Metals Creek and Benton Clear TSXV Hurdle on 50-Unit Deal

Metals Creek Resources Corp. (TSXV: MEK) and Benton Resources Inc. (TSXV: BEX) said on September 15, 2026 that the TSX Venture Exchange has approved their joint acquisition from G2B Gold of a 100% interest in two mineral licenses covering 50 claim units in Newfoundland's Deer Lake Basin and Parsons Pond areas, split 50/50 and paid for with 120,000 Metals Creek shares, 82,500 Benton shares and a 2% net smelter royalty to G2B.

Two Canadian junior explorers have cleared the last procedural step on a small but tidy ground deal. Metals Creek Resources Corp. (TSXV: MEK), which also trades as OTC Pink: MCREF and on the Frankfurt exchange under M1C1, and Benton Resources Inc. (TSXV: BEX) said on September 15, 2026 that the TSX Venture Exchange has approved their joint acquisition from G2B Gold of an interest in two mineral licenses covering 50 claim units in western Newfoundland.

The deal was first disclosed in an August 18, 2026 news release. With exchange sign-off now in hand, the two companies hold 100% of G2B's former interest, divided evenly: 50% to Benton and 50% to Metals Creek. No finders' fees were paid.

What changes hands, and what G2B keeps

The consideration is almost entirely paper. G2B receives 120,000 common shares of Metals Creek and 82,500 common shares of Benton. On top of that, G2B retains a 2% net smelter royalty on the properties — a cut of revenue from any metal eventually sold, calculated after smelting and refining deductions rather than on gross production. Royalties of that kind are the standard way a seller of early-stage ground keeps exposure to a discovery it will not be paying to find.

The buyers did negotiate an exit valve. Metals Creek and Benton hold the right, exercisable at any time, to buy back half the royalty — one percentage point — by paying $1 million to G2B. That option is the single largest cash number in the transaction, and it is entirely at the companies' discretion. On a straight read-across, buying back both percentage points at the same rate would imply a notional $2 million, though only the 1% right for $1 million is actually contracted; the remaining 1% stays with G2B.

The release also flags that the two companies are non-arm's length to one another. Metals Creek and Benton have partnered on Newfoundland ground before, and joint ownership lets each carry half the cost of assessment work and drilling on a package neither would likely fund alone.

Deer Lake Basin and Parsons Pond: two very different bets

The 50 claim units split 20 units in the Deer Lake Basin and 30 units in the Parsons Pond area. Both sit in western Newfoundland, a region that has drawn explorers for two distinct reasons — sedimentary basin targets in the Deer Lake area and the long-documented hydrocarbon and structural geology around Parsons Pond on the coast. What the companies have bought here is optionality on ground, not a resource: these are mineral licenses, and the release attaches no drilling, sampling or resource figures to them.

That matters for how investors should read the announcement. Exchange approval of a claim purchase is an administrative milestone. It confirms the transaction is closed and the shares can be issued; it says nothing about what is in the rock. The next meaningful datapoints would be an exploration plan, a budget split between the two 50% owners, and eventually assay results. Until then, the properties are a line item on a land position.

Metals Creek describes itself as a junior exploration company — the category of issuer that funds itself through equity, holds no production revenue, and trades on the perceived quality of its ground and the pace of its news flow. Paying in shares rather than cash is the defining behaviour of that model, and this deal is a clean example: two small share issuances and a deferred royalty obligation, with no cash out the door at closing.

Where the shares sit

On the U.S. side of its listing structure, Metals Creek's MCREF quote last traded at 0.04, down 4.55% on the session, with a day range that opened and closed inside the same 0.04 band, according to market data as of 20:00 GMT on September 15, 2026. The currency designation on that particular feed is not specified, and the OTC Pink line is thin by nature — the TSXV listing under MEK is where the real price discovery happens for a Newfoundland junior.

At that last quoted level, the 120,000 Metals Creek shares going to G2B work out to roughly 4,800 in the same units — an illustrative figure derived from the quoted price, not a reported transaction value, and one that underlines how modest the paper component is. The economics of the deal, if the ground ever works, sit almost entirely in the royalty and in whatever the companies spend drilling it.

The backdrop was soft across the board. The S&P 500 tracker (SPY) closed at $757.39, off 0.46%, the Nasdaq 100 proxy (QQQ) at $704.54, down 0.65%, and the Dow tracker (DIA) at $521.23, down 0.62%. Broad risk-off days rarely spare micro-cap explorers, whose share registers are dominated by retail and speculative money.

What to watch from here

Three things will tell investors whether this transaction was worth the dilution. First, whether Metals Creek and Benton publish an exploration budget for the Deer Lake Basin and Parsons Pond units, and how the 50/50 split is operationalised — who is operator, and who writes the cheques. Second, whether either company exercises the $1 million royalty buyback, which would signal genuine confidence rather than routine land accumulation; juniors do not spend seven-figure cash on royalty reductions for ground they intend to drop. Third, the financing question. Share-funded acquisitions preserve treasury, but exploration does not fund itself, and a raise is the usual sequel.

Details of the approval and the consideration were released through INN Precious Metals. For now, both companies have added ground at a price measured in shares rather than cash — the cheapest way a junior can grow, and the least informative until a drill turns.

Key facts

• MCREF last trade: 0.04, -4.55% (as of 20:00 GMT, Sep 15, 2026)
• Ground acquired: 2 mineral licenses, 50 claim units — 20 Deer Lake Basin, 30 Parsons Pond
• Consideration: 120,000 Metals Creek shares + 82,500 Benton shares + 2% NSR to G2B Gold
• Royalty buyback right: 1% of the NSR for $1 million, exercisable at any time

Frequently asked questions

What exactly did Metals Creek and Benton acquire?

They jointly acquired 100% of G2B Gold's interest in two mineral licenses covering 50 claim units in western Newfoundland — 20 units in the Deer Lake Basin and 30 units in the Parsons Pond area. Ownership is split evenly, with 50% held by Benton Resources and 50% by Metals Creek Resources. No finders' fees were paid on the transaction.

How was the acquisition paid for?

Almost entirely in stock. G2B Gold received 120,000 common shares of Metals Creek and 82,500 common shares of Benton, plus a 2% net smelter royalty on the properties. No cash was paid at closing, which is typical for junior explorers that preserve treasury for drilling rather than land purchases.

What is a net smelter royalty?

A net smelter royalty, or NSR, entitles the holder to a percentage of revenue from metal produced at a property, calculated after smelting, refining and transport deductions rather than on gross value. Here G2B Gold keeps a 2% NSR, giving it exposure to any future discovery without paying exploration costs.

Can the companies reduce the royalty they owe?

Yes. Metals Creek and Benton hold the right, exercisable at any time, to buy back half the royalty — one percentage point of the 2% NSR — by paying $1 million to G2B Gold. Exercising that option is entirely at their discretion, and the remaining 1% would stay with G2B.

Where does Metals Creek stock trade?

Metals Creek Resources Corp. has three listings: TSXV: MEK in Canada, OTC Pink: MCREF in the United States, and FSE: M1C1 in Frankfurt. The MCREF quote last traded at 0.04, down 4.55% on the session, as of 20:00 GMT on September 15, 2026. The TSXV line is the primary market.

Does the announcement include any drill or resource results?

No. The release covers TSX Venture Exchange approval of a property acquisition and the consideration paid. It attaches no assay, sampling or mineral resource figures to the Deer Lake Basin or Parsons Pond claim units. Investors would need a subsequent exploration program and results to assess what the ground actually holds.

Sources

• Metals Creek and Benton Announce Approval of Property Acquisitions — INN Precious Metals

Photo: ROMAN ODINTSOV · Pexels Licence — source