Benton Capital Signs Engagement Agreement With Jacob Securities Inc. to Raise Up to $5 Million
THUNDER BAY, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Jun 11, 2014) - Benton Capital Corp. (TSX VENTURE:BTC) ("Benton" or the "Company") is pleased to provide a further update to its April 14, 2014 news release wherein it announced that it had signed a binding letter of intent ("LOI") to acquire a 100% interest in Folium Life Science Inc. ("Folium"), a private medical marijuana company, with its head office located in Abbotsford, British Columbia (the "Transaction").
Benton has now signed an engagement agreement with Jacob Securities Inc. ("JSI") to arrange, on a best efforts basis, a financing of up to $5 million to be completed on or before August 15, 2014 (the "Financing"). The Financing shall be completed at a minimum price of $0.25 per unit subsequent to a 2:1 consolidation of Benton's shares (the "Consolidation"), each unit consisting of one common share and one half of a share purchase warrant exercisable at $0.50 for 24 months. The warrants will have a 30 day acceleration clause if the VWAP of the Company's common shares is $0.75 or greater for 10 days. The proceeds from the financing will be held in trust until the closing of the Transaction.
As contemplated in the LOI, Benton has now entered into a formal share exchange agreement to give effect to the Transaction. Pursuant to the terms of the share exchange agreement which supersedes the LOI (the "Share Exchange Agreement"), Benton will acquire all of the shares of Folium from the Folium shareholders in exchange for 13.5 million common shares of Benton post Consolidation resulting in Folium becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of Benton.
A summary of the key terms and timelines for completion of the Transaction are as follows (some of which have already been achieved):
Benton filing for review its listing statement to list on the Canadian Securities Exchange ("CSE"), which filing has been completed.
Benton arranging the Financing to be conducted by JSI which, as announced herein, is in progress.
Folium signing the exclusive licensing agreements with Medicalmaijuana.ca and the Greenleaf Medical Clinic Inc., both of which have a considerable history in the medical marijuana sector and have developed significant data bases applicable to the sector, which license agreements were signed effective May 27, 2014.
Benton completing and publishing its Information Circular containing the material in support of the plan of arrangement (the "Plan of Arrangement") pursuant to which the Company will divest, on a pro rata basis to its current shareholders, the 61 million Coro Mining Corp. shares it holds and disclosing that it has received an order from the Supreme Court of British Columbia dated June 6, 2014, authorizing the company to convene an annual and special meeting of its shareholders on July 8, 2014.
Benton holding the annual and special meeting of its shareholders, which is currently scheduled for July 8, 2014, and for its shareholders to approve the Plan of Arrangement, the Consolidation, the change of name and the Transaction, with the required voting approval thresholds being met for each such matter.
Upon Benton receiving shareholder approval, it will then need to obtain the final order of the Supreme Court of British Columbia approving the matters described in the Plan of Arrangement.
In conjunction with the closing of the Transaction Benton will complete the Consolidation and the Financing and then issue 13.5 million shares to acquire Folium.
Fonda Betts, President and CEO of Folium will be appointed to the position of President and CEO of the Company following the closing of the Transaction and;
Benton Capital Corp. will change its name to Folium Life Science Ltd. on closing of the Transaction.
The closing of the Transaction is subject to obtaining all applicable regulatory and shareholder approvals.
Stephen Stares, Company President and CEO commented "We are very pleased with our progress and the positive reception we have received from the financial institutions and corporations that have been introduced to the Transaction. The Company looks forward to working with Jacob Securities Inc. as they have an exceptional understanding of the medical marijuana space and represent a significant opportunity for us to build the right team to be very successful in this new sector. We believe that the Folium Life Science team will be a leading medical marijuana producer, seller and educator in all aspects of this emerging medical marijuana market.
About Jacob Securities Inc.
Jacob Securities Inc. is an independent full-service investment bank providing underwriting and financial advisory services to companies in the renewable power, infrastructure, energy and mining sectors. The firm, which is headquartered in Toronto, primarily services small and mid-cap issuers in North America and around the world.
About Folium Life Science Inc.:
Folium Life Science Inc. is a private company incorporated under the Business Corporations Act (British Columbia), which is in the business of creating a facility for the production and distribution of medical marijuana with the intention of ultimately becoming a Licensed Commercial Producer pursuant to the Health Canada's Marihuana for Medical Purpose Regulations (MMPR). Folium's head office is located in Abbotsford, British Columbia. Folium has planned and negotiated for a medical marijuana production and distribution facility outside of Victoria, BC. Folium's application to be issued a "Ready to Build" letter entitling it to build a production facility for the growing of medical marijuana, under Health Canada's Marihuana for Medical Purpose Regulations (MMPR) is currently under final review by Health Canada.
About Benton Capital Corp.:
The Company currently has approximately $1.5 million in cash. In addition to the cash, the Company holds 61,000,000 shares (approximately 38%) of Coro Mining Corp. ("Coro"). The Company also holds 1,566,623 warrants of Coro exercisable at $0.15 until December 20, 2016. In addition, Benton holds no debt and has a very low burn rate.
On behalf of the Board of Directors of Benton Capital Corp,
Stephen Stares, President and CEO
THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE HAS NOT REVIEWED AND DOES NOT ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE.
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