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06Ambrian Capital plcAnnual Report & Accounts 2009Chief Executive’s report (continued)Ambrian Partners LimitedLeft to right:Richard BrownRichard ChaseCharlie BendonRanked1stHemscott and ThomsonReuters Extel – Small-capMetals & MiningCorporate Finance & EquitiesCorporate financeAmbrian Partners has built a strong franchise inproviding high value-added corporate finance advisoryservices with a particular focus on the metals andmining sector. Our corporate clients recogniseAmbrian Partners’ industry expertise, ability to handlecomplex multi-jurisdictional transactions andNominated Adviser (“Nomad”) services.Among the transactions on which Ambrian Partnersadvised during 2009 were the following:• Avocet Mining plc’s US$145 million acquisitionof Wega Mining ASA• Centamin Egypt plc’s £1.40 billion move to the OfficialList of the London Stock Exchange from AIM• Weatherly International plc’s US$33 million saleof its smelter assetsAmbrian Partners is the recognised leader in the AIMBasic Materials Sector and was ranked first by numberof retained corporate clients in the Hemscott FourthQuarter 2009 AIM Advisers Rankings Guide.Ambrian Partners’ strategy is to focus its resourceson a select group of retained Nomad and/or CorporateBroking clients which are of high quality, have highgrowth potential and offer Ambrian Partners thepotential to generate significant fees on a recurringbasis. At 31 December 2009, Ambrian Partners Limitedhad 32 retained corporate clients compared with42 at 31 December 2008. Ambrian Partners’ retainedquoted clients had an average market capitalisationof £104 million at 31 December 2009 compared withthe average market capitalisation of an AIM-listedcompany at that date of £44 million.Capital marketsBased on a reputation for bringing attractivecompanies to the market, Ambrian Partners hasbecome a key market intermediary for naturalresources companies seeking to raise capital inthe London market.In 2009, Ambrian Partners was involved in20 transactions that provided £292 million infinancing for growing companies.Among the fundraisings announced in 2009 in whichAmbrian Partners played a role were the following:• African Consolidated plc’s £10 million equity offering• Centamin Egypt plc’s C$69 million equity offering• Kalahari Minerals plc’s £17.9 million and £20.0 millionequity offerings• SeaEnergy plc’s £7.5 million equity offering• Sylvania Resources plc’s £10 million equity offeringEquitiesAmbrian Partners’ equities business performed wellin 2009 as a result of the rebound in equity marketsand, in particular, the sharp recovery in the juniornatural resources sector. The FTSE AIM BasicResources Index rose by 153% in 2009 after droppingby 73% in 2008.Ambrian Partners made significant progress in furtherstrengthening its institutional client base and improvingthe consistency of its research-driven brokeragerevenue. In 2009, revenue from institutional brokeragecommissions and commission sharing arrangements(CSAs) increased by 24%.Ambrian Partners’ equities team was ranked firstoverall in the UK small-cap metals and mining sectorin the 2009 Thomson Reuters Extel Survey.During the year, Ambrian Partners expanded its miningresearch coverage from the small- and mid-cap sectorto include the major London-listed mining companies.