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TORONTO, March 25, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- FAX Capital Corp. (FAX Capital or the Company) (TSX: FXC and FXC.WT) today announced its results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2020. All currency figures are Canadian dollars.

Operating Highlights:

• Book value of $4.83 per subordinate voting share and multiple voting share (collectively, the shares) at Dec. 31, 2020, an increase of 7.6% in the fourth quarter and 11.3% in 2020.
• Invested $75.5 million of capital into six public companies in 2020, earning a 31.8% return on the Company’s deployed capital during the year.
• Held a cash balance at the end of the year available to be invested of $109.8 million, or $2.56 per share.
• Bought back and cancelled approximately 216,000 shares since June 8, 2020, pursuant to the Company’s Normal Course Issuer Bid.
• Announced the acquisition of 78% of privately owned Carson, Dunlop & Associates Ltd. (Carson Dunlop) for $11.75 million, which closed in March 2021.
• In March 2021, appointed Graham Badun as CEO of FAX Capital’s new platform company, which will leverage Carson Dunlop as its foundational asset and focus on property technology, education technology and home services.
• In Q1 2021, realized a 96% return on the Company’s $14.2 million investment in People Corporation following the sale of its business to Goldman Sachs Merchant Banking Division.
• In March 2021, purchased 16 million common shares of Quisitive Technology Solutions, Inc. on a private placement basis at a price of $1.25 per common share for an aggregate subscription amount of $20 million.

“We are extremely pleased with our operational execution and performance during this historic and volatile year,” said Blair Driscoll, CEO of FAX Capital. "Our equity value on a per share basis grew to $4.83, an increase of 11% from the prior year, driven by strong returns on our deployed capital of 32%."

"We successfully executed on our strategy to acquire substantial ownership in high-quality businesses where we have the opportunity to meaningfully support their ongoing growth and development as a value-add partner. As we look ahead, we will remain disciplined and patient with our capital allocation to ensure we continue to generate strong returns for our shareholders over the long-term."

Results for the Quarter and Year Ended December 31, 2020

The Company’s book value per share increased 7.6% from $4.49 per share at September 30, 2020 to $4.83 per share as at December 31, 2020. The 7.6% increase is primarily attributed to the Company recording an unrealized gain on its investments of $15.8 million in the quarter ended December 31, 2020, largely driven by a $7.4 million increase in the fair value of the Company’s investment in People Corporation (People Corp.).

On December 14, 2020, People Corp. announced that it was to be acquired by Goldman Sachs Merchant Banking for $15.22 in cash per share. The purchase price represented a 37% premium to the 20-day volume-weighted average price per share for the period ended December 11, 2020, and a 36% premium to the closing price of December 11, 2020. The transaction was approved by the People Corp.’s shareholders at a special meeting held on February 11, 2021. Subsequent to the approval, FAX Capital recognized a realized gain of $13.5 million on its $14.2 million investment in People Corp.

Net income for the quarter ended December 31, 2020 was $13.0 million, compared to a net loss of $624.8 thousand in the quarter ended December 31, 2019.

The Company’s book value per share increased 11.3% from $4.34 per share at December 31, 2019 to $4.83 per share as at December 31, 2020. The increase in the book value per share is primarily attributed to the Company earning a 31.8% return on its deployed capital during the year, largely a result of the Company recording an unrealized gain on its investments of $23.3 million during the year.

Net income for the year ended December 31, 2020 was $19.3 million, compared to a net loss of $2.0 million last year.

Other Information

FAX Capital’s Financial Statements and Management’s Discussion & Analysis for the year ended December 31, 2020, are available under the Company’s profile at www.sedar.com and www.faxcapitalcorp.com. FAX Capital’s Letter to Shareholders and supplemental materials in respect of the Company’s fourth quarter and full year 2020 contain further information on the Company’s strategy and operations and can be accessed on the Company’s website under Shareholder Information. Shareholders are encouraged to read these documents.

About FAX Capital Corp.

The Company is an investment holding company with a business objective to maximize its intrinsic value on a per share basis over the long-term by seeking to achieve superior investment performance commensurate with reasonable risk. The Company intends to invest in equity, debt and/or hybrid securities of high-quality businesses. The Company initially intends to invest in approximately 10 to 15 high-quality small cap public and private businesses located primarily in Canada and, to a lesser extent, the United States.

For additional information please contact:

Investor Relations
Tim Foran
Email: IR@faxcapitalcorp.com
Website: www.faxcapitalcorp.com

Media Relations
Kieran Lawler
Telephone: (416) 303-0799
Email: Kieran.lawler@loderockadvisors.com

Cautionary Statement Regarding Use of Non-IFRS Accounting Measures

This press release makes reference to the following financial measures which are not recognized under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and which do not have a standard meaning prescribed by IFRS: “book value per share” and “return on deployed capital”. The Company’s book value per share is a measure of the performance of the Company as a whole. Book value per share is measured by dividing shareholders’ equity of the Company at the date of the statement of financial position by the number of subordinate voting shares and multiple voting shares outstanding at that date. The Company’s return on deployed capital is a measure of the performance of the Company’s invested capital. The return on deployed capital is measured by dividing the total of the fair value of each of the Company’s investments, excluding cash, and any dividends received on those investments by the total cost of the investments at the measurement date. The Company’s method of determining these financial measures may differ from other companies’ methods and, accordingly, these amounts may not be comparable to measures used by other companies. These financial measures are not performance measures as defined under IFRS and should not be considered either in isolation of, or as a substitute for, net earnings prepared in accordance with IFRS.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This press release contains forward-looking information. Such forward-looking information or statements (FLS) are provided for the purpose of providing information about management's current expectations and plans relating to the future. Readers are cautioned that reliance on such information may not be appropriate for other purposes. Any such FLS may be identified by words such as “proposed”, “expects”, “intends”, “may”, “will”, and similar expressions or variations thereof. FLS contained or referred to in this press release includes, but is not limited to, the future or expected performance of the Company’s portfolio companies; the Company’s continuing investment thesis in respect of such portfolio companies; the Company’s investment approach, objectives and strategy, including investment selection and pace of continued investment; the structuring of its investments and its plans to manage its investments; the Company’s continued utilization of its Normal Course Issuer Bid; and the Company’s financial performance.

FLS involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking information. The Company believes that the expectations reflected in the FLS are reasonable but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct. Some of the risks and other factors which could cause results to differ materially from those expressed in FLS contained in this press release include, but are not limited to: the continued impact of COVID-19 on targeted investments, the economy and markets generally, as well as the identified risk factors included in the Company’s public disclosure, including the Annual Information Form dated March 25, 2021, which is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the Company’s website at www.faxcapitalcorp.com. The FLS in this press release reflect the current expectations, assumptions, judgements and/or beliefs of the Company based on information currently available to the Company, and are subject to change without notice. Any FLS speaks only as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, the Company disclaims any intent or obligation to update any FLS, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise. The FLS contained in this press release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. For more information on the Company, please review the Company's continuous disclosure filings that are available at www.sedar.com.

No securities regulatory authority has either approved or disapproved of the contents of this press release. The Toronto Stock Exchange accepts no responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.