Original-Research: Desert Gold Ventures Inc. (von GBC AG): Buy

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Original-Research: Desert Gold Ventures Inc. - from GBC AG

13.10.2025 / 08:00 CET/CEST

Dissemination of a Research, transmitted by EQS News - a service of EQS

Group.

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this research. The

result of this research does not constitute investment advice or an

invitation to conclude certain stock exchange transactions.

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Classification of GBC AG to Desert Gold Ventures Inc.

Company Name: Desert Gold Ventures Inc.

ISIN: CA25039N4084

Reason for the research: Research Note

Recommendation: Buy

Target price: 0.33 CAD

Target price on sight of: 31.12.2026

Last rating change:

Analyst: Matthias Greiffenberger, Cosmin Filker

Balanced Portfolio: Mali Resource Foundation and Côte d'Ivoire Exploration

Torque

Desert Gold's Tiegba Project in southern Côte d'Ivoire represents a

high-impact exploration opportunity in a prolific yet underexplored gold

belt. A broad gold-in-soil anomaly ~4 km by 2 km in size has been identified

at Tiegba, with soil values ranging from 100 ppb to over 900 ppb (parts per

billion), an unusually large, in-situ gold system that has never been

drill-tested. This anomaly's scale and strength suggest the potential for a

multi-million-ounce discovery, analogous to the big finds made in West

Africa over the past decade. Desert Gold Ventures has secured this project

and plans an initial low-cost air-core drilling program to test the target,

which could quickly confirm whether a significant gold deposit lies beneath.

The Tiegba project provides a compelling blue-sky catalyst, a virgin gold

target of significant scale in a mining-friendly jurisdiction. Near-term

drilling will be the first ever on this anomaly, offering a binary outcome:

no discovery (minimal value change) versus a major discovery (value creation

that could re-rate the stock by several multiples). The region's history and

Côte d'Ivoire's supportive environment increase the odds that success will

be rewarded by the market or strategic suitors.

The core thesis is that Tiegba could host a large gold deposit given the

extensive, high-tenor soil anomaly. Desert Gold's due diligence confirmed

the anomaly is real and in-place, covering a continuous area of roughly 4 km

by 2 km. Multiple soil samples on a wide grid exceeded 100 ppb Au (up to 940

ppb), indicating an extensive gold system in the bedrock. Such scale at

surface is what underpins multi-million ounce targets. Crucially, this

anomaly has never been drilled, meaning the project is at the true discovery

stage, a successful drill program could instantly redefine Desert Gold's

valuation.

Tiegba checks many boxes for a major gold system. It lies adjacent to a

regional shear zone (the Tahini shear), in Birimian greenstone geology, a

setting analogous to other large West African gold deposits. The anomaly

itself appears to consist of sub-parallel zones and possibly cross-cutting

structures, typical of multi-lode greenstone deposits. Notably, only ~20% of

the permit has been covered by soil sampling to date, so the known 4km x 2km

anomaly may be just one part of a broader mineralized system. There is also

active artisanal mining immediately adjacent (on a small-scale mining

cooperative permit), underscoring the local gold endowment. All these

factors increase confidence that the first drilling could intercept gold

mineralization. As management puts it, "This is precisely the part of the

world where you still can make new multi-million ounce discoveries at

surface. you can't really do this anywhere else in the world except West

Africa, which is precisely why we're here."

To appreciate the potential valuation uplift from a discovery at Tiegba, it

is instructive to review other West African gold exploration companies'

trajectories. Below is a comparison of select companies before and after key

gold discoveries or project de-risking events, focusing on scale of

discovery, jurisdiction, and how the market (or acquirers) valued them.

These comparables highlight that in West Africa, a junior explorer that

proves a large gold deposit can achieve valuations in the $200M-$600M+

range, either via market appreciation or acquisition. The valuations per

ounce of gold in the ground have varied widely based on grade, location, and

gold cycle timing, from under $20/oz (Amara, Gryphon in a bear market) to

over $100/oz (Papillon in a competitive takeout). Generally, high-grade or

advanced projects (Papillon's Fekola, Roxgold's Yaramoko) commanded higher

multiples, whereas lower-grade or early-stage projects (Montage's Koné,

Amara's Yaouré in 2016) saw more modest market value. Importantly, Côte

d'Ivoire assets have come to the fore: Tietto's Abujar was a standout

success, discovered and built in short order, with the market valuing it

around A$800M at peak and a major Chinese miner pursuing it. This

underscores that investors are willing to reward Ivorian discoveries in the

current environment.

For Desert Gold, the key takeaway is that a discovery on the order of 1-2

Moz could arguably justify a market cap in the hundreds of millions

(especially if grade is decent), given precedent transactions. For instance,

if Tiegba yielded even a 1 Moz discovery, one could compare it to Roxgold's

early stage or the Karma deposit, valuations in the ~$100-$200M range. A

larger 3-5 Moz find would put it in league with Papillon, Cardinal, or

Tietto, potentially $300M+ valuations. Naturally, these are speculative

figures; the conversion of ounces to market cap is not linear and depends on

project specifics. However, the asymmetry is evident: Desert Gold at ~$20M

is essentially pricing in no discovery; any substantial success could

recalibrate that dramatically. We also note potential for a "takeout

premium", several of the comps were ultimately acquired, delivering final

premiums of 20% to 50% overnight on top of prior run-ups. If Desert Gold's

drilling hits a significant discovery, the company could become an

attractive target for mid-tier producers looking to replace reserves in Côte

d'Ivoire. Even adjusting for risk, the risk-reward skew is in favor of

upside. It is important, however, to remain balanced, not every anomaly

becomes a mine, and some peers (especially those with low-grade finds or in

tougher markets) did not see such rosy outcomes.

On conservative inputs, we estimate Tiegba at about USD 9.5M today within a

defensible USD 5.8M to USD 13.1M range. That already represents a multiple

of the cash consideration and should step higher as surface anomalies are

converted into mineralized bedrock through trenching, air core, and then

reverse circulation results. The chained catalysts over the next field

seasons can push the probability weighted value toward the top of the range

and provide meaningful equity torque.

If we add the Mali anchor from the NI 43-101 PEA with after-tax NPV10% of

USD 54M to our USD 9.5M view for Côte d'Ivoire, the combined sum of parts is

USD 63.5M. With 269,554,099 shares outstanding, that equates to

approximately USD 0.24 per share (0.33 CAD / 0.20 EUR). Versus the current

share price of USD 0.054, this implies a significant upside. We reiterate

our Buy rating.

We note that our target price may be conservative given the updated 1.22 Moz

resource in Mali. We intend to publish a separate research report on the PEA

and to execute a full overhaul of the Mali asset valuation. We will then

combine the refreshed Mali view and the Côte d'Ivoire view in a clear sum of

parts framework. Even before that deeper work, we see an attractive upside

potential at the current level.

You can download the research here:

https://eqs-cockpit.com/c/fncls.ssp?u=70ea5d9b617b8d1a9337bd2c26f7990f

Contact for questions:

GBC AG

Halderstraße 27

86150 Augsburg

0821 / 241133 0

research@gbc-ag.de

++++++++++++++++

Offenlegung möglicher Interessenskonflikte nach § 85 WpHG und Art. 20 MAR

Beim oben analysierten Unternehmen ist folgender möglicher

Interessenkonflikt gegeben: (5a,6a,7,11); Einen Katalog möglicher

Interessenkonflikte finden Sie unter:

https://www.gbc-ag.de/de/Offenlegung

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Completion: 10.10.2025 (11:30 a.m.)

First distribution: 13.10.2025 (8:00 a.m.)

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2211458 13.10.2025 CET/CEST

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