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Literacy Capital plc issued a Q3 Portfolio Update on 2 October 2026. The company expects the value of its Cubo Work holding (£24.4m at 30 June, 8.6% of NAV) to be reduced to zero in the valuation as at the end of September 2026. As of 30 September 2026, Literacy's Revolving Credit Facility was drawn £18.7m with £2.0m cash, and total net asset value is not expected to be less than £270 million, a decline of less than 5.0% in Q3.
| Date | 2 Oct 2026 |
| Time | 07:00:03 |
| Category | Corporate updates |
| ID | 3107X |
The information contained in this announcement is restricted and is not for publication, release or distribution in the United States of America, any member state of the European Economic Area, Canada, Australia, Japan or the Republic of South Africa.
2 October 2026
Literacy Capital plc
Q3 Portfolio Update
Literacy Capital plc ("Literacy", "BOOK" or the "Company"), a listed investment trust primarily focused on investing directly into private UK businesses, today issues a portfolio update in respect of its Q3 performance.
In the Q2 Factsheet, commentary was provided that several BOOK portfolio holdings were trading well, with this increasing momentum likely to benefit NAV performance. Additionally, the focus on M&A by certain portfolio companies was referred to as a continuing priority.
This effort and momentum has resulted in positive developments across the majority of portfolio companies; however, recent events at Cubo Work have proved to be a disappointing outlier.
Portfolio overview:
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RCI Group ("RCI"), Literacy's largest asset, continued to trade positively in Q3. RCI has completed two acquisitions so far this year, with the latest transaction (a carve-out completed in July 2026) trading ahead of plan. A new Group CFO also joined in August, with relevant sector and transaction experience. |
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Techpoint also completed a significant bolt-on acquisition in September 2026, of a well-invested business with an attractive customer base. Simultaneously, Techpoint was also refinanced with a new lender, meaning this purchase was funded without further investment from Literacy. |
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Velociti continues to trade solidly with the integration of its latest bolt-on acquisition completed in April 2026, ACS Software ("ACS"), progressing positively. ACS is a provider of fleet asset management and compliance software based in Ireland. This was Velociti's first acquisition since Literacy sold most of its majority stake in July 2025 and is also Velociti's first acquisition outside the UK. |
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Several issues have become apparent at Cubo Work ("Cubo") in recent weeks, which the team at BOOK's investment manager has been working hard to understand and remedy. We believe it is prudent to expect that the value of Literacy's holding in Cubo will be reduced to zero in the next valuation of the portfolio as at the end of September 2026. Cubo is an outlier in the portfolio. Firstly, it is one of just two Literacy holdings where the founder is CEO and majority shareholder - the other being Kernel, in which BOOK sold most of its stake in 2023. Secondly, it also did not generate positive operating cashflow due to its historical expansion and site roll-out strategy. The most recent BOOK valuation of Cubo at 30 June of £24.4m represented 40.6p per share, or 8.6% of NAV. |
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Red Sky Food Group ("Red Sky") continued its strong performance in Q3, with several new sales wins across both existing customers and new ones. There are plans underway to increase capacity at both of its existing manufacturing sites, in Wales and East London, to accommodate additional volume and new business wins. In addition to this organic growth, Red Sky is also continuing to look at acquisition opportunities. |
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BOOK's other holdings, both inside and outside the top ten, have also generally traded well. The performance of companies highlighted in recent factsheets (e.g. Grayce and Trinitatum) continue to show encouraging momentum. |
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BOOK retains significant liquidity, with the extension of the Revolving Credit Facility ("RCF") announced on 3 August, and covenant headroom. This amendment extended the term of the RCF to September 2029 and increased the committed element of the facility to £50m. On 30 September 2026, the RCF was drawn £18.7m, with £2.0m held in cash. |
Commenting on the Q3 performance, CEO of BOOK's investment manager, Richard Pindar, said:
"As had been alluded to in the Q2 factsheet released on 27 July, several portfolio companies entered the quarter trading positively and well positioned to contribute towards growth in BOOK's NAV. We had expected Q3 to deliver the strongest quarterly NAV performance for at least 18 months, if not three years.
It is unfortunate and regrettable that the developments at Cubo will mitigate the positive developments in other portfolio companies and the efforts of the management teams of these businesses.
Despite this, total net asset value is not currently expected to be less than £270 million as at 30 September 2026, which would equate to a decline, after all costs and expenses, of less than 5.0% in Q3.
We will provide further information when we are able to do so but we are confident that the issues affecting Cubo are isolated to this holding, with BOOK's remaining portfolio companies performing solidly and being well led by honest, capable management teams."
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For further information, please contact:
Literacy Capital plc / Book Asset Management LLP
Richard Pindar / Aasha Tailor
+44 (0) 20 3960 0280
MHP Group
Reg Hoare / Ollie Hoare / Matthew Taylor
+44 (0) 7817 458 804
Deutsche Numis
Hugh Jonathan / George Shiel
+44 (0) 20 7260 1000
About Literacy Capital plc
Literacy Capital (BOOK.L) is a closed-end investment company that was co-founded by Paul Pindar and Richard Pindar in 2017 with £54m of capital. Literacy listed on the London Stock Exchange in June 2021, before gaining Investment Trust status on 1 April 2022. The Company focuses on opportunities to invest for the long-term in growing private businesses where a clear route to creating additional value can be seen with its support.
It also has a unique charitable objective, to donate 0.5% of annual NAV to charities focused on improving UK literacy in children. £13.5m has been donated or reserved for donation to charities since the trust's creation in 2017. For more information, please visit our website: www.literacycapital.com.
A copy of this announcement will be available on the Company's website at www.literacycapital.com.
The information contained in this announcement regarding the Company's investments has been provided by the relevant underlying portfolio company and has not been independently verified by the Company. The information contained herein is unaudited.
This announcement is for information purposes only and is not an offer to invest. All investments are subject to risk. Past performance is no guarantee of future returns. Prospective investors are advised to seek expert legal, financial, tax and other professional advice before making any investment decision. The value of investments may fluctuate. Results achieved in the past are no guarantee of future results. Neither the content of the Company's website, nor the content on any website accessible from hyperlinks on its website for any other website, is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement nor, unless previously published by means of a recognised information service, should any such content be relied upon in reaching a decision as to whether or not to acquire, continue to hold, or dispose of, securities in the Company.
LEI: 2549006P3DFN5HLFGR54