BDO: ASX Gold Explorers Lead Way for Funding in Latest Quarter

BDO’s natural resources and energy team has published its report for the December 2024 quarter.

The firm has been compiling data on the cash positions of ASX-listed exploration companies since 2014, examining cashflow, leading explorers and commodities, and providing future-forward insights.

A key finding from the report's latest edition is that gold companies continued to lead the way for fundraising efforts, with five out of the top 10 "fund finders" being gold explorers.

Fund finders are companies that have raised AU$10 million or more, according to BDO.

Spartan Resources (ASX:SPN,OTC Pink:GYYSF) and Capricorn Metals (ASX:CMM,OTC Pink:CRNLF) took the lead, raising AU$220 million and AU$200 million in proceeds, respectively, from issues of equity securities.

BDO's data shows that gold explorers have dominated as fund finders since the March 2024 quarter, underlining the yellow metal’s appeal as “a safe-haven asset with an investor preference for developers and near-term producers.”

For the December 2024 quarter, copper-gold and lithium explorers followed gold companies in terms of fundraising.

In total, 57 fund finders drove around 75 percent of the period's inflows, raising an average of AU$38.11 million each.

“Financing cash inflows grew to AU$2.88 billion, representing a 48 percent increase on the AU$1.95 billion of funds raised in the prior quarter,” BDO states in its report. “In addition, financing inflows averaged AU$3.78 million per company, which is 24 percent higher than the two-year average of $3.05 million since December 2022.”

BDO referenced the record-high gold price as a major factor in gold exploration funding, noting that its rise follows global deflationary fiscal policy and political uncertainty.

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Securities Disclosure: I, Gabrielle de la Cruz, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.