26 February 2026

Connecting Excellence Group Plc

("Connecting Excellence Group", "XCE", the "Group" or the "Company")

H1 2026 Trading Update

Net Fee Income up 20.3% supported by a 12.7% rise in average fee per placement

Connecting Excellence Group Plc (AQSE: XCE / OTCQB: XCELF), the international executive recruitment group with a long term, ambitious and disciplined Bitcoin (BTC) treasury strategy, announces a trading update for the six-month period ended 31 December 2025 ("H1 2026" or the "Period").

During the Period, Spencer Riley, the Group's operational business, generated net fee income of £0.89m, up 20.3% on the comparable period (H1 2025: £0.74m), reflecting a 12.7% increase in the average fee per placement. Since the Period end, executive recruitment activity has been strong, with the Group achieving its best January performance to date with £0.25m of net fee income.

In December 2025, XCE successfully completed its IPO and joined the Access segment of the Aquis Stock Exchange Growth Market, raising gross proceeds of £3.3m. In February 2026, XCE's shares also commenced trading on the OTCQB market as part of the Group's strategy to broaden its shareholder base and enhance stock liquidity.

Since its IPO, and as part of the Group's wider BTC treasury strategy, XCE has purchased 33.15 BTC for a total consideration of £2.2m, utilising the IPO funds as well as an additional £64,000 from free cash flow. In January, the Group launched its XCE BTC Bond, with the first tranche issued for 10 BTC. Adding to the 9.27 BTC the Group held prior to its IPO, XCE currently holds 52.42 BTC in its BTC treasury.

The Group looks forward to publishing its interim accounts in the latter half of March 2026.

Scott Ellam, Chief Executive Officer of Connecting Excellence Group, commented: "We are pleased to report a strong first half, with net fee income increasing by 20.3% year-on-year, supported by a 12.7% rise in average fee per placement and our strategic focus on higher-value mandates. The record January performance since the Period end provides encouraging momentum entering the second half.

"Our successful IPO and admission to the Aquis Exchange marked an important milestone, strengthening our balance sheet and enabling further progress in our long-term Bitcoin treasury strategy. We remain firmly focused on delivering cashflow growth in our international executive recruitment business and enhancing our Bitcoin treasury strategy. We look forward to updating shareholders with our interim results next month."

About Connecting Excellence Group Plc ("XCE"):

XCE is an international executive recruitment group with a long term, ambitious and disciplined Bitcoin treasury strategy. The flagship recruitment company, Spencer Riley, places senior executives with clients globally across a number of high growth markets including engineering, logistics, life sciences, automation, tech, professional services and B2B services.

The Bitcoin treasury strategy sets the foundation for the Company's scalable recruitment business to attract and retain high performing talent with individual performance linked share option incentives to increase revenue, profit and cashflows. In the future, XCE can also expand market share through strategic acquisitions, at very little cash cost, using performance-based equity incentives to provide immediate and ongoing shareholder value. XCE is also building a dedicated Bitcoin executive recruitment division, enabling executives to find their role within either Bitcoin businesses or traditional businesses looking for Bitcoin talent worldwide and accelerating corporate education, integration and adoption of Bitcoin.

Website: xce.io

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The Directors of the Company accept responsibility for the contents of this announcement.

Important Notice: 

Connecting Excellence Group PLC holds treasury reserves and surplus cash in Bitcoin. Bitcoin is a type of digital asset. Whilst the Board of Directors of the Company considers holding Bitcoin to be in the best interests of the Company, the Board remains aware that the financial regulator in the UK (the Financial Conduct Authority or FCA) considers investment in Bitcoin to be high risk.

At the outset, it is important to note that an investment in the Company is not an investment in Bitcoin, either directly or by proxy. However, the Board of Directors of the Company consider Bitcoin to be an appropriate store of value and growth for the Company's reserves and, accordingly, the Company is materially exposed to Bitcoin. Such an approach is innovative, and the Board of Directors of the Company wish to be clear and transparent with prospective and actual investors in the Company on the Company's position in this regard.

The Company is neither authorised nor regulated by the FCA. And Bitcoin is unregulated in the UK. As with most other investments, the value of Bitcoin can go down as well as up, and therefore the value of the Company's Bitcoin holdings can fluctuate. The Company may not be able to realise its Bitcoin exposure for the same value as it paid in the first place or even for the value the Company ascribes to its Bitcoin positions due to these market movements. And because Bitcoin is unregulated, the Company is not protected by the UK's Financial Ombudsman Service or the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.

However, Bitcoin is formally recognised as personal property in the UK under the new Property (Digital Assets etc) Act 2025, which received Royal Assent on December 2, 2025. This legislation has removed previous legal uncertainty by establishing a new, third category of personal property to accommodate digital assets that do not fit traditional definitions.

The Board of Directors of the Company with a history of a Bitcoin treasury prior to becoming a public company, has taken the decision to invest in Bitcoin, and in doing so is mindful of the special risks Bitcoin presents to the Company's financial position. These risks include (but are not limited to): (i) the value of Bitcoin can be highly volatile, with value dropping as quickly as it can rise; (ii) the Bitcoin market is largely unregulated - there is a risk of losing money due to risks such as cyber-attacks, financial crime and counterparty failure; (iii) the Company may not be able to sell its Bitcoin at will - the ability to sell Bitcoin depends on various factors, including the supply and demand in the market at the relevant time, with operational failings such as technology outages, cyber-attacks and comingling of funds potentially causing unwanted delay. The Board of Directors of the Company does not subscribe to such a negative view, and therefore ascribes to the 'Bitcoin, not crypto' mantra and has a 'Bitcoin only ethos'. However, prospective investors in the Company are encouraged to do their own research and verify before investing.