London-listed Aterian has secured signed subscriptions for £468 000 of equity capital targeted through the issue of convertible bonds to both new and existing investors.

It is intended that additional bonds may be issued to interested qualified investors until May 16.

This financing round follows the recently secured $4.5-million trade finance facility, which is expected to facilitate the company’s expanding, revenue-generating mineral trading operations in Rwanda.

Aterian points out that its Rwandan trading division is delivering early-stage revenue, leveraging in-country expertise and local partnerships to source, process and export tin, tantalum and niobium concentrates.

The trade facility provides immediate working capital to expand sourcing and trading volumes across Rwanda and the surrounding region; enhance infrastructure and logistics to boost operational efficiency; and strengthen margins and cash flow to support group-wide exploration activities, the company indicates.

This business is expected to contribute significantly to covering operational expenditure this year, creating a self-sustaining platform that underpins the company’s wider asset development strategy.

“This funding marks an inflection point for Aterian. We are building a hybrid business model, one that combines scalable exploration across critical mineral jurisdictions with active, revenue-generating operations,” executive chairperson Charles Bray says.

“Our mineral trading business in Rwanda is gaining traction, demonstrating the strength of our operational platform and allowing for the company to remove its past dependency on equity capital dilution.

“Further, this foundation will allow us to aggressively advance high-potential copper and lithium projects in Botswana and Morocco, two regions globally recognised for their strategic importance in battery metal supply,” he highlights.

In Botswana, fieldwork has started in the Kalahari Copperbelt, while lithium brine exploration has launched in the Makgadikgadi basin.

In Morocco, mobilisation has begun at the company’s four flagship copper/silver/gold projects of Tata, Azrar, Agdz and Jebilet Est. Geophysical surveys and trenching are under way to define drill targets.