CHF WEEKLY ROUND-UP: December 2-6, 2024

As we enter December, there is traditionally a period of uncertainty about the coming year, and traders are getting out of losing positions for tax reasons. This makes markets unpredictable for the next 2+ weeks but then there is a historical tendency for stock markets to experience a positive upswing during the last five trading days of December and the first two trading days of January (the Santa Claus Rally). Look for opportunities in oversold companies and get ready for next year as the bull continues to run.

 The TSX hit another all-time high mid-session yesterday but tailed off at the end of the day. Canada’s unemployment rate jumped to 6.8 percent last month, up from 6.5 percent in October, as more signs of weakness in the economy appeared. Governments are looking at tax breaks and other fiscal stimulus. The Bank of Canada may find that it needs to be more aggressive in rate setting than the 0.25% cut expected on December 11th.

On Tuesday Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the U.S. economy is in “remarkably good shape,” and this started a rally in big tech that drove the S&P 500 to its 56th closing record in 2024. Stocks ended the week lower. There remains room for optimism as another 0.25% cut is still expected December 18th. As rates continue to fall money coming out of fixed income securities will flow into the stock markets next year. We hear complaints of “too many bulls out there” (Bitcoin?).

Gold is not Bitcoin. Global Central banks, led by India, took advantage of lower prices and reported net gold purchases in October at the highest rate for the year. Gold is opening at USD$2,632/oz this morning and continues to build a support base for the next upward move, beyond USD$2,800/oz next year. Silver prices are building a support base at USD$31/oz looking at USD$35/oz in 2025. Analysts say that they are bullish on gold and silver as markets prepare for Trump’s unpredictable administration. Gold shares remain severely undervalued and are a real opportunity.

The U.S. dollar is backing down a little bit but not enough to push base metal prices up. China weakness is being compounded by financial problems in the largest EU economies. Copper is still near its two-month low at USD$4.08/lb. today. Nickel is near the low for the year at USD$7.17/lb. Critical minerals and battery minerals remain struggling. Lithium is ending at USD$10.60/kg, while Cobalt held an eight-year low of USD$11.02/lb.

Even so, action is taking place in the Lithium sector, notably our CHF client Libra Lithium Corp. announced that it has entered into an earn-in agreement, with a wholly owned Canadian subsidiary of KoBold Metals Company, to jointly explore the Company's lithium projects in Ontario, Canada, spending up to CAD$33M in exploration. KoBold is backed by the likes of Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, Jack Ma, and Andreessen Horowitz Capital and has been betting big on Zambia, so the move into Canadian Lithium projects is very interesting.  Libra and PowerStone Metals Corp. (CSE: PS) have just signed a non-binding letter of intent for a reverse takeover of Powerstone by Libra.

It has been a productive week for our clients, and we are pleased to present to you our round-up of their news released between December 2-6, 2024.

Mining

On December 2, 2024, Sokoman Minerals Corp. (TSXV: SIC) (OTCQB: SICNF) President and CEO Tim Froude appeared in an interview with Crux Investor where he highlighted the transformative impact of the company's drilling program results and spin-out in Sokoman is set for a pivotal year in 2025, advancing its gold and lithium projects in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, amidst market challenges. The company plans to enhance shareholder value by spinning out its Killick lithium project held in Vinland Lithium, which will benefit from strategic partnerships and a merger, alongside a dividend distribution of Vinland shares. Simultaneously, Sokoman is focusing on its Moosehead gold project, exploring new mineralized zones, using innovative technologies to underline its potential, and offering a robust investment opportunity in both the lithium and gold sectors.

Sokoman Minerals Corp. - Drilling Program Results and Spin-Out as Game-Changers in 2025

On December 4, 2024, Athena Gold Corporation (CSE: ATHA) (OTCQB: AHNR) reported additional high-grade gold samples from its reconnaissance prospecting program at its newly acquired Laird Lake project, located in Ontario's prolific Red Lake Gold District. The Laird Lake project, spanning 4,158 hectares and covering >10 km of Balmer-Confederation Assemblage contact, represents an underexplored portion of the Red Lake Gold District. The road-accessible project lies approximately 10 km west of West Red Lake Gold Mines' flagship Madsen mine and 34 km northwest of Kinross Gold's Great Bear project.

"Laird Lake continues to impress. Our sample returning 373 g/t Au represents the highest-grade grab sample ever taken at the project and, to our knowledge, is amongst the highest-grade surface grab samples publicly reported in the Red Lake Gold District. With more than 10 km of Balmer-Confederation contact to explore and high-grade, visible gold showings scattered throughout, we believe we might be on the cusp of the next major gold discovery in Red Lake,” stated John Power, President & CEO of Athena Gold.

Figure 1: Map of Laird Lake project, showing selected assays from the October 2024 sampling program.

On December 4, 2024, Athena Gold Corporation (CSE: ATHA) (OTCQB: AHNR) announced that due to strong demand, the Company has increased the size of the non-brokered private placement previously announced on October 3, 2024, from CDN $1,000,000 to up to CDN $1,250,000 (the "Offering"). The Offering, as amended, will now consist of up to 25,000,000 units (increased from 20,000,000 Units) at a price of CDN $0.05 per Unit. All other terms of the Offering remain unchanged.

The Company further announced that it has closed a second tranche of the Offering through the issuance of 6,460,000 Units at a price of CDN $0.05 per Unit for gross proceeds of CDN $323,000. The Company closed the first tranche of the Offering on October 25, 2024 (refer to press release dated October 28, 2024) and issued 12,000,000 Units at CDN $0.05 per Unit for gross proceeds of CDN $600,000.

Each Unit consists of one common share in the capital of the Company and one-half of a common share purchase warrant. Each whole Warrant is exercisable into one Common Share at a price of CDN $0.12 per Warrant for a period of thirty-six months from the date of issuance, subject to the following acceleration provision. If, at any time after the date that is 4 months and one day after the date of issuance of the Warrants, the average volume weighted trading price of the Company's Common Shares on the Canadian Securities Exchange (or such other stock exchange on which the Common Shares may be traded from time to time) is at or above CDN $0.20 per share for a period of 10 consecutive trading days, the Company may at any time thereafter, accelerate the expiry date of the Warrants by giving ten calendar days notice to the holders of the Warrants, by way of news release, and in such case the Warrants will expire on the first day that is 30 calendar days after the date on which such notice is given.

On December 4, 2024, Sokoman Minerals Corp. (TSXV:SIC) (OTCQB: SICNF) announced a non-brokered private placement of flow-through shares for gross proceeds of up to CAD$1,500,000. The Private Placement is expected to close on or before December 16, 2024. The Company also announced a non-flow-through CAD$0.035 share financing for aggregate gross proceeds of up to CAD$250,000.

The Private Placement is priced at CAD$0.04 per FT share, with each flow-through common share of the Company entitling the holder to receive the tax benefits applicable to flow-through shares in accordance with provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada).

All securities issued pursuant to the FT Financing and the NFT Financing will be subject to a four-month and one-day hold period.

The Company will use an amount equal to the gross proceeds received by the Company from the sale of the FT shares, pursuant to the provisions in the Income Tax Act (Canada), to incur eligible "Canadian exploration expenses" that qualify as "flow-through mining expenditures" as both terms are defined in the Income Tax Act (Canada) on or  before December 31, 2025, and to renounce all of the Qualifying Expenditures in favour of the subscribers of the FT Units effective December 31, 2024.

The Company intends to spend CAD$1,000,000 of the flow-through proceeds on the Moosehead gold property, the balance on the Fleur de Lys and Crippleback properties, and hard-dollar proceeds will be used for working capital purposes.

Fintech

On November 29, 2024, Tenet Fintech Group Inc. (CSE: PKK) (OTCQB: PKKFF) announced its financial results and operating highlights for the three-month and nine-month periods ended September 30, 2024, and September 30, 2023. Tenet reported revenue for the Quarter of $205,582, total expenses of $24,897,807, which included an expected credit loss provision of $18,715,423 recorded by the Company due to the de facto pause in activity on its platforms in China as the transition of its revenue model in that market continues, and a net loss of $24,692,225 for the quarter. All amounts are in Canadian dollars unless otherwise indicated. 

Q3-2024 Financial Highlights

• Total Revenue of $205,582

• EBITDA of ($22.33 million)

• Net Loss of ($24.69 million)

  
  

On December 2, 2024, Tenet Fintech Group Inc. (CSE: PKK) (OTCQB: PKKFF) announced that it has added free bookkeeping automation software for bookkeepers and small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as part of its offering on the Cubeler® Business Hub platform. 

In addition to benefiting from the networking, advertising, insights and financing services provided on the Business Hub, SME owners who register their businesses and bookkeeping service providers who cause their SME clients to register and share their data with the platform are now eligible to receive a license of Dext Software Ltd.'s bookkeeping automation platform. The Company believes that the new offer, prominently featured on the Cubeler.com website (https://www.cubeler.com/en-ca/cubeler-and-free-dext-access-offer), will allow it to work with both its existing and future bookkeeping service provider partners to speed up the registration of SMEs on the Business Hub during the last month of 2024. 

"We've been working very hard, particularly since the addition of the Business Hub's new modules, both internally and with our external partners, on everything required to commercialize our first ie-Pulse macroeconomic index data plans prior to the end of 2024," commented Tenet CEO Johnson Joseph. "While the development of the ie-Pulse platform is expected to be ready for that to happen, we need to ensure that we have enough SME data in at least one industrial sector, such as retail for example, if the ie-Pulse Canadian Retail series of indexes are going to be effective in helping clients gauge the state of the Canadian retail industry. Based on the discussions we've had with our bookkeeping service provider partners; we believe the offer announced today will go a long way in helping us achieve that objective." 

On December 3, 2024, Tenet Fintech Group Inc. (CSE: PKK) (OTCQB: PKKFF) announced that it has closed a non-brokered private placement financing by selling 11,010,000 units to "accredited investors" within the meaning of NI 45-106 - Prospectus Exemptions and under the applicable securities laws, with each unit priced at $0.10 for gross proceeds of $1,101,000.

The securities issued in connection with the Financing are subject to a hold period of four months and one day from the closing date of the Financing. 

The Financing forms part of a series of capital raises by Tenet to fund the commercialization of its upcoming ie-Pulse product, to help meet certain strategic partnership obligations and for general working capital purposes. 

On December 5, 2024, Tenet Fintech Group Inc. (CSE: PKK) (OTCQB: PKKFF) announced that it awarded the Business Hub's first free master license of Dext Software Ltd.'s bookkeeping automation platform to Elite Times CPA Inc. ("Times CPA"). Tenet and Times CPA have been working in close collaboration since the announcement of their strategic partnership in August 2024 to bring awareness and promote the benefits of the Business Hub in combination with bookkeeping automation to Canadian small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).