Fuse Minerals IPO fizzles

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ANTHONY KLAN

A “minerals exploration” company being heavily spruiked by anti-Indigenous Voice campaigner Warren Mundine has been shunned by investors, with Fuse Minerals forced to scrap plans to list on the ASX later this month.

The company — which has never conducted any minerals exploration and never earned a cent in revenue — had sought to raise up to $10 million from the public ahead of a planned ASX listing on December 18.

Its two-week initial public offer was due to close Monday, but a lack of interest has forced it to extend the period five-fold, issuing a “supplementary prospectus” and pushing the close date to February 8.

“The Board wishes to advise that the Closing date of the Offer has been extended until 5pm (ADST) on Thursday, 8 February 2024,” says a statement from Fuse Minerals managing director Todd Axford.

The company must raise at least $6m to go ahead with the offer, or return any money it has raised.

Abandoned – the timeline in the November 20 prospectus. Source: Fuse Minerals

It is the second major blow to Mundine’s mining and resources career in less than a week, after shareholders issued a “strike” against the remuneration report of uranium exploration company Aura Energy, of which he is a director.

“It is the second major blow to Mundine’s mining and resources career in less than a week”

Mundine was appointed chair of Fuse Minerals in March, and is set to be paid $120,000 a year for the part-time role if the raising goes ahead. He also has 500,000 shares and 2 million options in the company.

Fuse Minerals is seeking to raise between $6m and $10m at 20c a share.

The company had net current assets of just $178,749 at June 30, its prospectus shows.

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Mundine spruiks Fuse Minerals on major radio stations Friday. Source: 3AW

Suggesting the raising had not been going well, last Friday — one business day before the offer was due to close — Mundine appeared spruiking the company in paid radio segments syndicated on Sydney’s 2GB, Melbourne’s 3AW and Perth’s 6PR.

A promo for the “Bulls N’ Bears Report”, a syndicated “sponsored public company news” segment states Fuse’s “upcoming ASX listing” will “focus on some outstanding old exploration results that were never followed up properly”.

The Voice “No” campaign was bankrolled by a handful of super-rich. Source: The Klaxon

Mundine, who along with Jacinta Price led the Voice “No” campaign, aggressively railed against so-called “elites” in pushing to defeat the referendum.

The “No” campaign, which was comprised of a shadowy network of entities centred around Advance Aus Ltd, had deep ties to mining and fossil fuels.

An arm of Advance, called “Not Zero”, actively spreads climate disinformation.

Source: Not Zero/Advance

Last Wednesday struggling ASX-listed Aura Energy received a “strike” against its remuneration report, with it opposed by 33% of votes, well above a red-line threshold of 25%.

A second strike next year will force a shareholder vote on whether to spill the entire Aura Energy board.

Despite posting multi-million dollar losses, the company has awarded directors, including Mundine, over $2m in remuneration, including millions of “loan funded shares”.

As previously reported, Mundine has been given at least $403,000 in reported remuneration since starting as Aura Energy director in December 2021, a part-time role.

(Its audited accounts state $2.47m in “share-based payments” to “directors, executives and senior consultants” were a “primary driver” of its $6.8m loss in the year to June 30).

The 402-page Fuse Minerals prospectus states the offer is “highly speculative”, and shows the company, registered in September 2021, has never earned a cent in revenue or conducted any significant minerals exploration.

The company says it plans to search for “yet to be discovered copper, nickel, silver, lead, zinc, uranium and gold deposits” in WA and Queensland.

Strike against Aura Energy’s remuneration report. Source: The Klaxon

Mundine began heavily spruiking the company, and its “upcoming IPO”, shortly after the October 14 Voice referendum, including holding an “IPO Lunch Presentation” in both Perth and Sydney.

“Sold out yesterday!” Mundine posted to social media regarding the Sydney event.

“Love the support from everyone. We have changed venues to accommodate everyone”.

In the prospectus, dated November 20, Mundine states: “I am pleased to present this prospectus and to invite you to become a shareholder”.

“I am pleased to present this prospectus and to invite you to become a shareholder” — Warren Mundine

Mundine’s 2 million options in Fuse Minerals have an “exercise price” of 33.4c, giving him the option to buy up to 2m shares in the company at 33.4c each, regardless of the share price at the time.

Mundine’s 500,000 shares would rank equally with the shares issued under the raising, if it proceeds, the prospectus shows.

If the raising does not proceed, Mundine’s shares and options will be effectively worthless.