HATCHER GROUP has announced a share-based acquisition agreement, revealing plans to issue new shares as payment for a strategic investment in a technology firm.
The company entered into an agreement with seller Mr. Yip Wai Lam on September 14, 2026, under which it has conditionally agreed to acquire and the seller has conditionally agreed to sell the sales shares, representing a 20% equity interest in the target company, Zhenheng Intelligent Co., Ltd., for a consideration of HK$10 million. The payment will be satisfied through the allotment and issuance of 12.8205 million consideration shares at an issue price of HK$0.78 per share.
Upon completion of the acquisition, the target company will become an associate of the company. The 12.8205 million consideration shares represent approximately 6.45% of the company's issued share capital as of the date of this announcement, and approximately 6.06% of the company's issued share capital as enlarged by the allotment and issuance of the consideration shares.
The issue price of HK$0.78 per share represents a premium of approximately 0.65% over the closing price of HK$0.775 per share as quoted on the Stock Exchange on September 14, 2026, which was the date of the agreement.
The company has been actively seeking development opportunities to diversify its business operations and revenue streams. The directors believe that the acquisition provides the group with an opportunity to expand into the application of artificial intelligence within the professional financial services industry vertical.
The board considers that the relevance of AI to the professional services industry is increasing, particularly in areas involving substantial documentation, repetitive tasks, and rule-dominated workflows. As of the date of this announcement, the target company has developed three AI engines for such workflows, namely Press AI, ESG AI, and Accounting AI, which have been deployed in actual client engagements or pilot projects and are hosted in data centers controlled by the target company.
Specifically, the directors believe that the group's industry expertise, client relationships, and professional networks will facilitate the application of the target company's AI engines. The group is well-positioned to introduce the target company's solutions to its existing clients and business partners who face similar documentation-heavy and compliance-dominated workflows, thereby creating a potential customer base for the target company.
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