What are the best penny stocks for UK traders and investors to watch?

What is a penny stock?

A penny stock is typically defined in the UK as a company trading below £1 per share, usually with a market capitalisation under £100 million. These companies are often in earlier stages of development, may have limited revenue, and are generally considered higher risk.

Because they are smaller and less established, penny stocks can experience sharp price swings. While this volatility creates opportunity, it also increases risk. Many are growth-focused businesses reliant on future project development, funding rounds, or commodity prices.

Past performance is not a guarantee of future results, and many investors only allocate a small portion of their portfolio to penny stocks as part of their broader risk management strategy.

Want to know more about penny stocks?

Investing vs trading in penny stocks

Investing and trading penny stocks comes with their own set of advantages and drawbacks:

Best UK penny stocks to watch

The following stocks have delivered notable 13-week gains. That performance alone does not guarantee future returns, and these shares remain speculative. This list is not financial advice.

MobilityOne

MobilityOne operates in electronic payments and fintech services, primarily in Southeast Asia. As with most penny shares, the stock is highly sensitive to contract announcements and trading updates.

Happily, the company has been exceptionally active in early 2026. Shareholders of its US partner Technology & Telecommunication Acquisition Corporation approved a key joint venture with Super Apps, with MobilityOne set to receive up to RM60 million (around £10.3 million) linked to the transaction. The deal involves carving out part of its electronic voucher business into a subsidiary called OneShop.

Separately, the company clarified that its Malaysian subsidiary received conditional approval in December 2025 to establish MBO Bank (Labuan) Limited as an Islamic digital bank, but stressed that several regulatory requirements around capital, governance and operational readiness must still be met before a full licence is issued. 

Hardide

Hardide specialises in advanced tungsten carbide surface coating technology used in engineering and industrial applications across oil and gas, aerospace, and precision engineering. Contract wins or sector tailwinds can have an outsized impact on its valuation given its small size.

The company turned profitable in its financial year ended September 2025, with revenue rising to £6 million from £4.7 million.

New orders from a major North American energy customer worth £1.75 million are underpinning expectations for further demand growth into 2027. The analyst consensus price target sits at 60p, a significant premium to the current price of around 35p. A Q2 2026 earnings release is projected for May.

TPXimpact

TPXimpact is a digital transformation consultancy focused on the UK public sector, providing services in data, design, cloud and automation to central government and regulated industries.

The company has had a strong run of contract wins in early 2026. It secured a £39 million, four-year contract with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), a £22 million, two-year contract with NHS England, and an £11 million uplift to its existing partnership with His Majesty's Land Registry, representing £72 million of cumulative contract value announced in quick succession.

Management has reiterated that its financial 2026 outlook is unchanged, targeting adjusted EBITDA of £6 to £7 million and aiming to reduce net debt to a year-end range of £7 to £8 million. 

Strategic Minerals

Strategic Minerals focuses on mineral development with a primary focus on the Redmoor tungsten-tin-copper project in southeast Cornwall, a region with deep historical mining roots.

In March 2026, subsidiary Cornwall Resources announced a significant increase in tungsten recovery at Redmoor, with a new metallurgical study showing tungsten trioxide recovery rising to 85.8%, up from 72% in a 2020 scoping study, a 19.2% relative improvement.

This followed the completion of a major diamond drilling programme and earlier exceptional results from several drillholes. With tungsten now classified as a critical mineral, and geopolitical pressure pushing Western governments to secure domestic supply chains, investor interest in the project has intensified.

Provexis

Provexis is a life sciences company developing and licensing Fruitflow, a patented natural tomato extract shown to reduce the risk of blood clotting associated with cardiovascular disease. It sells the ingredient to food & beverage and supplement brands through its distribution partnership with DSM Nutritional Products, as well as directly to consumers via its own e-commerce channels.

The share price has pulled back from its momentum highs, but speculative retail remains seemingly strong. However, the underlying business generates just over £1 million in annual revenue, which limits near-term catalysts.

Anglesey Mining

Anglesey Mining is a junior mining company with projects focused on base metals, primarily its Parys Mountain copper-lead-zinc deposit in North Wales, one of the largest undeveloped base metal deposits in the UK.

The company completed a debt restructuring transaction in February 2026 that eliminated approximately £4 million of liabilities from its balance sheet. This significantly improves its financial footing as it progresses towards advancing the Parys Mountain project, though it remains pre-production and dependent on further funding and permitting.

Sancus Lending Group

Sancus Lending Group provides alternative lending solutions including property-backed and business loans across the UK and offshore markets. Smaller financial firms like Sancus can see rapid share price changes based on funding arrangements, loan book performance and broader credit conditions.

There has been limited new public corporate news from the company in the first quarter of 2026. The stock remains thinly traded and illiquid, meaning small volumes can drive outsized price moves in either direction. 

Westmount Energy

Westmount Energy is an investment vehicle focused on oil and gas exploration ventures, primarily through its stake in the prolific Canje Block offshore Guyana, one of the most significant deepwater oil discoveries of the past decade. Its performance is closely tied to drilling results and progress by the Canje Block's operators, which include ExxonMobil and Shell.

The stock's massive 52-week range reflects the dramatic swings typical of single-asset energy explorers. Progress on the Canje Block remains the key catalyst to watch.

Made Tech Group

Made Tech is a digital, data and technology services provider focused almost exclusively on the UK public sector, sitting in similar territory to TPXimpact.

The company has become profitable over the past year, reporting half-year sales of £27.8 — with a debt-free financial position and strong asset coverage across both short-term and long-term liabilities.

With a market cap of around £59 million, it remains firmly in penny stock territory. The public sector digital transformation theme continues to drive contract flow, and its clean balance sheet gives it more resilience than many peers at this end of the market.

Atlantic Lithium 

Atlantic Lithium is primarily focused on advancing its flagship Ewoyaa Lithium Project in Ghana towards production to become the country's first operating lithium mine.

The project features a high-grade, 36.8 million-ton spodumene pegmatite resource that is expected to deliver significant economic benefits to Ghana while serving the growing electric vehicle and energy storage markets.

The country's Parliament ratified the company's mining licence for the flagship, lasting some 15 years, in March 2026.

Risks and rewards of penny stocks

• Share prices can be extremely volatile
• Liquidity is often lower than in larger companies
• Many businesses are early-stage and pre-profit
• Equity raises are common and can dilute shareholders
• News flow can dramatically impact valuation

However, penny stocks can also deliver outsized returns if business models succeed or sector themes strengthen.

As always, careful research and risk management are essential.