• Blitz Gdf, precautionary measures for the management of a bioplastics company

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October 23, 2019A Bio-On parable in a dizzying parable, until a few months ago 'queen' of the AIM, Borsa Italiana's market dedicated to small businesses, on which it had exceeded a billion in value. The Bolognese group, founded in 2007, wanted to revolutionize the world of bioplastics production through the use of the PHA polymer (polyhydroxyalkanoates).

The landing on the stock exchange
Just 5 years ago - it was October 24, 2014 - the group was listed on the AIM in Piazza Affari, with a price of 5 euros per share, collecting just under 7 million, which valued the company 66.2 million euros. At the end of the following year the shares were already worth 15.2 euros, raising the value of the group to over 220 million, with the first leap in the company's history. After a 2016 adjustment, the race resumes in 2017, when capitalization reaches the threshold of 550 million.-

The 2018 highs
Last year Bio-On became a company worth over 1 billion, what in the jargon of start-ups is called a 'Unicorn'. The increases push it up to be worth 1 billion and 69 million; the former Bolognese start-up sees the participation of shareholders, albeit with low stakes, even financial giants like BlackRock, despite the fact that there are no broker studies and analysts on the stock except those of Banca Finnat, who accompanied the group to the listing and which in any case have a lower target price than the stock market value.

The Quintessential attack and the collapse
Last summer, at the end of July, Quintessential Capital Management, an American fund, publishes a report whose title leaves no room for doubt. "Bio-On: a Parmalat in Bologna?" 25 pages of analysis that bring accounting, a production model, the foundation of the underlying technology. Quintessential is famous in the world of finance for having already made fleas, with some success, to various companies. In a short time the title of the Bolognese company fell by 70%, from around 50 to 15 euros per share. The company's replies return a little respite to the listing of Bio-On.-

The 2019 accounts and the new slip
At the beginning of October, the group publishes the results at June 30: it's a new cold shower. The loss goes from around three to over 10 million, revenues fall from 6.12 million to 917 thousand euros. "This decrease is due to the decision to slow licensing activities in the first part of the year 2019 with a view to developing direct production activities, with consequent implications on investment and development activities", explains the company. Quintessential returns to the attack: "The results did not surprise us and confirm the correctness of our analysis - explains the founder of the fund Gabriele Grego - moreover, we learned the news of the resignation of the Nomad, a body in charge of controlling the correct activity of the listed companies AIM ". For the president of Bio-on the attack "was only speculative".

The investigation and the arrests
After the position taken by Quintessential on the company and on the stock, the eyes of the prosecutor's office of Bologna and also of Consob were pointed; at the same time the president of Bio-On Astori had filed a complaint with the police to defend the company's work. At the dawn of today the latest novelties of the intricate story: with the 'Plastic Bubbles' operation, precautionary measures arrive and the accusation of false accounting and market manipulation, as well as a millionaire maxisquestro.