Small cap wrap: Blockmate Ventures, Aftermath Silver, Arizona Gold & Silver…

St George Mining Ltd (ASX:SGQ, FRA:S0G, OTC:SGQMF) has secured firm commitments to raise A$60 million, strengthening its balance sheet as it advances the high-grade Araxá rare earths and niobium project in Minas Gerais, Brazil.

The company will raise the funds through a two-tranche institutional placement of 600 million new fully paid ordinary shares priced at A$0.10 per share.

The S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries Index (XSO) closed at 3,553.80 yesterday, up 0.087% or 3.10 points.

The index has gained 4.36% over the past five days, adding 148.50 points as small-cap investor sentiment continues to firm. It has been a quiet start to the day for news releases, but you can read about the following and more throughout the day.

Percheron Therapeutics Ltd (ASX:PER, OTC:PERCF) has completed the manufacture of a new batch of HMBD-002, its VISTA-targeting monoclonal antibody cancer drug candidate, keeping the company on track to prepare clinical trial material for a planned new study in the second half of CY2026.

The Melbourne-based biotechnology company received a Certificate of Analysis for the newly manufactured HMBD-002 batch, with all product quality attributes reported to be within expected limits.

1911 Gold Corp (TSX-V:AUMB, OTCQB:AUMBF, FRA:2KY) has entered into an agreement with Haywood Securities for a bought deal financing worth $20 million.

The Manitoba-focused gold explorer will issue units priced at $0.64 each, Canadian development expense flow-through units at $0.793 each, and Canadian exploration expense flow-through units at prices ranging from $0.752 to $1.011.

US airline stocks could require stronger earnings expectations to sustain recent gains, according to UBS, which wrote that investor focus is likely to shift back toward company fundamentals as geopolitical concerns ease.

The airline sector has rallied in recent days, with the U.S. Global Investors (NASDAQ:GROW) Jets ETF (JETS) gaining 12% over the past three trading sessions amid optimism surrounding a potential resolution to the Iran conflict and the possible reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

Creative Medical Technology Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:CELZ) has moved Project PHOENIX into a nationwide virtual data-collection phase, opening enrollment for a regulatory-approved registry that the company designed to support U.S. veterans exposed to burn pits and other toxic environmental hazards.

Project PHOENIX sits within the company's broader CELZ-Biodefense Regenerative BioDefense Initiative, which aims to better understand the health impact of toxic exposures and support future therapeutic development for affected veterans.

Helport AI Limited (NASDAQ:HPAI) has launched HyprX for Hardware, a QR-code-based artificial intelligence agent that turns shipped products into a direct-to-consumer service and engagement channel.

When an end user scans a QR code on a product, its packaging, or its manual, HyprX launches an AI question-and-answer agent customized to that device, delivering setup guidance, troubleshooting, customer data capture, and upsell offers in one interaction.

Axe Compute Inc (NASDAQ:AGPU) has secured $25.9 million in total contract value across two long-term agreements to deploy Blackwell and Grace Blackwell compute for enterprise AI customers.

The Pittsburgh-based neocloud infrastructure company said $12.9 million of that total has already been received in advance payments, giving it immediate working capital to fund deployment and operations.

elf Beauty Inc (NYSE:ELF) is stepping into haircare, its most significant category expansion since launching skincare in 2022.

Jefferies analysts see the move as a strong strategic fit, viewing the launch as "a positive addition to the company's fall innovation cycle, supported by favorable category growth and trend alignment."

Arizona Gold & Silver Inc (TSX-V:AZS, OTCQB:AZASF, FRA:A9J0) announced that it has received approval from the US Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to expand exploration activities at its Philadelphia gold-silver project in northwestern Arizona.

The company said that the approval covers modifications to its existing Exploration Plan, including the construction of 16 new drill pads, associated sumps, and access roads. The planned work is expected to result in approximately 14 acres of disturbance.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: RGPX) reported that setmelanotide therapy produced robust, sustained and clinically significant weight loss in patients with acquired hypothalamic obesity at 2.5 years.

Alongside the long-term setmelanotide results, Rhythm reported that bivamelagon therapy achieved progressive reductions in body mass index and hunger measures in patients with acquired hypothalamic obesity at one year.

Space and defense deep tech company Syntec Optics Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:OPTX) said it has received nearly $2.4 million in new purchase orders for an optics product line built to support weekly launches of Low Earth Orbit satellites.

The Rochester, New York-based company said the orders, scaled for higher production in the first quarter of 2026, expand a previously announced order of nearly $1.9 million for the same product line. The new and prior awards bring total recent orders for the line to nearly $4.3 million, with full delivery expected before the middle of next quarter, according to the company.

Aftermath Silver Ltd (TSX-V:AAG, OTCQX:AAGFF, FRA:FLM1) announced that it has entered into a strategic advisory engagement with Global Frontier Advisors, a Washington, DC-based firm whose partners include former senior US military officers, diplomats, and business executives, as the company seeks to advance its Berenguela silver-copper-manganese project in Peru.

The company also announced that it has established an Advisory Board and appointed three founding GFA partners as its inaugural members: Lieutenant General David Bellon, Lieutenant General Michael Groen and Ambassador James Story.

VivoPower PLC (NASDAQ:VIVO, FRA:51J), a global developer of AI data center and powered land infrastructure, has been recertified as a Certified B Corporation by B Lab, extending its continuous certification status to 2028.

The company's latest verified B Impact Score rose to 86.6, up from 83 at its 2021 recertification. VivoPower scored highest in the Workers and Environment pillars, at 26.4 and 25.3 respectively, and achieved the maximum score in the Mission Locked sub-pillar of Governance.

Blockmate Ventures Inc (TSX-V:MATE, OTCQB:MATEF, FRA:8MH) has provided an update on its Wyoming-based AI infrastructure opportunity, outlining ongoing discussions with potential partners and steps being taken to advance the site's development prospects.

The venture builder, which focuses on artificial intelligence, Bitcoin and digital infrastructure, said it remains engaged with multiple interested parties regarding the potential development of a controlled site in Wyoming into an AI-focused data centre. The property is located in an industrial area approximately 0.5 miles from a power substation.

Active Energy Group PLC (AIM:AEG, OTCID:AEUSF) said it has signed a strategic distribution agreement with Fog Hashing Pte Ltd to accelerate the rollout of modular digital infrastructure across the Gulf Cooperation Council region.

The AIM-listed company said the agreement gives it distribution rights across the GCC and creates a framework for the two companies to explore a broader exclusive relationship, subject to commercial milestones and further definitive agreements.

Gelion PLC (AIM:GELN, OTC:GELNF, FRA:X0S) said it has signed an exclusive commercial licence agreement with Max-Planck-Innovation GmbH, giving the company long-term global rights to intellectual property covering nano-encapsulated sulfur cathode technology and novel nano-confined anode materials.

The AIM-listed sulfur battery developer said the deal follows a March 2025 collaboration agreement, under which Gelion had secured an exclusive option to acquire commercial rights to the technology.

Dimerix Ltd (ASX:DXB, OTC:SBMJF) has entered into an exclusive licence agreement with Everest Medicines for the commercialisation of its Phase 3 drug candidate DMX-200 across Greater China, South Korea and parts of Southeast Asia.

The agreement covers DMX-200 for all indications, including focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS), in Chinese mainland, Hong Kong SAR, Macao SAR, Taiwan region, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines.

Memphasys Ltd (ASX:MEM, OTC:MPHSF, FRA:IG7) has executed a 12-month exclusive national supply agreement with Monash IVF Group Ltd (ASX:MVF) (ASX) for the rollout of its Felix™ automated sperm selection system across Australia.

The agreement follows more than 10 years of collaboration between the companies and comes after Monash IVF conducted the pivotal Felix clinical trial, which concluded in 2025.

Cobalt Blue Holdings Ltd (ASX:COB, OTC:CBBHF) (ASX: COB, OTC: CBBHF) and Glomar Minerals LLC have advanced plans for Project Infinity, a proposed polymetallic nodule refinery in the United States.

The consortium, formed in March 2026, aims to build and operate what it says would be the world’s first commercial polymetallic nodule refinery in the US, targeting production of manganese, cobalt, nickel and copper from deep-sea nodules.