London law firm advises £29m sustainable waste-to-energy firm on growth market debut

Laytons ETL, the City of London based law firm, has advised Hydrogen Utopia International PLC (HUI), also London based, on its admission to the AQSE Growth Market.

HUI plans to develop facilities around continental Europe which will turn non-recyclable waste plastic into carbon-free fuels, including hydrogen.

The Aquis Stock Exchange (AQSE) is a stock market for growth companies. It is regulated by the FCA in the UK and was known as the NEX Exchange until its acquisition by Aquis Exchange PLC in 2020.

HUI has been admitted to the “Access” segment of the AQSE Growth Market. The initial public offering raised gross proceeds of £3m and valued the business at approximately £28.8m.

The broker was Novum Securities Limited and the AQSE Corporate Adviser is Alfred Henry Corporate Finance Limited. The Alfred Henry team, with whom Laytons ETL worked closely, included director Jon Isaacs and legal consultant Maya Klein Wassink.

The legal team at Laytons ETL that advised HUI on the fundraising and its commercial agreements was led by Dimitri Iesini. It also included corporate partners Cameron Sunter and John Gavan, associate partner Katheryn Beasley, and trainee solicitors Li Ann Chew and Rachel Weir.

Dimitri commented: “The technology being promoted by HUI addresses two of society’s most urgent problems: how to dispose of non-recyclable plastic waste and how to produce clean, carbon-free fuels and energy. This fundraising will enable HUI to embark on the next stage of its business plan, and I look forward to watching its progress.

“The AQSE market is ideal for companies like HUI. It provides support for earlier-stage companies and its three-segment structure caters for growth businesses at various stages of their development.”

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