Small caps round-up: Allergy, XCAP, Totally...

3rd Aug 2012 11:45

Allergy Therapeutics, a specialist pharmaceutical company focused on allergy vaccination, has welcomed the Food and Drugs Association's decision to lift the clinical hold on the company's grass pollen allergy vaccine clinical development programme, with immediate effect. Allergy has gained approval to progress with a Phase III efficacy study of its ultra-short course allergy vaccines and is now focused on securing a partner to commercialise the vaccine in the US. Finance house XCAP has appointed Sir Peter Middleton as its Non-Executive Chairman. Middleton is UK Chairman of Marsh & McLennan Companies, and of the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution. He was also Chairman of Camelot Group from 2004 to 2010. ""Sir Peter's experience speaks for itself and the board is delighted to be able to draw on his colossal experience and expertise in the financial services industry," the firm said.Totally, a digital health and software development company, has entered into a strategic partnership agreement with M&C Saatchi Mobile, to assist in the delivery of the £1.6m national NHS Shared Decision Making contract that Totally secured in February 2012. The company said it fully expects that the partnership will strengthen future tender bids with the NHS, which include a mobile requirement.Software firm Silanis International has reported 'significant' progress in the current financial year and since the beginning of 2012 the e-SL business has added new named paying customers at a month over month growth rate greater than 25%. The insurance carriers which use its private cloud offerings have more than doubled their commitments going forward and service providers running its solutions are experiencing material growth in their user transactions. The majority of these new revenues are beginning to materialise in the second half of 2012 and are expected to build materially thereafter, while revenues for the first half will be below those seen in the same period the previous year. EMED Mining, the Europe-based minerals development and exploration company, has entered into a sale and purchase agreement with Inland Treading over a €5.0m purchase of the last land plot required for planned operations of the Rio Tinto Copper Mine (which has no connection with Rio Tinto plc). The acquisition is required in order to restart and maintain production at the mine and satisfies all of the project's needs for tailings deposition from proposed operations along with the potential expansion thereof in the shorter term. The firm has also been granted an option by Inland and Construcciones Zeitung to acquire additional plots of land in the surrounding district. MBL Group has warned that although the on-going downsizing of the company has, to a large extent, reduced the losses during the second half of the year, it is anticipated that the full year loss will be higher than the interim loss. This is partly the result of costs incurred in the management of the wind down of the operations and the resulting asset realisations. The entertainment products distributor said it continues to have sufficient cash funds available to meet working capital needs will continue to pursue a strategy to develop its business as a direct to consumer retailer. NR