If you’d invested in: Bango and Vernalis

Bango creates technology that enables payments to be made via mobile phones. while Vernalis develops drugs.

Ben Judge
By
published
in Features

If only

837-bango

Cambridge-based Bango (Aim: BGO) develops technology that enables payments to be made via mobile phones. Bango collects a fee on each transaction made. Revenue was up by 200% in the year to 31 December, with strong growth predicted this year too. Losses narrowed to £4.6m from £5m the year before, and the firm expects to break even in the "near term", with profitability coming in the "medium term". The shares have risen by more than 150% in the last 12 months.

Be glad you didn't

837-vernalis

Pharmaceutical firm Vernalis (Aim: VER) markets cough and cold medicine, antibiotics and migraine treatments in the US via its office in Pennsylvania, with more cough and cold products under development at its research centre in the UK. Latest interim results for the six months to

31 December showed losses rising and revenue falling. But the firm has plenty of cash and no debt. Investors have been abandoning the shares, however. The stock price is down by more than 50% in the last year.

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Ben Judge
Ben Judge

Ben studied modern languages at London University's Queen Mary College. After dabbling unhappily in local government finance for a while, he went to work for The Scotsman newspaper in Edinburgh. The launch of the paper's website, scotsman.com, in the early years of the dotcom craze, saw Ben move online to manage the Business and Motors channels before becoming deputy editor with responsibility for all aspects of online production for The Scotsman, Scotland on Sunday and the Edinburgh Evening News websites, along with the papers' Edinburgh Festivals website.

Ben joined MoneyWeek as website editor in 2008, just as the Great Financial Crisis was brewing. He has written extensively for the website and magazine, with a particular emphasis on alternative finance and fintech, including blockchain and bitcoin. 

As an early adopter of bitcoin, Ben bought when the price was under $200, but went on to spend it all on foolish fripperies.

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