities," said Vivonet CEO, Ryan Volberg. "Discovery
Capital, through BC Discovery Fund, has been an invaluable partner of Vivonet
and Maxam's local presence, entrepreneurial background and substantial
resources make them an ideal additional partner for the Vivonet team."
"It is gratifying
to see Vivonet gaining traction on a number of fronts, and growing from a small
group of dedicated individuals to a team of technology and marketing
professionals that are enabling the company to be a leading global player,"
remarked Charles Cook, CFO and Investment Manager of the Fund. "We
congratulate Ryan and his team and look forward to the next chapter of Vivonet's
exciting growth story."
About British Columbia Discovery
Fund (VCC) Inc.
British Columbia Discovery Fund
(VCC) Inc. was established to make venture capital investments in a portfolio
of small businesses in British Columbia that qualify under the Small Business
Venture Capital Act, focusing on all of
B.C.'s top internationally recognized technology clusters; information
technology (software and hardware), mobile technology (wireless and networking
solutions), clean technology (alternative energy and energy-saving technology
solutions), new media and health and life sciences.
Established in 2002 and managed by Discovery
Capital Management Corp., the Fund is focussed on making diversified
investments in British Columbia with the objectives of achieving long-term
capital appreciation for its shareholders and contributing to the growth in
value and employment of the technology industry in British Columbia. In
addition to offering a means of participating in the potential of British Columbia's newest technology ventures, the Fund offers significant tax savings to
eligible British Columbia individual and corporate investors. The Fund, which
offers its shares on a continuous basis, has raised over $65 million to date and
has investments in fifteen developing technology companies. B.C. resident
investors are entitled to receive a tax credit equal to 30% of the amount
invested in the Fund. To obtain further information about the Fund, please
contact a registered advisor or visit www.sedar.com or www.bcdiscoveryfund.com.
John McEwen, CEO, B.C.
Discovery Fund (VCC) Inc.
Harry Jaako, President, B.C. Discovery Fund (VCC) Inc.
This press release
is not an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy common shares. This
press release may include statements about expected future events and/or
financial results that are forward-looking in nature and subject to risks and
uncertainties. The issuer cautions that actual performance will be affected by
a number of factors, many of which are beyond its control. Future events and
results may vary substantially from what the issuer currently foresees.