CMON Limited has raised around US$10 million en route to a public listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange’s Growth Enterprise Market, (GEM) which kicks off December 2 (Hong Kong time).  The funds were raised through a private placement prior to the public listing. 

The Hong Kong Stock Exchange GEM is for smaller growth companies that might not be ready for listing on the regular exchange.  In that way it’s similar to the London AIM (Alternative Investment Market); there is no U.S. equivalent.

The Sole Sponsor of the new listing was China Galaxy International, and the Sole Bookrunner and Sole Lead Manager for the raise was Koala Securities Limited. 

The new investors acquired about 19% of the company, leaving controlling shareholders of the company the same.  Employees, decision-making, and company management are also unchanged. 

CMON has been preparing for this step for some time, raising $5.3 million earlier this year in a Series A round (not included in the new raise) from a company that specializes in pre-IPO financing (see “CMON Raises $5.3 Million”).  CMON has also refined its branding this year, relegating its old CoolMiniOrNot brand to its community site and creating new designs for the CMON brand, which is now used on its games (see “CMON Rebrands Company”).

CMON CEO Chern Ann Ng laid out the path to the public listing.  “We began laying the groundwork for this to happen in 2014, and this monumental achievement would not have been possible without the herculean efforts of the CMON family and outstanding support from the tabletop gaming community at large,” he said. 

According to the listing document, the company has been on a growth tear in recent years, with $12.6 million in sales in 2014, growing to $17.2 million in 2015.  Both years were profitable, with $2.6 million in net earnings in 2014 and $1.8 million in 2015 earnings. 

The new funds will be used to grow staff, expand into new geographic markets, and acquire new titles, licenses, and properties, the company said, referencing three divisions:  board games, digital games, and miniature games. 

The company noted two major upcoming tabletop releases for 2017 (both designed by Eric Lang), The Godfather:  The Board Game (see “Eric Lang’s ‘Godfather’ Board Game”) and Rising Sun (see “Eric Lang’s ‘Rising Sun’”), and a digital version of Zombicide.

ICv2 interviewed CMON CEO Chern Ann Ng for more on the new public listing and the company’s plans (see “ICv2 Interview:  CMON Limited CEO Chern Ann Ng”).