NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR
DISTRIBUTION, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN OR
INTO THE UNITED STATES, AUSTRALIA, CANADA, JAPAN OR THE REPUBLIC OF
SOUTH AFRICA OR ANY OTHER JURISDICTION WHERE SUCH RELEASE,
PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION WOULD BE UNLAWFUL. FURTHER, THIS
ANNOUNCEMENT IS FOR INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT AN OFFER
OF SECURITIES IN ANY JURISDICTION.
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE
INFORMATION.
16 July 2024
Cirata
plc
Launch of
Fundraise
Cirata plc (the "Company" and together with its
subsidiaries, "Cirata" or
the "Group")
(LSE: CRTA), the data activation platform, today
announces it is undertaking an equity fundraise (the "Fundraise") to raise gross proceeds of
approximately $7 million (£5.4 million) at a price of 55 pence per
share (the "Offer
Price").
The Fundraise will
comprise:
· a placing (the
"Placing") of new ordinary
shares of 10 pence each ("Ordinary Shares") (the "Placing Shares");
·
a direct subscription (the "Direct Subscription") for new Ordinary
Shares by certain third-party investors (the "Direct Subscription
Shares");
·
a direct subscription (the "Management Subscription") for new Ordinary Shares
by certain Directors (the "Management Subscription Shares");
and
·
a separate offer, in conjunction with the Placing,
made today by the Company (the "Retail Offer") for new Ordinary Shares
(the "Retail Offer Shares"
and together with the Placing Shares, the Direct Subscription
Shares and the Management Subscription Shares, the "Offer Shares") via PrimaryBid, to
provide retail investors in the United Kingdom with an opportunity
to acquire Retail Offer Shares, contributing up to £1 million ($1.3
million). A separate announcement will be made shortly regarding
the Retail Offer and its terms.
The Placing is being conducted
through an accelerated bookbuild process (the "Bookbuild"), which will be launched
immediately following this Announcement. Panmure Liberum Limited
("Panmure Liberum") is
acting as sole bookrunner in relation to the Placing.
Highlights
·
Good progress following a complete company
rebuild
·
Validation of strategy - market for Data
Integration and DevOps supports growth ambition
·
Strong foundation developed, with approximately
110 opportunities in the current pipeline
·
Overhead run rate expected to be $20 million on
annualised basis for FY25
·
Equity funding to underpin confidence and
capitalise on potential
Background to and reasons for the Fundraise
Following the Company's equity
fundraise in July 2023, a significant amount of progress has been
made across all parts of the Group. The management team has
instigated a complete rebuild of the Company. The Company faced
challenges in terms of governance, Go-to-Market ("GTM") strategy and execution that
failed to deliver sustainable growth. In addition, the prevailing
corporate culture was at odds with the Company's commercial
reality.
Cirata has made tangible progress
across all workstreams with a clear strategy in place,
significantly improved GTM and with a cost base expected to reach
$20 million for FY25 on an annualised basis (more than halved from
$45 million at the start of FY23).
There has been good progress with
improving activity in direct sales, partner and marketing activity
and resultant pipeline building. This is demonstrated by
approximately 110 opportunities in the current pipeline. The most
recent bookings quarter shows year on year growth of 143% with a
significantly lower comparable cost base.
Cirata's foundations of growth
The Company has identified three
foundations of growth:
1. There is a greater than $1
billion market opportunity which can support triple digit annual
growth in Cirata's Data Integration ("DI") business and double-digit annual
growth in DevOps. Furthermore, DI has a service addressable market
of $1.4 billion growing at 10% CAGR, supported by core Hadoop Data
migration market with a total value estimated to be approximately
$800 million.
2. The product has a market
fit through Live Data Migrator and DevOps with a technology moat
encompassing 15 years of data engineering expertise together with
114 active patents.
3. Established
commercial ecosystem of partners and customers. Partners with
commercial re-engagement include Accenture, AWS, Databricks, Google
Cloud, IBM, Microsoft Azure, Oracle Cloud, and Snowflake. New and
returning customers are from both DI (including Experian, Natwest
and Tesco) and DevOps (Allianz, ASML, Continental, Marvell, Mentor
Graphics, Travelers) product offerings.
The Company is beginning to see the green
shoots of the new model starting to work. DI blue-chip companies
are entering new and growth contracts with 15 new and growth
contracts and six renewals between Q2 FY23 and Q2 FY24 which
demonstrates that the "land and expand" strategy is working.
Additionally, the transition to the new Cirata brand, launched in
October 2023, has been successful as evidenced by improving inbound
lead generation traction. This combined with further marketing
initiatives has led to significant increases in website visits,
organic search traffic and LinkedIn ad performance and impressions.
Furthermore, the Company is progressing traction with DI partners,
particularly Databricks, IBM, Microsoft Azure and
Oracle.
Pipeline
When the new management arrived at
Cirata, the pipeline was embryonic and required full cleansing.
From this baseline the pipeline has seen a significant improvement
in both quality and quantum, with approximately 110 opportunities
at various stages in the funnel. Within this pipeline, 66% of the
opportunities are from North America, and 69% is DI. There is also
a healthy number of DevOps renewals. The majority of Cirata's leads
are now coming from its major partners, and this gives the Company
confidence for the future.
Strategic update
In terms of a strategic update,
DevOps operates in a niche market with a significant moat.
Verticals with high IP and large code repository's continue to
favour Subversion ("SVN").
In addition, within the Gerrit code review market the Directors
believe there are opportunities for growth. Both products are
characterized by high renewal rates on mission critical
implementations.
Within the DI market Cirata offers
unstructured data-lake file migration, replication and
synchronization product. The core proposition allows for the
transfer /migration of data lakes, usually from on premise into the
cloud. Future longer-term opportunities for Cirata's product are
aligned to the evolution of the Hybrid cloud. At a high-level
Hybrid cloud is a data management / orchestration problem. The
emergence of open standards for cloud-based data lakes (Apache
Iceberg), and Cirata's core IP and knowhow in the transfer and
replication of unstructured data position it well to benefit from
the growth in this market. Of note one of the key drivers of both
data lake migration and the emergence of the Hybrid cloud is the
need for organizations to leverage artificial intelligence
capabilities across large data sets.
Performance
As announced alongside the Fundraise, bookings
for the period Q2 FY24 were $1.7 million (Q2 FY23, $0.7 million),
with the business mix driven by DevOps software accounting for 63%
of bookings and DI software accounting for 37% of bookings. The
cash balance for the Company as at 30 June 2024 was $9.1
million.
In total, 16 new contracts were signed in the
quarter of which seven were 'new & growth' contracts, including
the second phase of the previously announced deal with General
Motors Co, which validates the Company's 'land & expand'
strategy.
Significant renewals secured in the Q2 FY24
included Oppo's 3-year, $592,000 maintenance and support renewal
for Cirata's DevOps Gerrit code review product.
Deal slippage remained a feature of Q2 FY24
performance. Some of the significant potential deals in Q2 FY24
were delayed, and following consultation with its customers, the
Company has a strong expectation that these will now conclude in H2
FY24 matching the customers' critical timelines. The team delivered
some improvement on closing smaller deals, which is encouraging,
but challenges remain around the complex nature of larger
enterprise sales for DI, with complexity from customer and partner
procurement processes. Establishing greater sales cycle
predictability, therefore, remains a key priority for management to
enable Cirata to move beyond its current non-linear growth
trajectory. Today, the sales team is more established which
provides greater confidence in sales cycle management and deal
closure predictability.
In terms of overhead costs, FY25 overhead cost
run-rate is expected to be $20 million on an annualised basis (FY24
guidance of c.$23 million). The cost restructuring program
commenced earlier this month. There is non-linear progression in
bookings with pipeline building and sales execution showing a
positive trend. The Company has an aspiration to reach cash flow
breakeven exiting FY24.
Outlook
The Board is retaining the FY24 bookings
guidance of $13-15 million as, with strong execution, it remains
achievable although demanding. The second half of the year will be
back-end weighted with non-linear progression of bookings expected.
This outlook guidance is supported by a current pipeline that has
prospects in progress (including those delayed from Q2 FY24) and
improving levels of sales activity, both direct and through
partners. Looking beyond FY24, the current levels of lead
generation and early-stage pipeline support the medium-term
ambition of the Company.
Use of
proceeds
The Company is seeking to raise approximately
$7 million (£5.4 million) to strengthen the balance sheet
to:
·
Take business through to cash flow break-even, which the
Company aspires to as it exits FY24
·
Underpin all stakeholders', including customers',
confidence
· To
allow business to capitalise on its potential through investment in
sales, marketing and products
Update on FCA
investigation and shareholder engagement
As previously disclosed by the Company in its
RNS announcements of 20 April 2023 and 15 June 2023, the Company is
subject to an ongoing investigation by the Financial Conduct
Authority (the "FCA").
The FCA is investigating the circumstances
surrounding and arising from the potentially fraudulent
irregularities announced on 9 March 2023 (the "Irregularities"). The FCA is
investigating whether certain regulatory announcements released by
the Company during the period 1 May 2021 to 9 March 2023 may have
materially mis-stated the Company's financial position.
The FCA investigation is ongoing and it is not
yet known whether the FCA will seek to take action against the
Company. If the FCA does ultimately decide to take action against
the Company, this may result in the FCA sanctioning the Company.
Such sanction could include the Company receiving a fine and may
have a material adverse effect on the Company's business, operating
results, reputation, financial position or future prospects.
Due to the nature of the FCA investigation and the stage that it is
at, the Company cannot provide any more certainty of its outcome at
this time.
With the exception of the FCA investigation,
the Company is not aware that it is currently subject to any
investigation by a governmental authority or regulator.
The Company is not subject to, and is not aware
of any, civil litigation against it. The management team has met
with a significant number of existing shareholders covering a very
large percentage of the shareholder register as part of the Placing
and as a result the management team is aware that one existing
minority shareholder (which the Company believes owns less than 2%
of the Company's issued share capital) has again raised concerns
related to the Irregularities and such shareholders' investment
into the Company prior to that date. The same shareholder raised
the same issue at the time of the Company's fundraise in July 2023.
However, there has not been and there is currently no civil
litigation or pending action in relation to this shareholder's
expressed concern. The Company continues to engage constructively
with that shareholder.
Details of the
Placing
The Placing will be conducted by way of a
non-pre-emptive share issue and follows extensive discussions with
Shareholders. The Directors, having taken appropriate advice,
believe that this is the most cost effective and reliable method to
raise funds. The Directors consider that the potential long-term
value creation benefit to shareholders arising from the application
of the net proceeds of the Fundraise outweighs any dilutive effects
of the Fundraise. The Placing Shares will be allotted and
issued for non-cash consideration (as described
further below) utilising the allotment authorities granted at the
Annual General Meeting of the Company held on 14 May 2024 (the
"AGM").
The Placing, which is being arranged on behalf
of the Company by Panmure Liberum, is conditional, inter alia, upon
Admission and is subject to the terms of the Placing Agreement. The
Placing is fully underwritten. The Placing is conditional on,
amongst other things, the Direct Subscriptions.
The Placing Agreement contains customary
representations, warranties and undertakings and indemnities given
by the Company to Panmure Liberum with respect to its business and
the Group and to certain matters connected with the Placing. The
Placing may be terminated by Panmure Liberum in certain customary
circumstances, including in the event of, inter alia, a breach by
the Company of the terms of the Placing Agreement (including the
warranties) or a material adverse change in the condition of the
Group. Under the terms of the Placing Agreement, the Company has
agreed to pay Panmure Liberum, in consideration for its services in
respect of the Placing, commissions representing a percentage of
the gross proceeds raised in the Offer.
The Placing Shares are being offered by way of
the Bookbuild, which will be launched immediately following this
Announcement in accordance with the terms and conditions set out in
Appendix 1 to this Announcement.
The Bookbuild will determine final demand for
and participation in the Placing. The timing of the closing of the
Bookbuild is at the absolute discretion of the Company and Panmure
Liberum. The allocations will be determined by the Company and
Panmure Liberum in their absolute discretion and will be confirmed
orally or by email to Placees by Panmure Liberum following the
close of the Bookbuild. A further announcement of the results of
the Fundraise will be made by the Company following the completion
of the Bookbuild.
Members of the public are not entitled to
participate in the Placing. The Placing Shares will be issued
credited as fully paid and will rank in full for all dividends and
other distributions declared, made or paid after the admission of
the Placing Shares and will otherwise rank on admission pari passu
in all respects with the existing Ordinary Shares. The Placing
Shares are not being offered or sold in any jurisdiction where it
would be unlawful to do so. The Placing will be effected by
way of a placing of new Ordinary Shares in the Company for non-cash
consideration. Panmure Liberum will subscribe for redeemable
preference shares in JerseyCo, a Jersey incorporated wholly owned
subsidiary of the Company, for an amount approximately equal to the
net proceeds of the Placing. The Company will allot and issue the
Placing Shares on a non-pre-emptive basis to Placees in
consideration for the transfer of the redeemable preference shares
in JerseyCo that will be issued to Panmure Liberum.
The Retail Offer is not made subject to the
terms and conditions set out in Appendix 1 to this Announcement,
and instead a separate announcement will be made shortly regarding
the Retail Offer and its terms. The Retail Offer will be effected
by way of a placing of new Ordinary Shares in the Company for
non-cash consideration. PrimaryBid will subscribe for redeemable
preference shares in JerseyCo, a Jersey wholly owned subsidiary of
the Company, for an amount approximately equal to the net proceeds
of the Retail Offer. The Company will allot and issue Retail Offer
Shares on a non-pre-emptive basis to investors in the Retail Offer
in consideration for the transfer of the redeemable preference
shares in JerseyCo that will be issued to PrimaryBid.
Similarly, the Direct Subscription
and the Management Subscription are not part of the Placing and are
not made subject to the terms and conditions set out in Appendix
1. The Direct Subscription Shares and Management Subscription
Shares will be issued pursuant to the allotment and disapplication
of pre-emption rights authorities granted at the AGM.
Director
Participation
Members of the Board have indicated their
intention to subscribe new Ordinary Shares in an aggregate amount
of £38,850 as part of the Fundraise as detailed below:
Board
|
Role
|
Subscription value
|
Ken Lever
|
Non-Executive Chair
|
£25,000
|
Stephen Kelly
|
Executive Director, CEO
|
£10,000
|
Peter Lees
|
Senior Independent Non-Executive
Director
|
£3,850*
|
*Exchange rate used is GBP:USD 1.29835 as at
4.30 p.m. 15 July 2024 and throughout this announcement
Admission,
Settlement and CREST
Application will be made to the London Stock
Exchange for the Offer Shares to be admitted to trading on AIM. It
is expected that Admission will be effective and trading in the
Offer Shares will commence at 8.00 a.m. on 22 July 2024.
The Articles permit the Company to issue shares
in uncertificated form. CREST is a computerised paperless share
transfer and settlement system which allows shares and other
securities to be held in electronic rather than paper form. The
existing Ordinary Shares are already admitted to CREST and
therefore the Offer Shares will also be eligible for settlement in
CREST. The Offer Shares due to uncertificated holders are expected
to be delivered in CREST on 22 July 2024.
Expected
Timetable for the Fundraise
Announcement of the results of the Fundraise
7.00 a.m. on 17 July
2024
Admission and commencement of dealing in the
Offer Shares
8.00 a.m. on or around 22 July 2024
CREST accounts to be credited with Offer Shares
As soon as possible following
Admission
Each of the
times and dates in this Announcement refer to London time and are
subject to change. Any such change will be notified to Shareholders
by an announcement on a Regulatory Information
Service.
Attention is also drawn to the section headed
'Important Information' and to Appendix 1 to this Announcement
containing, inter alia, the terms and conditions of the Placing
(representing important information for Placees only). The number
of Placing Shares to be placed in connection with the Placing will
be agreed by the Company and Panmure Liberum at the close of the
Bookbuild process, and the results of the Placing will be announced
as soon as practicable thereafter. The timing of the closing of the
book, pricing and allocations is at the absolute discretion of
Company and Panmure Liberum.
Terms used but not defined elsewhere in this
Announcement shall have the meanings given to such terms in the
definitions section in Appendix 2 to this Announcement.
This
Announcement is released by Cirata plc and contains inside
information for the purposes of Article 7 of the UK Market Abuse
Regulation, and is disclosed in accordance with the Company's
obligations under Article 17 of the UK Market Abuse
Regulation.
Market
soundings (as defined in the UK Market Abuse Regulation) were taken
in respect of the Placing with the result that certain persons
became aware of inside information (as defined in the UK Market
Abuse Regulation), as permitted by the UK Market Abuse Regulation.
This inside information is set out in this Announcement. Therefore
those persons that received inside information in a market sounding
are no longer in possession of such inside information relating to
the Company and its securities.
The person
responsible for arranging the release of this announcement on
behalf of Cirata plc is Larry Webster, Company
Secretary.
For
further information, please contact:
Cirata
Stephen Kelly, Chief Executive
Officer
Ijoma Maluza, Chief Financial Officer
Daniel Hayes, Investor Relations
|
Via FTI
Consulting
|
Panmure
Liberum (Joint Broker and Sole
Bookrunner)
Max Jones / Rupert Dearden / John
More / Anake Singh
|
+44 (0)20 3100 2000
|
FTI
Consulting
Matt Dixon / Kwaku Aning / Usama Ali
|
+44 (0)20 3727
1137
|
Stifel (Nomad and
Joint Broker)
Fred Walsh / Ben Good / Sarah Wong
|
+44 (0)20 7710
7600
|
IMPORTANT
INFORMATION
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT, INCLUDING THE
APPENDICES AND THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THEM, IS RESTRICTED AND
IS NOT FOR PUBLICATION, RELEASE, TRANSMISSION, FORWARDING OR
DISTRIBUTION, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, IN OR
INTO THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, ITS TERRITORIES AND POSSESSIONS,
ANY STATE OF THE UNITED STATES OR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
(COLLECTIVELY, THE "UNITED
STATES"), AUSTRALIA, CANADA, JAPAN OR THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH
AFRICA OR ANY OTHER JURISDICTION IN WHICH SUCH PUBLICATION, RELEASE
OR DISTRIBUTION WOULD BE UNLAWFUL. FURTHER, THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS
FOR INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT AN OFFER OF SECURITIES IN
ANY JURISDICTION.
This Announcement or any part of it
does not constitute or form part of any offer to issue or sell, or
the solicitation of an offer to acquire, purchase or subscribe for,
any securities in the United States, Canada, Australia, Japan or
the Republic of South Africa or any other jurisdiction in which the
same would be unlawful. Other than the Retail Offer, no public
offering of the Offer Shares is being made in any such
jurisdiction.
No action has been taken by the
Company, Panmure Liberum, any of their respective Affiliates, or
any person acting on its or their behalf that would permit an offer
of the Offer Shares or possession or distribution of this
Announcement or any other offering or publicity material relating
to such Offer Shares in any jurisdiction where action for that
purpose is required. Persons into whose possession this
Announcement comes are required by the Company and Panmure Liberum
to inform themselves about, and to observe, such
restrictions.
No prospectus, offering memorandum,
offering document or admission document has been or will be made
available in connection with the matters contained in this
Announcement and no prospectus is required (in accordance with
Regulation (EU) No 2017/1129 (as amended) (the "EU Prospectus Regulation") or
assimilated Regulation (EU) No 2017/1129 (as amended) as it forms
part of the laws of the United Kingdom by virtue of the European
Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (as amended) (the "UK Prospectus Regulation")) to be
published. Persons needing advice should consult a qualified
independent legal adviser, business adviser, financial adviser or
tax adviser for legal, financial, business or tax
advice.
The securities referred to herein
have not been and will not be registered under the US Securities
Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), or with any
securities regulatory authority of any State or other jurisdiction
of the United States, and may not be offered, sold or transferred,
directly or indirectly, in or into the United States except
pursuant to an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to,
the registration requirements of the Securities Act and in
compliance with the securities laws of any State or any other
jurisdiction of the United States. Accordingly, the Offer Shares
will be offered and sold only (i) outside of the United States in
"offshore transactions" (as such term is defined in Regulation S
under the Securities Act ("Regulation S")) pursuant to Regulation
S and otherwise in accordance with applicable laws; and (ii) in the
United States to persons who are "qualified institutional buyers"
(as defined in Rule 144A under the Securities Act) ("QIBs") and who have executed and
delivered to the Company and Panmure Liberum a US Investor Letter
substantially in the form provided to it, in each case, pursuant to
an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, registration
under the Securities Act. No public offering of the Securities will
be made in the United States or elsewhere.
The Fundraise has not been approved
or disapproved by the US Securities and Exchange Commission, any
state securities commission in the United States or any US
regulatory authority, nor have any of the foregoing authorities
passed upon or endorsed the merits of the Fundraise, or the
accuracy or adequacy of this Announcement. Any representation to
the contrary is a criminal offence in the United States.
This Announcement has not been
approved by the London Stock Exchange.
Members of the public are not
eligible to take part in the Placing, Direct Subscription or
Management Subscription. This Announcement is directed at and is
only being distributed to: (a) if in a member state of the European
Economic Area (the "EEA"),
qualified investors ("Qualified
Investors") within the meaning of Article 2(e) of the EU
Prospectus Regulation; (b) if in the United Kingdom, qualified
investors within the meaning of Article 2(e) of the UK Prospectus
Regulation who are also (i) persons having professional experience
in matters relating to investments who fall within the definition
of "investment professional" in Article 19(5) of the Financial
Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005, as
amended (the "Order"); or
(ii) high net worth companies, unincorporated associations and
partnerships and trustees of high value trusts as described in
Article 49(2)(a) to (d) of the Order ("UK Qualified Investors"); or (c) other
persons to whom it may otherwise be lawfully communicated (all such
persons together being "Relevant
Persons").
This Announcement must not be acted
on or relied on by persons who are not Relevant Persons. Persons
distributing this Announcement must satisfy themselves that it is
lawful to do so. Any investment or investment activity to which
this Announcement relates is available only to Relevant Persons and
will be engaged in only with Relevant Persons.
The relevant clearances have not
been, nor will they be, obtained from the securities commission of
any province or territory of Canada, no prospectus has been lodged
with, or registered by, the Australian Securities and Investments
Commission or the Japanese Ministry of Finance; the relevant
clearances have not been, and will not be, obtained for the South
Africa Reserve Bank or any other applicable body in the Republic of
South Africa in relation to the Offer Shares and the Offer Shares
have not been, nor will they be, registered under or offered in
compliance with the securities laws of any state, province or
territory of Australia, Canada, Japan or the Republic of South
Africa. Accordingly, the Offer Shares may not (unless an exemption
under the relevant securities laws is applicable) be offered, sold,
resold or delivered, directly or indirectly, in or into Australia,
Canada, Japan or the Republic of South Africa or any other
jurisdiction in which such activities would be unlawful.
By participating in the Bookbuild
and the Placing, each person who is invited to and who chooses to
participate in the Placing (each a "Placee") by making an oral or written
and legally binding offer to acquire Placing Shares will be deemed
to have read and understood this Announcement in its entirety, to
be participating, making an offer and acquiring Placing Shares on
the terms and conditions contained in Appendix 1 to this
Announcement and to be providing the representations, warranties,
indemnities, acknowledgements and undertakings contained in
Appendix 1 to this Announcement.
Certain statements contained in this
Announcement constitute "forward-looking statements" with respect
to the financial condition, results of operations and businesses
and plans of the Company and the Group. Words such as "believes",
"anticipates", "estimates", "expects", "intends", "plans", "aims",
"potential", "will", "would", "could", "considered", "likely",
"estimate" and variations of these words and similar future or
conditional expressions, are intended to identify forward-looking
statements but are not the exclusive means of identifying such
statements. These statements and forecasts involve risk and
uncertainty because they relate to events and depend upon future
circumstances that have not occurred. There are a number of factors
that could cause actual results or developments to differ
materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking
statements and forecasts. As a result, the Group's actual financial
condition, results of operations and business and plans may differ
materially from the plans, goals and expectations expressed or
implied by these forward-looking statements. No representation or
warranty is made as to the achievement or reasonableness of, and no
reliance should be placed on, such forward-looking statements. The
forward-looking statements contained in this Announcement speak
only as of the date of this Announcement. The Company, its
directors, Panmure Liberum, their respective Affiliates and any
person acting on its or their behalf each expressly disclaim any
obligation or undertaking to update or revise publicly any
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise, unless required to do so by applicable
law or regulation, the FCA or the London Stock Exchange.
Panmure Liberum is authorised and
regulated in the United Kingdom by the FCA and is acting
exclusively for the Company and no one else in connection with the
Placing, the contents of this Announcement or any other matters
described in this Announcement. Panmure Liberum will not regard any
other person as its client in relation to the Placing, the content
of this Announcement or any other matters described in this
Announcement and will not be responsible to anyone (including any
Placees) other than the Company for providing the protections
afforded to its clients or for providing advice to any other person
in relation to the Placing, the content of this Announcement or any
other matters referred to in this Announcement.
This Announcement has been issued by
and is the sole responsibility of the Company. No representation or
warranty, express or implied, is or will be made as to, or in
relation to, and no responsibility or liability is or will be
accepted by Panmure Liberum, any of its Affiliates or any person
acting on its or their behalf as to, or in relation to, the
accuracy or completeness of this Announcement or any other written
or oral information made available to or publicly available to any
interested party or its advisers, and any liability therefore is
expressly disclaimed.
This Announcement does not
constitute a recommendation concerning any investor's investment
decision with respect to the Fundraise. Any indication in this
Announcement of the price at which ordinary shares have been bought
or sold in the past cannot be relied upon as a guide to future
performance. The price of shares and any income expected from them
may go down as well as up and investors may not get back the full
amount invested upon disposal of the shares. Past performance is no
guide to future performance. This Announcement does not identify or
suggest, or purport to identify or suggest, the risks (direct or
indirect) that may be associated with an investment in the Offer
Shares. The contents of this Announcement are not to be construed
as legal, business, financial or tax advice. Each investor or
prospective investor should consult their or its own legal adviser,
business adviser, financial adviser or tax adviser for legal,
financial, business or tax advice.
No statement in this Announcement is
intended to be a profit forecast or profit estimate for any period,
and no statement in this Announcement should be interpreted to mean
that earnings, earnings per share or income, cash flow from
operations or free cash flow for the Company for the current or
future financial years would necessarily match or exceed the
historical published earnings, earnings per share or income, cash
flow from operations or free cash flow for the Company.
All offers of the Offer Shares will
be made pursuant to an exemption under the UK Prospectus Regulation
or the EU Prospectus Regulation from the requirement to produce a
prospectus. This Announcement is being distributed and communicated
to persons in the UK only in circumstances to which section 21(1)
of the Financial Services and Markets Act, 2000, as amended does
not apply.
The Offer Shares to be issued or
sold pursuant to the Fundraise will not be admitted to trading on
any stock exchange other than the London Stock Exchange.
Persons (including, without
limitation, nominees and trustees) who have a contractual or other
legal obligation to forward a copy of this Announcement should seek
appropriate advice before taking any action.
Neither the content of the Company's
website (or any other website) nor the content of any website
accessible from hyperlinks on the Company's website (or any other
website) is incorporated into or forms part of this
Announcement.
This Announcement has been prepared
for the purposes of complying with applicable law and regulation in
the United Kingdom and the information disclosed may not be the
same as that which would have been disclosed if this Announcement
had been prepared in accordance with the laws and regulations of
any jurisdiction outside the United Kingdom.
UK
Product Governance Requirements
Solely for the purposes of the
product governance requirements of Chapter 3 of the FCA Handbook
Product Intervention and Product Governance Sourcebook (the
"UK Product Governance
Requirements"), and disclaiming all and any liability,
whether arising in tort, contract or otherwise, which any
"manufacturer" (for the purposes of the UK Product Governance
Requirements) may otherwise have with respect thereto, the Placing
Shares have been subject to a product approval process, which has
determined that such Placing Shares are: (i) compatible with an end
target market of retail investors and investors who meet the
criteria of professional clients and eligible counterparties, each
as defined in the FCA Handbook Conduct of Business Sourcebook; and
(ii) eligible for distribution through all permitted distribution
channels (the "UK Target Market
Assessment"). Notwithstanding the UK Target Market
Assessment, distributors should note that: the price of the Placing
Shares may decline and investors could lose all or part of their
investment; the Placing Shares offer no guaranteed income and no
capital protection; and an investment in the Placing Shares is
compatible only with investors who do not need a guaranteed income
or capital protection, who (either alone or in conjunction with an
appropriate financial or other adviser) are capable of evaluating
the merits and risks of such an investment and who have sufficient
resources to be able to bear any losses that may result therefrom.
The UK Target Market Assessment is without prejudice to the
requirements of any contractual, legal or regulatory selling
restrictions in relation to the Placing. Furthermore, it is noted
that, notwithstanding the UK Target Market Assessment, the Sole
Bookrunner will only procure investors who meet the criteria of
professional clients and eligible counterparties.
For the avoidance of doubt, the UK
Target Market Assessment does not constitute: (a) an assessment of
suitability or appropriateness for the purposes of Chapters 9A or
10A, respectively, of the FCA Handbook Conduct of Business
Sourcebook; or (b) a recommendation to any investor or group of
investors to invest in, or purchase or take any other action
whatsoever with respect to the Placing Shares. Each distributor is
responsible for undertaking its own target market assessment in
respect of the Placing Shares and determining appropriate
distribution channels.
EU
Product Governance Requirements
Solely for the purposes of the
product governance requirements contained within: (a) EU Directive
2014/65/EU on markets in financial instruments, as amended
("MiFID II"); (b) Articles
9 and 10 of Commission Delegated Directive (EU) 2017/593
supplementing MiFID II; and (c) local implementing measures
(together, the "MiFID II Product
Governance Requirements") and/or any equivalent requirements
elsewhere to the extent determined to be applicable, and
disclaiming all and any liability, whether arising in tort,
contract or otherwise, which any "manufacturer" (for the purposes
of the MiFID II Product Governance Requirements and/or any
equivalent requirements elsewhere to the extent determined to be
applicable) may otherwise have with respect thereto, the Placing
Shares have been subject to a product approval process, which has
determined that the Placing Shares are: (i) compatible with an end
target market of retail investors and investors who meet the
criteria of professional clients and eligible counterparties, each
as defined in MiFID II; and (ii) eligible for distribution through
all distribution channels as are permitted by MiFID II (the
"EU Target Market
Assessment"). Notwithstanding the EU Target Market
Assessment, distributors should note that: the price of the Placing
Shares may decline and investors could lose all or part of their
investment; the Placing Shares offer no guaranteed income and no
capital protection; and an investment in the Placing Shares is
compatible only with investors who do not need a guaranteed income
or capital protection, who (either alone or in conjunction with an
appropriate financial or other adviser) are capable of evaluating
the merits and risks of such an investment and who have sufficient
resources to be able to bear any losses that may result therefrom.
The EU Target Market Assessment is without prejudice to the
requirements of any contractual, legal or regulatory selling
restrictions in relation to the Placing. Furthermore, it is noted
that, notwithstanding the EU Target Market Assessment, the Sole
Bookrunner will only procure investors who meet the criteria of
professional clients and eligible counterparties.
For the avoidance of doubt, the EU
Target Market Assessment does not constitute: (a) an assessment of
suitability or appropriateness for the purposes of MiFID II; or (b)
a recommendation to any investor or group of investors to invest
in, or purchase, or take any other action whatsoever with respect
to the Placing Shares. Each distributor is responsible for
undertaking its own target market assessment in respect of the
Placing Shares and determining appropriate distribution
channels.
APPENDIX 1 - TERMS AND
CONDITIONS OF THE PLACING
IMPORTANT INFORMATION ON THE
PLACING FOR INVITED PLACEES ONLY
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT, INCLUDING THIS
APPENDIX (TOGETHER, THE "ANNOUNCEMENT"), AND THE INFORMATION
CONTAINED IN IT IS RESTRICTED AND IS NOT FOR PUBLICATION, RELEASE
OR DISTRIBUTION, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, IN OR
INTO OR FROM THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, AUSTRALIA, CANADA,
JAPAN, NEW ZEALAND, THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA OR IN OR INTO ANY
OTHER JURISDICTION IN WHICH SUCH PUBLICATION, RELEASE OR
DISTRIBUTION WOULD BE UNLAWFUL.
MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC ARE NOT
ELIGIBLE TO TAKE PART IN THE PLACING. THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS FOR
INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND IS DIRECTED ONLY AT PERSONS WHOSE
ORDINARY ACTIVITIES INVOLVE ACQUIRING, HOLDING, MANAGING AND
DISPOSING OF INVESTMENTS (AS PRINCIPAL OR AGENT) FOR THE PURPOSES
OF THEIR BUSINESS AND WHO HAVE PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE IN MATTERS
RELATING TO INVESTMENTS AND ARE, UNLESS OTHERWISE AGREED BY THE
SOLE BOOKRUNNER: (A) IF IN A MEMBER STATE OF THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC
AREA (THE "EEA"), PERSONS
WHO ARE QUALIFIED INVESTORS ("QUALIFIED INVESTORS") WITHIN THE
MEANING OF ARTICLE 2(E) OF REGULATION (EU) 2017/1129 (AS AMENDED)
(THE "EU PROSPECTUS
REGULATION"); (B) IF IN THE UNITED KINGDOM, PERSONS WHO ARE
QUALIFIED INVESTORS WITHIN THE MEANING OF ARTICLE 2(E) OF
REGULATION (EU) 2017/1129 (AS AMENDED) AS IT FORMS PART OF THE LAWS
OF THE UNITED KINGDOM BY VIRTUE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION (WITHDRAWAL)
ACT 2018 (AS AMENDED) (THE "UK
PROSPECTUS REGULATION") WHO ARE: (I) PERSONS WHO HAVE
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE IN MATTERS RELATING TO INVESTMENTS WHO FALL
WITHIN THE DEFINITION OF "INVESTMENT PROFESSIONALS" IN ARTICLE
19(5) OF THE FINANCIAL SERVICES AND MARKETS ACT 2000 (FINANCIAL
PROMOTION) ORDER 2005, AS AMENDED (THE "ORDER"); OR (II) PERSONS WHO FALL
WITHIN ARTICLE 49(2)(A) TO (D) ("HIGH NET WORTH COMPANIES,
UNINCORPORATED ASSOCIATIONS, ETC") OF THE ORDER ("UK QUALIFIED INVESTORS"); OR (C)
PERSONS TO WHOM IT MAY OTHERWISE BE LAWFULLY COMMUNICATED (ALL SUCH
PERSONS TOGETHER BEING REFERRED TO AS "RELEVANT PERSONS").
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT MUST NOT BE ACTED
ON OR RELIED ON BY PERSONS WHO ARE NOT RELEVANT PERSONS. PERSONS
DISTRIBUTING THIS ANNOUNCEMENT MUST SATISFY THEMSELVES THAT IT IS
LAWFUL TO DO SO. BY ACCEPTING THE TERMS OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT YOU
REPRESENT AND AGREE THAT YOU ARE A RELEVANT PERSON. ANY INVESTMENT
OR INVESTMENT ACTIVITY TO WHICH THIS ANNOUNCEMENT RELATES IS
AVAILABLE ONLY TO RELEVANT PERSONS AND WILL BE ENGAGED IN ONLY WITH
RELEVANT PERSONS. THIS ANNOUNCEMENT DOES NOT ITSELF CONSTITUTE AN
OFFER FOR SALE OR SUBSCRIPTION OF ANY SECURITIES IN THE
COMPANY.
EACH PLACEE SHOULD CONSULT WITH ITS
OWN ADVISERS AS TO LEGAL, TAX, BUSINESS, FINANCIAL AND RELATED
ASPECTS OF AN INVESTMENT IN THE PLACING SHARES.
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS NOT AN OFFER OF
SECURITIES FOR SALE INTO THE UNITED STATES. THE SECURITIES REFERRED
TO HEREIN HAVE NOT BEEN AND WILL NOT BE REGISTERED UNDER THE US
SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED (THE "SECURITIES ACT"), OR UNDER THE
APPLICABLE SECURITIES LAWS OF ANY STATE OR OTHER JURISDICTION OF
THE UNITED STATES, AND MAY NOT BE OFFERED, SOLD, ACQUIRED, RESOLD,
TRANSFERRED OR DELIVERED, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY WITHIN, INTO OR IN
THE UNITED STATES, EXCEPT PURSUANT TO AN EXEMPTION FROM, OR IN A
TRANSACTION NOT SUBJECT TO, THE REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS OF THE
SECURITIES ACT, IN EACH CASE, AND IN COMPLIANCE WITH ANY APPLICABLE
SECURITIES LAWS OF ANY RELEVANT STATE OR OTHER JURISDICTION OF THE
UNITED STATES. THE PLACING SHARES ARE BEING
OFFERED AND SOLD ONLY (I) OUTSIDE OF THE UNITED STATES IN
ACCORDANCE WITH REGULATION S UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT AND OTHERWISE
IN ACCORDANCE WITH APPLICABLE LAWS AND; (II) IN THE UNITED STATES
(A) TO A LIMITED NUMBER OF "QUALIFIED INSTITUTIONAL BUYERS" AS
DEFINED IN RULE 144A UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OR (B) OTHERWISE,
PURSUANT TO AN EXEMPTION FROM THE REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS OF THE
SECURITIES ACT. THERE WILL BE NO PUBLIC OFFER OF THE SECURITIES
MENTIONED HEREIN IN THE UNITED STATES. NO PUBLIC OFFERING OF THE
PLACING SHARES IS BEING MADE IN THE UNITED
STATES, THE UNITED KINGDOM, ANY OTHER RESTRICTED TERRITORY (AS
DEFINED BELOW) OR ELSEWHERE WHERE SUCH
OFFERING WOULD BE UNLAWFUL. NO MONEY,
SECURITIES OR OTHER CONSIDERATION FROM ANY PERSON INSIDE THE UNITED
STATES IS BEING SOLICITED AND, IF SENT IN RESPONSE TO THE
INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS ANNOUNCEMENT, WILL NOT BE
ACCEPTED.
This Announcement, and the
information contained herein, is not for release, publication or
distribution, directly or indirectly, to persons in the United
States, Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand or the Republic of
South Africa or any jurisdiction in which such release, publication
or distribution is unlawful (each a "Restricted Territory"). The
distribution of this Announcement, the Placing and/or the offer or
sale of the Placing Shares in certain jurisdictions may be
restricted by law. No action has been taken by the Company or by
Panmure Liberum Limited ("Panmure
Liberum") or any of their respective Affiliates or any of
its or their respective agents, directors, officers or employees
(collectively "Representatives") which would permit an
offer of the Placing Shares or possession or distribution of this
Announcement or any other offering or publicity material relating
to such Placing Shares in any jurisdiction where action for that
purpose is required. Persons distributing any part of this
Announcement must satisfy themselves that it is lawful to do so.
Persons (including, without limitation, nominees and trustees) who
have a contractual or other legal obligation to forward a copy of
this Announcement should seek appropriate advice before taking any
such action. Persons into whose possession this Announcement comes
are required by the Company and Panmure Liberum to inform
themselves about, and to observe, any such restrictions.
This Announcement does not itself
constitute or form part of an offer to sell or issue or the
solicitation of an offer to buy or acquire securities referred to
herein in the United States or any other Restricted Territory or
any jurisdiction where such offer or solicitation is
unlawful.
All offers of the Placing Shares
will be made pursuant to an exemption under the EU Prospectus
Regulation or the UK Prospectus Regulation, as applicable, from the
requirement to produce a prospectus. This Announcement is being
distributed and communicated to persons in the UK only in
circumstances to which section 21(1) of the Financial Services and
Markets Act 2000, as amended (the "FSMA") does not apply.
The Placing has not been approved
and will not be approved or disapproved by the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission, any state securities commission in the United
States or any other regulatory authority in the United States, nor
have any of the foregoing authorities passed upon or endorsed the
merits of the Placing or the accuracy or adequacy of this
Announcement. Any representation to the contrary is
unlawful.
Subject to certain exceptions, the
securities referred to in this Announcement may not be offered or
sold in any Restricted Territory or to, or for the account or
benefit of, a citizen or resident, or a corporation, partnership or
other entity created or organised in or under the laws of a
Restricted Territory.
None of the Company, Panmure
Liberum, any of their respective Affiliates or any of its or their
respective Representatives makes any representation or warranty,
express or implied, to any Placees regarding any investment in the
securities referred to in this Announcement under the laws
applicable to such Placees.
This Announcement has been issued
by, and is the sole responsibility of, the Company. No
representation or warranty, express or implied, is or will be made
as to, or in relation to, and no responsibility or liability is or
will be accepted by Panmure Liberum, any of its Affiliates or any
of its or their respective Representatives as to or in relation to,
the accuracy or completeness of this Announcement or any other
written or oral information made available to or publicly available
to any party or its advisers, and any liability therefore is
expressly disclaimed.
Panmure Liberum is acting
exclusively for the Company and no-one else in connection with the
Placing and is not, and will not be, responsible to anyone
(including the Placees) other than the Company for providing the
protections afforded to their clients nor for providing advice in
relation to the Placing and/or any other matter referred to in this
Announcement.
Persons who are invited to and who
choose to participate in the Placing (and any person acting on such
person's behalf) by making an oral or written offer to acquire
Placing Shares, including any individuals, funds or others on whose
behalf a commitment to acquire Placing Shares is given (the
"Placees") will be deemed
(i) to have read and understood this Announcement, including this
Appendix, in its entirety; (ii) to be participating and making such
offer on the terms and conditions contained in this Appendix; and
(iii) to be providing (and shall only be permitted to participate
in the Placing on the basis that they have provided) the
representations, warranties, undertakings, agreements,
acknowledgments and indemnities contained in this
Appendix.
In particular, each such Placee
represents, warrants, undertakes, agrees and acknowledges
that:
1. it is a
Relevant Person and undertakes that it will acquire, hold, manage
or dispose of any Placing Shares that are allocated to it for the
purposes of its business;
2. if it
is in a member state of the EEA, it is a Qualified
Investor;
3. if it
is in the United Kingdom, it is a UK Qualified Investor;
4. it is
acquiring Placing Shares for its own account or is acquiring
Placing Shares for an account with respect to which it exercises
sole investment discretion and has the authority to make and does
make the representations, warranties, undertakings, agreements,
acknowledgments and indemnities contained in this
Announcement;
5. if it
is a financial intermediary, as that term is used in Article 5(1)
of the EU Prospectus Regulation or the UK Prospectus Regulation (as
applicable): (i) the Placing Shares acquired by it in the Placing
will not be acquired on a non-discretionary basis on behalf of, nor
will they be acquired with a view to their offer or resale to,
persons in a member state of the EEA other than Qualified
Investors, or persons in the United Kingdom other than UK Qualified
Investors or in circumstances in which the prior consent of Panmure
Liberum has been given to each proposed offer or resale; or (ii)
where the Placing Shares have been acquired by it on behalf of
persons in a member state of the EEA other than Qualified
Investors, or in the United Kingdom other than UK Qualified
Investors, the offer of those Placing Shares to it is not treated
under the EU Prospectus Regulation or the UK Prospectus Regulation
(as applicable) as having been made to such persons;
6.
it understands (or if acting for the
account of another person, such person has confirmed that
such person understands) the resale and
transfer restrictions set out in this Appendix;
7. it
understands that the Placing Shares have not been and will not be
registered under the Securities Act or with any securities
regulatory authority of any state or other jurisdiction of the
United States and may not be offered, sold, resold or transferred,
delivered or distributed, directly or indirectly, within, into or
in the United States except pursuant to an exemption from, or in a
transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the
Securities Act and in compliance with any applicable securities
laws of any state or other jurisdiction of the United
States;
8. if
not a "qualified institutional buyer" as defined in Rule 144A under
the Securities Act ("Rule
144A") who has delivered to the
Company and Panmure Liberum a US Investor Letter in the form
provided to it, (i) it and the person(s), if any, for whose account
or benefit it is subscribing for the Placing Shares are purchasing
the Placing Shares in an "offshore transaction" as defined in
Regulation S; (ii) it is aware of the restrictions on the offer and
sale of the Placing Shares pursuant to Regulation S; and (iii) the
Placing Shares have not been offered to it by means of any
"directed selling efforts" as defined in Regulation S;
and
9. the
Company and Panmure Liberum are authorised to rely upon the truth
and accuracy of, and compliance with, the foregoing
representations, warranties, undertakings, agreements and
acknowledgements. Each Placee hereby agrees with Panmure Liberum
and the Company to be bound by these terms and conditions as being
the terms and conditions upon which Placing Shares will be issued.
A Placee shall, without limitation, become so bound if Panmure
Liberum confirms (orally or in writing) to such Placee its
allocation of Placing Shares.
Persons (including, without
limitation, nominees and trustees) who have a contractual or other
legal obligation to forward a copy of this Announcement (including
the Appendix) should seek appropriate advice before taking any
action.
These terms and conditions apply to
persons making an offer to acquire Placing Shares. Each Placee
hereby agrees with Panmure Liberum and the Company to be bound by
these terms and conditions as being the terms and conditions upon
which Placing Shares will be acquired.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR PLACEES ONLY REGARDING THE
PLACING
Bookbuild
Following this Announcement, Panmure
Liberum will today commence the Bookbuild to determine demand for
participation in the Placing by Placees. No commissions will be
paid to Placees or by Placees in respect of any Placing Shares. The
book will open with immediate effect.
Panmure Liberum and the Company
shall be entitled to effect the Placing by such alternative method
to the Bookbuild as they may, in their sole discretion,
determine.
Details of the Placing Agreement and of the Placing
Shares
Panmure Liberum is acting as sole
global coordinator and bookrunner in connection with the Placing.
Panmure Liberum is not acting for the Company with respect to any
other part of the Offer (including the Direct Subscription, the
Management Subscription and the Retail Offer).
Panmure Liberum has today entered
into an agreement with the Company (the "Placing Agreement") under which,
subject to the conditions set out therein, it has agreed, as agent
for and on behalf of the Company, to use its reasonable endeavours
to procure Placees for the Placing Shares in such number and at a
price to be determined following completion of the Bookbuild. The
timing of the closing of the book, pricing and allocations are at
the discretion of the Company and Panmure Liberum.
Subject to the execution of the
Terms of Placing and the Placing Agreement not terminating in
accordance with its terms, Panmure Liberum has agreed with the
Company, in the event of any default by any Placee in paying the
Offer Price in respect of any Placing Shares allotted to it, to
take up such Placing Shares itself at the Offer Price.
The Offer Shares will, when issued,
be credited as fully paid and will rank pari passu in all respects with the
existing Ordinary Shares, including the right to receive all
dividends and other distributions declared, made or paid in respect
of the Ordinary Shares after the Closing Date. The Offer Shares
will be issued free of any encumbrances, liens or other security
interests.
The Placing will be effected by way
of a placing of new Ordinary Shares in the Company for non-cash
consideration. Panmure Liberum will subscribe for redeemable
preference shares in JerseyCo, a Jersey incorporated wholly owned
subsidiary of the Company, for an amount approximately equal to the
net proceeds of the Placing. The Company will allot and issue the
Placing Shares on a non-pre-emptive basis to Placees in
consideration for the transfer of the redeemable preference shares
in JerseyCo that will be issued to Panmure Liberum. The Placing is
fully underwritten.
Application for admission to trading of the Offer
Shares
Application will be made to London
Stock Exchange plc (the "London
Stock Exchange") for admission of the Offer Shares to
trading on AIM in accordance with the AIM Rules ("Admission"). It is expected that
Admission will become effective at 8.00 a.m. on 22 July 2024 or
such later time and date (being not later than 8.00 a.m. on 29 July
2024) as the Sole Bookrunner and the Company may agree.
Participation in, and principal terms of, the
Placing
1.
Panmure Liberum is arranging the Placing as agent
of the Company.
2. Participation
in the Placing will only be available to persons who may lawfully
be, and are, invited to participate by Panmure Liberum.
3. The
results of the Placing, including the number of Placing Shares,
will be announced on a Regulatory Information Service following the
completion of the Bookbuild (the "Results Announcement").
4. To
bid in the Bookbuild, prospective Placees should communicate their
bid by telephone or in writing to their usual sales contact at
Panmure Liberum. Each bid should state the number of Placing Shares
which the prospective Placee wishes to acquire at the Offer Price.
Bids may be scaled down by Panmure Liberum in its sole
discretion.
5. A
bid in the Bookbuild will be made on the terms and subject to the
conditions in this Appendix and will be legally binding on the
Placee on behalf of which it is made and, except with the consent
of Panmure Liberum, will not be capable of variation or revocation
after the time at which it is submitted. Each Placee's obligations
will be owed to the Company and Panmure Liberum. Each Placee will
also have an immediate, separate, irrevocable and binding
obligation, owed to Panmure Liberum, to pay to Panmure Liberum (or
as it may direct) as agent for the Company in cleared funds an
amount equal to the product of the Offer Price and the number of
Placing Shares that such Placee has agreed to acquire and the
Company has agreed to allot and issue to that Placee.
6.
The Bookbuild will open with immediate effect
following release of this Announcement and is expected to close no
later than 10.00 p.m. (London time) on 16 July 2024, but may be
closed earlier or later at the discretion of Panmure Liberum.
Panmure Liberum may, in agreement with the Company, accept bids
that are received after the Bookbuild has closed. The Company
reserves the right (upon the prior agreement of Panmure Liberum) to
vary the number of shares to be issued pursuant to the Placing, in
its absolute discretion.
7. Each
Placee's allocation will be determined by the Company in
consultation with Panmure Liberum and will be confirmed to Placees
orally or in writing by Panmure Liberum following the close of the
Bookbuild and a trade confirmation will be dispatched as soon as
possible thereafter. That oral or written confirmation (at Panmure
Liberum's discretion) to such Placee will constitute an irrevocable
legally binding commitment upon such person (who will at that point
become a Placee) in favour of Panmure Liberum and the Company,
under which such Placee agrees to acquire the number of Placing
Shares allocated to it and to pay the Offer Price for each such
Offer Share on the terms and conditions set out in this Appendix
and in accordance with the Company's constitutional
documents.
8.
Panmure Liberum may, notwithstanding
paragraphs 4 and 7 above, and subject to the prior consent of the
Company: (i) allocate Placing Shares after the time of any initial
allocation to any person submitting a bid after that time; and (ii)
allocate Placing Shares after the Bookbuild has closed to any
person submitting a bid after that time. The acceptance of bids
shall be at the absolute discretion of Panmure Liberum. The Company
reserves the right (upon agreement with Panmure Liberum) to reduce
or seek to increase the amount to be raised pursuant to the
Placing.
9.
The allocation of Placing Shares to Placees
located in the United States shall be conditional on the delivery
by each Placee of a US Investor Letter substantially in the form
provided to it.
10.
Except as required by law or regulation, no press
release or other announcement will be made by Panmure Liberum or
the Company using the name of any Placee (or its agent), in its
capacity as Placee (or agent), other than with such Placee's prior
written consent.
11.
Irrespective of the time at which a Placee's
allocation(s) pursuant to the Placing is/are confirmed, settlement
for all Placing Shares to be acquired pursuant to the Placing will
be required to be made at the same time, on the basis explained
below under "Registration and settlement".
12. All
obligations under the Bookbuild and Placing will be subject to
fulfilment or (where applicable) waiver of the conditions referred
to below under "Conditions of the Placing" and to the Placing not
being terminated on the basis referred to below under "Right to
Terminate the Placing Agreement".
13.
By participating in the Placing, each
Placee agrees that its rights and obligations in respect of the
Placing will terminate only in the circumstances described below
and will not be capable of rescission or termination by the Placee
after confirmation (oral or otherwise) by Panmure
Liberum.
14. By
participating in the Placing, each Placee agrees with the Company
and Panmure Liberum that the exercise or non-exercise by Panmure
Liberum of any right of termination or other right or other
discretion under the Placing Agreement shall be within the absolute
discretion of Panmure Liberum or for agreement between the Company
and Panmure Liberum (as the case may be) and that neither the
Company nor Panmure Liberum need make any reference to, or consult
with, Placees and that none of the Company, Panmure Liberum, any of
their respective Affiliates nor any of its or their respective
Representatives shall have any liability to Placees whatsoever in
connection with any such exercise or failure to so exercise or
otherwise.
15. To
the fullest extent permissible by law, neither Panmure Liberum nor
any of its Affiliates nor any of its or their respective
Representatives shall have any responsibility or liability to any
Placee (or to any other person whether acting on behalf of a Placee
or otherwise). In particular, neither Panmure Liberum, nor any of
its Affiliates nor any of its or their respective Representatives
shall have any responsibility or liability (including to the
fullest extent permissible by law, any fiduciary duties) in respect
of Panmure Liberum's conduct of the Bookbuild or of such
alternative method of effecting the Placing as Panmure Liberum and
its Affiliates and the Company may agree.
16.
The Placing Shares will be
issued subject to the terms and conditions of this Appendix and
each Placee's commitment to acquire Placing Shares on the terms set
out herein will continue notwithstanding any amendment that may in
future be made to the terms and conditions of the Placing and
Placees will have no right to be consulted or require that their
consent be obtained with respect to the Company's or Panmure
Liberum's conduct of the Placing.
Conditions of the Placing
The Placing is conditional upon the
Placing Agreement becoming unconditional and not having been
terminated in accordance with its terms. The obligations of Panmure
Liberum under the Placing Agreement are conditional on certain
conditions, including, amongst other things:
(a) the
Terms of Placing having been executed by the Company and
Panmure Liberum;
(b) the
publication by the Company of the Results Announcement through a
Regulatory Information Service as soon as reasonably practicable
following the execution of the Terms of Placing;
(c)
neither the Company nor JerseyCo being in breach of any of their
respective obligations and undertakings under the Placing Agreement
or the Subscription and Transfer Agreement which fall to be
performed or satisfied prior to Admission;
(d) each of the
warranties given by the Company contained in the Placing Agreement
being true, accurate and not misleading: (i) as at and on the date
of the Placing Agreement; (ii) as at the time of the execution of
the Terms of Placing; and (iii) as at and on Admission, in each
case, as though they had been given and made at such times and on
such dates by reference to the facts and circumstances from time to
time subsisting;
(e) no
matter having arisen in respect of which indemnification or
contribution may be sought from the Company by any indemnified
person under the Placing Agreement;
(f)
delivery of certain customary documents;
(g) the
Company having allotted, subject only to Admission, the Offer
Shares;
(h) (i)
each Retail Offer Document remaining in full force and effect, not
having lapsed or been terminated or amended in accordance with its
terms prior to Admission; (ii) no condition to which any such
document is subject having become incapable of satisfaction and not
having been waived prior to Admission; and (iii) no event having
arisen prior to Admission which gives a party thereto a right to
terminate any such document;
(i) (i)
each Direct Subscription Agreement and Management Subscription
Letter having been executed prior to the execution of the Terms of
Placing, remaining in full force and effect, not having lapsed or
been terminated or amended in accordance with its terms prior to
Admission; (ii) no condition to which any such document is subject
having become incapable of satisfaction and not having been waived
prior to Admission; and (iii) no event having arisen prior to
Admission which gives a party thereto a right to terminate any such
document;
(j)
(i) the Subscription and Transfer Agreement remaining in full force
and effect, not having lapsed or been terminated or amended in
accordance with its terms prior to Admission; (ii) no condition to
which the Subscription and Transfer Agreement is subject having
become incapable of satisfaction and not having been waived prior
to Admission (save for the condition relating to Admission); and
(iii) no event having arisen prior to Admission which gives a party
thereto a right to terminate the Subscription and Transfer
Agreement; and
(k)
Admission occurring by 8.00am on 22 July 2024 (or such later time
and/or date as Panmure Liberum and the Company may agree in
writing, being not later than 8.00 a.m. on 29 July
2024),
(all conditions to the obligations
of Panmure Liberum included in the Placing Agreement being
together, the "Conditions").
If, at Admission, any of the
Conditions are not fulfilled or, where permitted, waived or
extended by Panmure Liberum in accordance with the Placing
Agreement, the Placing will lapse and the Placees' rights and
obligations hereunder in relation to the Placing Shares shall cease
and terminate at such time and each Placee agrees that no claim can
be made by or on behalf of the Placee (or any person on whose
behalf the Placing is acting) in respect thereof.
Panmure Liberum may, at its discretion and upon such terms and conditions as
it thinks fit, waive satisfaction of certain of the Conditions
(save that certain Conditions cannot be waived) or extend the time
provided for their satisfaction. Any such waiver or extension will
not affect Placees' commitments as set out in this
Announcement.
Neither Panmure Liberum, nor any of
its Affiliates nor any of its or their respective Representatives
shall have any liability or responsibility to any Placee (or to any
other person whether acting on behalf of a Placee or otherwise) in
respect of any decision it or another person may make as to whether
or not to waive or to extend the time and/or date for the
satisfaction of any Condition nor for any decision it may make as
to the satisfaction of any Condition or in respect of the Placing
generally and by participating in the Placing each Placee agrees
that any such decision is within the absolute discretion of Panmure
Liberum. Placees will have no rights against Panmure Liberum, the
Company or any of their respective Affiliates under the Placing
Agreement pursuant to the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act
1999 (as amended) or otherwise.
Right to Terminate the Placing Agreement
Panmure Liberum, in its absolute discretion, may prior to Admission terminate
the Placing Agreement in accordance with its terms in certain
circumstances, including, amongst other things:
(a) any
statement in any document or announcement issued or published by or
on behalf of the Company in connection with the Placing is or has
become untrue, inaccurate or misleading in any respect, or any
matter has arisen which would, if such document or announcement had
been issued at that time, constitute an inaccuracy or omission from
such document or announcement;
(b)
there has been a breach by the Company of any of its obligations
under the Placing Agreement or the Subscription and Transfer
Agreement;
(c) there
has been a breach by the Company of any of the warranties or
representations contained in the Placing Agreement or any of such
warranties or representations is not, or ceases to be, true,
accurate and not misleading;
(d)
there has been a breach by JerseyCo of any of its obligations under
the Subscription and Transfer Agreement;
(e)
there has been a breach of any provision of any Direct Subscription
Agreement, Management Subscription Letter or Retail Offer Document
or a waiver of any condition thereto; or
(f)
in the opinion of Panmure Liberum (acting in good faith), there has
been a Material Adverse Change;
(g)
there has occurred, or in the opinion of Panmure Liberum (acting in
good faith) it is reasonably likely that there will occur, certain
customary force majeure events; or
(h) if
the Company's application for Admission are withdrawn or refused by
the London Stock Exchange or, in the opinion of Panmure Liberum
(acting in good faith), will not be granted.
If the Placing Agreement is
terminated in accordance with its terms, the rights and obligations
of each Placee in respect of the Placing as described in this
Announcement shall cease and terminate at such time and no claim
may be made by any Placee in respect thereof.
No
Admission Document or Prospectus
No prospectus, offering memorandum,
offering document or admission document has been or will be
prepared or submitted to be approved by the FCA or the London Stock
Exchange (or any other authority) in relation to the Placing or
Admission and no prospectus is required (in accordance with the UK
Prospectus Regulation or otherwise) to be published in the United
Kingdom or any equivalent jurisdiction.
Placees' commitments will be made
solely on the basis of the information contained in this
Announcement (including this Appendix) and the business and
financial information that the Company is required to publish or
has published in accordance with the AIM Rules or the UK Market
Abuse Regulation via a Regulatory Information Service and any
Exchange Information (as defined below) and subject to the further
terms set forth in the electronic contract note and/or electronic
trade confirmation to be provided to individual prospective
Placees.
Each Placee, by accepting a
participation in the Placing, agrees that the content of this
Announcement and the Exchange Information previously and
simultaneously released by or on behalf of the Company is
exclusively the responsibility of the Company and has not been
independently verified by Panmure Liberum. Each Placee, by
accepting a participation in the Placing, further confirms to the
Company and Panmure Liberum that it has neither received nor relied
on any other information, representation, warranty or statement
made by or on behalf of the Company (other than the Exchange
Information and/or publicly available information) or Panmure
Liberum or its Affiliates or any other person and none of the
Company, Panmure Liberum, any of their respective Affiliates, any
of its or their respective Representatives nor any other person
will be liable for any Placee's decision to participate in the
Placing based on any other information, representation, warranty or
statement which the Placees may have obtained or received
(regardless of whether or not such information, representation,
warranty or statement was given or made by or on behalf of any such
persons). By participating in the Placing, each Placee acknowledges
and agrees that it has relied on its own investigation of the
business, financial or other position of the Company in accepting a
participation in the Placing. Each Placee should not consider any
information in this Announcement to be legal, tax or business
advice. Each Placee should consult its own legal adviser, tax
adviser and/or business adviser for legal, tax and business advice
regarding an investment in the Placing Shares. Nothing in this
paragraph shall exclude or limit the liability of any person for
fraudulent misrepresentation by that person.
Lock-up Arrangements
The Company has undertaken to
Panmure Liberum that, between the date of the Placing Agreement and
the date which is 180 calendar days after the Closing Date, it will
not, without the prior written consent of Panmure Liberum, (i)
directly or indirectly, issue, allot, offer, lend, mortgage,
assign, charge, pledge, sell, contract to sell or issue, sell any
option or contract to purchase, purchase any option or contract to
sell or issue, grant any option, right or warrant to purchase, lend
or otherwise transfer or dispose of, directly or indirectly, any
Ordinary Shares or interest in Ordinary Shares or any securities
convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for, or
substantially similar to, Ordinary Shares or any interest in
Ordinary Shares; or (ii) enter into any swap or other transaction
or arrangement that transfers to another, in whole or in part, any
of the economic consequences of ownership of Ordinary Shares or
other shares in the capital of the Company, whether any such swap
or transaction described in (i) or (ii) above is to be settled by
delivery of Ordinary Shares or other shares in the capital of the
Company or such other securities, in cash or otherwise, subject to
certain customary carve-outs agreed between Panmure Liberum and the
Company including the grant of options under, or the allotment and
issue of shares pursuant to options under, any employee share
schemes of the Company which are either in existence and have been
disclosed as at the date of the Placing Agreement.
By participating in the Placing,
Placees agree that the exercise by Panmure Liberum of any power to
grant consent to waive the aforementioned undertaking by the
Company shall be within the absolute discretion of Panmure Liberum
and that they need not make any reference to, or consult with,
Placees and that they shall have no liability to Placees whatsoever
in connection with any such exercise of the power to grant
consent.
Registration and settlement
Settlement of transactions in the
Placing Shares (ISIN: JE00B6Y3DV84) following Admission will take
place within the CREST system, subject to certain exceptions. The
Company and Panmure Liberum reserve the right to require settlement
for, and delivery of, the Placing Shares (or any part thereof) to
Placees by such other means that they may deem necessary, including
in certificated form, if delivery or settlement is not possible or
practicable within the CREST system within the timetable set out in
this Announcement or would not be consistent with the regulatory
requirements in the Placee's jurisdiction.
Following the close of the Bookbuild
for the Placing, each Placee allocated Placing Shares in the
Placing will be sent an electronic contract note and/or electronic
trade confirmation in accordance with the standing arrangements in
place with Panmure Liberum stating the number of Placing Shares to
be allocated to it at the Offer Price, the aggregate amount owed by
such Placee to Panmure Liberum or its sub-agent and settlement
instructions.
Each Placee agrees that it will do
all things necessary to ensure that delivery and payment is
completed in accordance with the standing CREST or certificated
settlement instructions that it has in place with Panmure Liberum
in respect of the Placing Shares or as otherwise as Panmure Liberum
may direct.
The Company will deliver (or will
procure the delivery of) the Placing Shares to a CREST account
operated by Panmure Liberum as agent for and on behalf of the
Company and Panmure Liberum will enter its delivery (DEL)
instruction into the CREST system. Panmure Liberum will hold any
Placing Shares delivered to its account as nominee for the Placees
procured by it. The input to CREST by a Placee of a matching or
acceptance instruction will then allow delivery of the relevant
Placing Shares to that Placee against payment.
Settlement will be on a delivery
versus payment basis in accordance with the instructions given to
Panmure Liberum and is expected to take place three Business Days
after the publication of the Results Announcement.
Interest is chargeable daily on
payments not received from Placees on the due date in accordance
with the arrangements set out above, in respect of either CREST or
certificated deliveries, at the rate of two percentage points above
SONIA as determined by Panmure Liberum.
Each Placee agrees that, if it does
not comply with these obligations, the relevant Placee shall be
deemed hereby to have irrevocably and unconditionally appointed
Panmure Liberum, or any nominee of Panmure Liberum as its agent to
use its reasonable endeavours to sell any or all of the Placing
Shares allocated to that Placee on such Placee's behalf and retain
from the proceeds an amount equal to the aggregate amount owed by
the Placee plus any interest due thereon. The relevant Placee will,
however, remain liable for any shortfall below the aggregate amount
owed by it and shall be required to bear any stamp duty, stamp duty
reserve tax or other stamp, securities, transfer, registration,
execution, documentary or other similar impost, duty or tax
(together with any interest, fines or penalties thereon or other similar taxes imposed in any jurisdiction)
which may arise upon the sale of such Placing Shares on such
Placee's behalf. By communicating a bid for Placing Shares, each
Placee confers on Panmure Liberum all such authorities and powers
necessary to carry out any such transaction and agrees to ratify
and confirm all actions which Panmure Liberum lawfully takes on
such Placee's behalf. Each Placee agrees that Panmure Liberum's
rights and benefits under this paragraph may be assigned in its
discretion.
If Placing Shares are to be
delivered to a custodian or settlement agent, Placees should ensure
that, upon receipt, the electronic contract note and/or electronic
trade confirmation is copied and delivered immediately to the
relevant person within that organisation. Insofar as Placing Shares
are registered in a Placee's name or that of its nominee or in the
name of any person for whom a Placee is contracting as agent or
that of a nominee for such person, such Placing Shares should,
subject as provided below, be so registered free from any liability
to UK stamp duty or UK stamp duty reserve tax. If there are any
circumstances in which any other stamp duty or stamp duty reserve
tax or other similar taxes or duties (and/or any interest, fines or
penalties relating thereto) is payable in respect of the
allocation, allotment, issue or delivery of the Placing Shares (or,
for the avoidance of doubt if any stamp duty or stamp duty reserve
tax is payable in connection with any subsequent transfer of or
agreement to transfer Placing Shares), neither Panmure Liberum nor
the Company shall be responsible for the payment
thereof.
Representations, warranties, undertakings and further
terms
By participating in the Placing,
each Placee (and any person acting on such Placee's behalf)
irrevocably acknowledges, confirms, undertakes, represents,
warrants and agrees (for itself and for any person on behalf of
which it is acting) with Panmure Liberum (in its capacity as
bookrunner and as placing agent of the Company in respect of the
Placing) and the Company, in each case as a fundamental term of its
application for Placing Shares, that:
1. it
has read and understood this Announcement, including this Appendix,
in its entirety and that its participation in the Bookbuild and the
Placing and its acquisition of Placing Shares is subject to and
based upon all the terms, conditions, representations, warranties,
indemnities, acknowledgements, agreements and undertakings and
other information contained herein and undertakes not to
redistribute or duplicate this Announcement and that it has not
relied on, and will not rely on, any information given or any
representations, warranties or statements made at any time by any
person in connection with Admission, the Bookbuild, the Placing,
the Company, the Placing Shares or otherwise;
2.
it acknowledges and agrees that its participation
in the Placing on the terms set out in this Announcement is legally
binding, irrevocable and is not capable of termination or
rescission by it in any circumstances;
3. no
offering document, prospectus, offering memorandum or admission
document has been or will be prepared in connection with the
Placing or is required under the EU Prospectus Regulation or the UK
Prospectus Regulation and it has not received and will not receive
a prospectus, offering memorandum, admission document or other
offering document in connection with the Bookbuild, the Placing,
Admission or the Placing Shares;
4.
it has the power and authority to carry on the
activities in which it is engaged acquire Placing Shares and to execute and deliver all documents
necessary for such subscription;
5. (i)
it has made its own assessment of the Company, the Placing Shares
and the terms of the Placing based on this Announcement (including
this Appendix) and any information publicly announced to a
Regulatory Information Service by or on behalf of the Company on or
prior to the date of this Announcement; (ii) the Ordinary Shares
are admitted to trading on AIM and that the Company is therefore
required to publish certain business and financial information in
accordance with the UK Market Abuse Regulation and rules and
regulations of the London Stock Exchange (including the AIM Rules)
(collectively and together with the information referred to in (i)
above, the "Exchange
Information") which includes a description of the Company's
business and the Company's most recent balance sheet and profit and
loss account, and similar statements for preceding financial years,
and that it has reviewed such Exchange Information and that it is
able to obtain or access such information, or comparable
information concerning any other publicly traded company, in each
case without undue difficulty; and (iii) it has had access to such
financial and other information (including the business, financial
condition, prospects, creditworthiness, status and affairs of the
Company, the Placing and the Placing Shares) concerning the
Company, the Placing and the Placing Shares as it has deemed
necessary in connection with its own investment decision to acquire
any of the Placing Shares and has satisfied itself that the
information is still current and has relied on that investigation
for the purposes of its decision to participate in the
Placing;
6. neither
Panmure Liberum, nor the Company, nor any of their respective
Affiliates, nor any of its or their respective Representatives nor
any person acting on behalf of any of them has provided, and none
of them will provide, it with any material or information regarding
the Placing Shares, the Bookbuild, the Placing or the Company or
any other person other than this Announcement, nor has it requested
Panmure Liberum, the Company, any of their respective Affiliates,
any of its or their respective Representatives or any person acting
on behalf of any of them to provide it with any such material or
information;
7.
unless otherwise specifically agreed with Panmure
Liberum, it and any person on behalf of which it is participating
is not, and at the time the Placing Shares are acquired, neither it
nor the beneficial owner of the Placing Shares will be, a resident
of a Restricted Territory or any other jurisdiction in which it is
unlawful to make or accept an offer to acquire the Placing
Shares;
8. the
Placing Shares have not been and will not be registered or
otherwise qualified, for offer and sale, nor will an offering
document, prospectus, offering memorandum or admission document be
cleared or approved in respect of any of the Placing Shares under
the securities legislation of the United States or any other
Restricted Territory and, subject to certain exceptions, may not be
offered, sold, transferred, delivered or distributed, directly or
indirectly, in or into those jurisdictions or in any country or
jurisdiction where any such action for that purpose is
required;
9. the
content of this Announcement has been prepared by and is
exclusively the responsibility of the Company and that neither
Panmure Liberum, nor any of its Affiliates, nor any of its or their
respective Representatives nor any person acting on behalf of any
of them has made any representations to it, express or implied,
with respect to the Company, the Bookbuild, the Placing and the
Placing Shares or the truth, accuracy, completeness or adequacy of
this Announcement or the Exchange Information, nor has or shall
have any responsibility or liability for any information,
representation or statement contained in this Announcement or any
information previously or simultaneously published by or on behalf
of the Company, including, without limitation, any Exchange
Information, and will not be liable for any Placee's decision to
participate in the Placing based on any information, representation
or statement contained in this Announcement or any information
previously or simultaneously published by or on behalf of the
Company or otherwise. Nothing in this paragraph or otherwise in
this Announcement excludes the liability of any person for
fraudulent misrepresentation made by that person;
10.
the only information on which it is
entitled to rely and on which such Placee has relied in committing
itself to acquire the Placing Shares is contained in this
Announcement and any Exchange Information, that it has received and
reviewed all information that it believes is necessary or
appropriate to make an investment decision in respect of the
Placing Shares, and that it has neither received nor relied on any
other information given or investigations, representations,
warranties or statements made by the Sole Bookrunner or the Company
or any of their respective Affiliates or its or their respective
Representatives or any person acting on behalf of any of them and
neither Panmure Liberum, nor the Company, nor any of their
respective Affiliates nor any of its or their respective
Representatives will be liable for any Placee's decision to accept
an invitation to participate in the Placing based on any other
information, representation, warranty or statement;
11. it
has relied on its own investigation, examination and due diligence
of the business, financial or other position of the Company
for the purposes of its decision
to participate in the Placing and has satisfied itself that the information resulting from
such investigation is still current;
12. it
has not relied on any information relating to the Company contained
in any research reports prepared by Panmure Liberum, any of its
Affiliates or any person acting on its or their behalf and
understands that: (i) neither Panmure Liberum, nor any of its
Affiliates, nor any person acting on its or their behalf has or
shall have any responsibility or liability for: (x) public
information or any representation; or (y) any additional
information that has otherwise been made available to such Placee,
whether at the date of publication, the date of this Announcement
or otherwise; and (ii) neither Panmure Liberum, nor any of its
Affiliates, nor any person acting on its or their behalf makes any
representation or warranty, express or implied, as to the truth,
accuracy or completeness of such information, whether at the date
of publication, the date of this Announcement or
otherwise;
13.
(i) the allocation, allotment, issue and delivery
to it, or the person specified by it for registration as holder of
Placing Shares will not give rise to a liability under any of
sections 67, 70, 93 or 96 of the Finance Act 1986 (depositary
receipts and clearance services); (ii) it is not participating in
the Placing as nominee or agent for any person to whom the
allocation, allotment, issue or delivery of the Placing Shares
would give rise to such a liability; and (iii) the Placing Shares
are not being acquired in connection with arrangements to issue
depositary receipts or to issue or transfer Placing Shares into a
clearance service;
14. that
no action has been or will be taken by the Company, Panmure Liberum
or any person acting on behalf of the Company or Panmure Liberum
that would, or is intended to, permit a public offer of the Placing
Shares in the United States or in any country or jurisdiction where
any such action for that purpose is required;
15. (i)
it (and any person acting on its behalf) is entitled to acquire,
the Placing Shares under the laws of all relevant jurisdictions
which apply to it; (ii) it has paid or will pay any issue, transfer
or other taxes due in connection with its participation in any
territory; (iii) it has fully observed such laws and obtained all
such governmental and other guarantees, permits, authorisations,
approvals and consents which may be required thereunder and
complied with all necessary formalities; (iv) it has not taken any
action or omitted to take any action which will or may result in
Panmure Liberum, the Company, any of their respective Affiliates or
any of its or their respective Representatives acting in breach of
the legal or regulatory requirements of any jurisdiction in
connection with the Placing; and (v) the acquisition of the Placing
Shares by it or any person acting on its behalf will be In
compliance with applicable laws and regulations in the jurisdiction
of its residence, the residence of the Company, or
otherwise;
16. it
(and any person acting on its behalf) has all necessary capacity
and has obtained all necessary consents and authorities to enable
it to commit to its participation in the Placing and to perform its
obligations in relation thereto (including, without limitation, in
the case of any person on whose behalf it is acting, all necessary
consents and authorities to agree to the terms set out or referred
to in this Announcement) and will honour such
obligations;
17. it
understands and has complied with its obligations under the
Criminal Justice Act 1993, the UK Market Abuse Regulation, any
delegating acts, implementing acts, technical standards and
guidelines, and in connection with money laundering and terrorist
financing under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, the Terrorism Act
2000, the Anti-Terrorism Crime and Security Act 2001, the Terrorism
Act 2006, the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of
Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017, the FCA's SYSC
and any related or similar rules, regulations or guidelines issued,
administered or enforced by any government agency having
jurisdiction in respect thereof (together the "Regulations") and, if making payment on
behalf of a third party, that satisfactory evidence has been
obtained and recorded by it to verify the identity of the third
party as required by the Regulations. If within a reasonable time
after a request for verification of identity, Panmure Liberum has
not received such satisfactory evidence, Panmure Liberum may, in
its absolute discretion, terminate the Placee's Placing
participation in which event all funds delivered by the Placee to
Panmure Liberum will be returned without interest to the account of
the drawee bank or CREST account from which they were originally
debited;
18.
it is acting as principal only in respect of the
Placing or, if it is acting for any other person: (i) it is duly
authorised to do so and has full power to make, and does make, the
acknowledgments, undertakings, representations and agreements and
give the indemnities herein on behalf of each such person; and (ii)
it is and will remain liable to Panmure Liberum and the Company for
the performance of all its obligations as a Placee in respect of
the Placing (regardless of the fact that it is acting for another
person). Each Placee agrees that the provisions of this paragraph
shall survive the resale of the Placing Shares by or on behalf of
any person for whom it is acting;
19.
it is a Relevant Person and undertakes that it
will (as principal or agent) acquire, hold, manage and (if
applicable) dispose of any Placing Shares that are allocated to it
for the purposes of its business only;
20.
it understands that any investment or investment
activity to which this Announcement relates is available only to
Relevant Persons and will be engaged in only with Relevant Persons,
and further understands that this Announcement must not be acted on
or relied on by persons who are not Relevant Persons;
21.
if it is in a member state of the EEA, it is a
Qualified Investor;
22.
if it is in the United Kingdom, it is a UK
Qualified Investor;
23.
in the case of any Placing Shares acquired by it
as a financial intermediary, as that term is used in Article 5(1)
of the EU Prospectus Regulation or the UK Prospectus Regulation (as
applicable), (i) the Placing Shares acquired by it in the Placing
will not be acquired for on a non-discretionary basis on behalf of,
nor will they be acquired with a view to their offer or resale to
persons in a member state of the EEA other than Qualified
Investors, or persons in the United Kingdom other than UK Qualified
Investors or in circumstances in which the prior consent of Panmure
Liberum has been given to each such proposed offer or resale; or
(ii) where the Placing Shares have been acquired by it on behalf of
persons in any member state of the EEA other than Qualified
Investors, or in the United Kingdom other than UK Qualified
Investors, the offer of those Placing Shares to it is not treated
under the EU Prospectus Regulation or the UK Prospectus Regulation
(as applicable) as having been made to such persons;
24.
it understands, and each account it represents has
been advised that, (i) the Placing Shares have not been and will
not be registered under the Securities Act or under the applicable
securities laws of any state or other jurisdiction of the United
States; and (ii) no representation has been made as to the
availability of any exemption under the Securities Act or any
relevant state or other jurisdiction's securities laws for the
reoffer, resale, pledge or transfer of the Placing
Shares;
25. the
Placing Shares are being offered and sold on behalf of the Company:
(i) outside the United States in offshore transactions (as defined
in Regulation S) pursuant to Regulation S under the Securities Act;
and (ii) in the United States solely to investors reasonably
believed to be QIBs (as defined in Rule 144A under the Securities
Act) pursuant to an exemption from, or transaction not subject to,
the registration requirements under the Securities Act;
26.
it and the prospective beneficial owner of the
Placing Shares is, and at the time the Placing Shares are acquired
will be either: (i) outside the United States and subscribing for
the Placing Shares in an "offshore transaction" as defined in, and
in accordance with, Regulation S under the Securities Act; or (ii)
a QIB which has duly executed and delivered to Panmure Liberum or
its Affiliates a US Investor Letter substantially in the form
provided to it;
27. it
understands that there may be certain consequences under United
States and other tax laws resulting from an investment in the
Placing and it has made such investigation and has consulted its
own independent advisers or otherwise has satisfied itself
concerning, without limitation, the effects of United States
federal, state and local income tax laws and foreign tax laws
generally;
28.
it is acquiring the Placing Shares for investment
purposes and is not subscribing for the Placing Shares with a view
to, or for offer and sale in connection with, any distribution
thereof (within the meaning of the Securities Act) that would be in
violation of the securities laws of the United States or any state
thereof;
29. it
will not distribute, forward, transfer or otherwise transmit this
Announcement or any part of it, or any other presentation or other
materials concerning the Placing (including electronic copies
thereof), in or into any Restricted Territory to any person and it
has not distributed, forwarded, transferred or otherwise
transmitted any such materials to any person;
30. where
it is acquiring the Placing Shares for one or more managed
accounts, it is authorised in writing by each managed account to
acquire the Placing Shares for each managed account and it has full
power to make, and does make, the acknowledgements, representations
and agreements herein on behalf of each such account;
31. if
it is a pension fund or investment company, its acquisition of
Placing Shares is in full compliance with applicable laws and
regulations;
32.
it has not offered or sold and, prior to the
expiry of a period of six months from Admission, will not offer or
sell any Placing Shares to persons in the United Kingdom, except to
persons whose ordinary activities involve them acquiring, holding,
managing or disposing of investments (as principal or agent) for
the purposes of its business or otherwise in circumstances which
have not resulted and which will not result in an offer to the
public in the United Kingdom within the meaning of section 85(1) of
the FSMA;
33.
any offer of Placing Shares may only be directed
at persons in member states of the EEA who are Qualified Investors
and that it has not offered or sold and will not offer or sell any
Placing Shares to persons in the EEA prior to Admission except to
Qualified Investors or otherwise in circumstances which have not
resulted in and which will not result in an offer to the public in
any member state of the EEA within the meaning of the EU Prospectus
Regulation;
34.
it has only communicated or caused to be
communicated and will only communicate or cause to be communicated
any invitation or inducement to engage in investment activity
(within the meaning of section 21 of the FSMA) relating to the
Placing Shares in circumstances in which section 21(1) of the FSMA
does not require approval of the communication by an authorised
person;
35.
it has complied and will comply with all
applicable laws (including, in the United Kingdom, all relevant
provisions of the FSMA and the Financial Services Act 2012) with
respect to anything done by it or on its behalf in relation to the
Placing Shares;
36.
if it has received any "inside information" as
defined in the UK Market Abuse Regulation or the Criminal Justice
Act 1993 about the Company in advance of the Placing, it has not:
(i) dealt in the securities of the Company; (ii) encouraged or
required another person to deal in the securities of the Company;
or (iii) disclosed such information to any person except as
permitted by the UK Market Abuse Regulation and the Criminal
Justice Act 1993, prior to the information being made publicly
available;
37.
(i) it (and any person acting
on its behalf) has the funds available to pay for the Placing
Shares it has agreed to acquire and it (and any person acting on
its behalf) will make payment for the Placing Shares allocated to
it in accordance with this Announcement on the due time and date
set out herein against delivery of such Placing Shares to it,
failing which the relevant Placing Shares may be placed with other
persons or sold as Panmure Liberum (or its assignee) may in its
discretion determine and without liability to such Placee. It will,
however, remain liable for any shortfall below the net proceeds of
such sale and the placing proceeds of such Placing Shares and may
be required to bear any stamp duty or stamp duty reserve tax
(together with any interest, fines or penalties) imposed in any
jurisdiction due pursuant to the terms set out or referred to in
this Announcement which may arise upon the sale of such Placee's
Placing Shares on its behalf;
38.
its allocation (if any) of
Placing Shares will represent a maximum number of Placing Shares to
which it will be entitled, and required, to acquire, and that
Panmure Liberum or the Company may call upon it to acquire a lower
number of Placing Shares (if any), but in no event in aggregate
more than the aforementioned maximum;
39.
neither Panmure Liberum, nor any of its
Affiliates, nor any of its or their respective Representatives nor
any person acting on behalf of any of them, is making any
recommendations to it or advising it regarding the suitability or
merits of any transactions it may enter into in connection with the
Placing and participation in the Placing is on the basis that it is
not and will not be a client of Panmure Liberum and Panmure Liberum
has no duties or responsibilities to it for providing the
protections afforded to its clients or customers or for providing
advice in relation to the Placing nor in respect of any
representations, warranties, undertakings or indemnities contained
in the Placing Agreement nor for the exercise or performance of the
Sole Bookrunner's rights and obligations thereunder including any
rights to waive or vary any conditions or exercise any termination
right;
40.
the exercise by Panmure Liberum of any right or
discretion under the Placing Agreement shall be within its absolute
discretion and Panmure Liberum need not have any reference to any
Placee and shall have no liability to any Placee whatsoever in
connection with any decision to exercise or not to exercise any
such right and each Placee agrees that it has no rights against
Panmure Liberum, the Company or any of their respective Affiliates
under the Placing Agreement pursuant to the Contracts (Rights of
Third Parties) Act 1999 (as amended) or otherwise;
41.
the person whom it specifies for registration as
holder of the Placing Shares will be (i) itself; or (ii) its
nominee, as the case may be. Neither Panmure Liberum, nor the
Company nor any of their respective Affiliates will be responsible
for any liability to stamp duty or stamp duty reserve tax or other
similar duties or taxes (together with any interest, fines or
penalties) resulting from a failure to observe this requirement.
Each Placee and any person acting on behalf of such Placee in
connection with the Placing agrees to indemnify the Company,
Panmure Liberum, their respective Affiliates and its and their
respective Representatives in respect of the same on an after-tax
basis on the basis that the Placing Shares will be allotted to the
CREST stock account of Panmure Liberum who will hold them as
nominee on behalf of such Placee until settlement in accordance
with its standing settlement instructions;
42. these
terms and conditions and any agreements entered into by it pursuant
to these terms and conditions (including any non-contractual or
other obligations arising out of or in connection with such
agreements) shall be governed by and construed in accordance with
the laws of England and Wales and it submits (on behalf of itself
and on behalf of any person on whose behalf it is acting) to the
exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts as regards any claim,
dispute or matter arising out of any such contract
(including any dispute regarding the existence,
validity or termination of such contract or relating to any non-
contractual or other obligation arising out of or in connection
with such contract), except that enforcement proceedings in respect
of the obligation to make payment for the Placing Shares (together
with any interest chargeable thereon) may be taken by Panmure
Liberum or the Company in any jurisdiction in which the relevant
Placee is incorporated or in which any of its securities have a
quotation on a recognised stock exchange;
43.
each of the Company, Panmure
Liberum, their respective Affiliates, its and their respective
Representatives and others will rely upon the truth and accuracy of
the representations, warranties, agreements, undertakings and
acknowledgements set forth herein and which are given to the Sole
Bookrunner on its own behalf and on behalf of the Company and are
irrevocable and it irrevocably authorises Panmure Liberum and the
Company to produce this Announcement, pursuant to, in connection
with, or as may be required by any applicable law or regulation,
administrative or legal proceeding or official inquiry with respect
to the matters set forth herein;
44. it
will indemnify on an after-tax-basis and hold the Company, Panmure
Liberum, their respective Affiliates, its and their respective
Representatives and any person acting on behalf of any of them
harmless from any and all costs, claims, liabilities and expenses
(including legal fees and expenses) arising out of, directly or
indirectly, or in connection with any breach by it of the
representations, warranties, acknowledgements, agreements and
undertakings in this Appendix and further agrees that the
provisions of this Appendix shall survive after completion of the
Placing;
45. it
irrevocably appoints any director or authorised signatory of
Panmure Liberum as its agent for the purposes of executing and
delivering to the Company and/or its registrars any documents on
its behalf necessary to enable it to be registered as the holder of
any of the Placing Shares agreed to be taken up by it under the
Placing;
46. its commitment to acquire Placing Shares on the terms set out
herein and in any contract note will continue notwithstanding any
amendment that may in future be made to the terms and conditions of
the Placing and that Placees will have no right to be consulted or
require that their consent be obtained with respect to the
Company's or Panmure Liberum's conduct of the Placing;
47.
in making any decision to acquire the Placing
Shares: (i) it has sufficient knowledge, sophistication and
experience in financial, business and international investment
matters as is required to evaluate the merits and risks of
acquiring the Placing Shares; (ii) it is experienced in investing
in securities of a similar nature to the Ordinary Shares and in the
sector in which the Company operates and is aware that it may be
required to bear, and is able to bear, the economic risk of
participating in, and is able to sustain a complete loss in
connection with, the Placing and has no need for liquidity with
respect to its investment in the Placing Shares; (iii) it has
relied solely on its own investigation, examination, due diligence
and analysis of the Company and its Affiliates taken as a whole,
including the markets in which the Group operates, and the terms of
the Placing, including the merits and risks involved, and not upon
any view expressed or information provided by or on behalf of
Panmure Liberum; (iv) it has had sufficient time and access to
information to consider and conduct its own investigation with
respect to the offer and purchase of the Placing Shares, including
the legal, regulatory, tax, business, currency and other economic
and financial considerations relevant to such investment and has so
conducted its own investigation to the extent it deems necessary to
enable it to make an informed and intelligent decision with respect
to making an investment in the Placing Shares; (v) it is aware and
understands that an investment in the Placing Share involves a
considerable degree of risk; and (vi) it will not look to Panmure
Liberum, any of its Affiliates, any of its or their respective
Representatives or any person acting behalf of any of them for all
or part of any such loss or losses it or they may
suffer;
48.
as far as it is aware, it is not acting in concert
(within the meaning given in The City Code on Takeovers and
Mergers) with any other person in relation
to the Company;
49. if
it is acquiring Placing Shares as a fiduciary or agent for one or more
investor accounts, it has full power and authority to make, and
does make, the foregoing representations, warranties,
acknowledgements, agreements and undertakings on
behalf of each such accounts;
50.
that it will (or will procure that its nominee
will) if applicable, make notification to the Company of the
interest in its Ordinary Shares in accordance with
the Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules published by the FCA;
51. neither
the Company nor Panmure Liberum owes any fiduciary or other duties
to it or any Placee in respect of any representations, warranties,
undertakings or indemnities in the Placing Agreement or these terms
and conditions;
52. in
connection with the Placing, Panmure Liberum and any of its
Affiliates acting as an investor for its own account may take up
shares in the Company and in that capacity may retain, purchase or
sell for its own account such shares in the Company and any
securities of the Company or related investments and may offer or
sell such securities or other investments otherwise than in
connection with the Placing. Accordingly, references in this
Announcement to Placing Shares being issued, offered or placed
should be read as including any issue, offering or placement of
such shares in the Company to Panmure Liberum or any of its
Affiliates acting in such capacity. In addition, Panmure Liberum or
any of its Affiliates may enter into financing arrangements and
swaps with investors in connection with which Panmure Liberum or
any of its Affiliates may from time to time acquire, hold or
dispose of such securities of the Company, including the Placing
Shares. Neither Panmure Liberum nor any of its Affiliates intends
to disclose the extent of any such investment or transactions
otherwise than in accordance with any legal or regulatory
obligation to do so; and
53.
a communication that the Placing or the book is
"covered" (i.e. indicated demand from investors in the book equals
or exceeds the amount of the securities being offered) is not any
indication or assurance that the book will remain covered or that
the Placing and securities will be fully distributed by Panmure
Liberum. Panmure Liberum reserves the right to take up a portion of
the securities in the Placing as a principal position at any stage
at its sole discretion, among other things, to take account of the
Company's objectives, UK MiFID II requirements and/or its
allocation policies.
The foregoing acknowledgements,
confirmations, undertakings, representations, warranties and
agreements are given for the benefit of each of the Company and
Panmure Liberum (for their own benefit and, where relevant, the
benefit of their respective Affiliates, Representatives and any
person acting on its or their behalf) and are
irrevocable.
Miscellaneous
The agreement to allot and issue
Placing Shares to Placees (or the persons for whom Placees are
contracting as nominee or agent) free of UK stamp duty and UK stamp
duty reserve tax relates only to their allotment and issue to
Placees, or such persons as they nominate as their agents, direct
from the Company for the Placing Shares in question. Neither the
Company nor Panmure Liberum will be responsible for any UK stamp
duty or UK stamp duty reserve tax (including any interest, fines
and penalties relating thereto) arising in relation to the Placing
Shares in any other circumstances.
Such agreement is subject to the
representations, warranties and further terms above and also
assumes, and is based on a warranty from each Placee, that the
Placing Shares are not being acquired in connection with
arrangements to issue depositary receipts or to issue or transfer
the Placing Shares into a clearance service. Neither the Company
nor Panmure Liberum is liable to bear any stamp duty or stamp duty
reserve tax or any other similar duties or taxes (including,
without limitation, other stamp, issue, securities, transfer,
registration, capital, or documentary duties or taxes)
("transfer taxes") that
arise: (i) if there are any such arrangements (or if any such
arrangements arise subsequent to the subscription by Placees of
Placing Shares); (ii) on a sale of Placing Shares; or (iii)
otherwise than under the laws of the United Kingdom. Each Placee to
whom (or on behalf of whom, or in respect of the person for whom it
is participating in the Placing as an agent or nominee) the
allocation, allotment, issue or delivery of Placing Shares has
given rise to such transfer taxes undertakes to pay such transfer
taxes forthwith, and agrees to indemnify on an after-tax basis and
hold Panmure Liberum and/or the Company and their respective
Affiliates (as the case may be) harmless from any such transfer
taxes, and all interest, fines or penalties in relation to such
transfer taxes. Each Placee should, therefore, take its own advice
as to whether any such transfer tax liability arises.
In this Announcement, "after-tax
basis" means in relation to any payment made to the Company,
Panmure Liberum or their respective Affiliates or its or their
respective Representatives pursuant to this Announcement where the
payment (or any part thereof) is chargeable to any tax, a basis
such that the amount so payable shall be increased so as to ensure
that after taking into account any tax chargeable (or which would
be chargeable but for the availability of any relief unrelated to
the loss, damage, cost, charge, expense or liability against which
the indemnity is given on such amount (including on the increased
amount)) there shall remain a sum equal to the amount that would
otherwise have been so payable.
Each Placee, and any person acting
on behalf of each Placee, acknowledges and agrees that Panmure
Liberum and/or any of its Affiliates may, at their absolute
discretion, agree to become a Placee in respect of some or all of
the Placing Shares. Each Placee acknowledges and is aware that
Panmure Liberum is receiving a fee in connection with its role in
respect of the Placing as detailed in the Placing
Agreement.
When a Placee or person acting on
behalf of the Placee is dealing with Panmure Liberum any money held
in an account with Panmure Liberum on behalf of the Placee and/or
any person acting on behalf of the Placee will not be treated as
client money within the meaning of the rules and regulations of the
FCA made under the FSMA. The Placee acknowledges that the money
will not be subject to the protections conferred by the client
money rules; as a consequence, this money will not be segregated
from Panmure Liberum's money in accordance with the client money
rules and will be used by Panmure Liberum in the course of its own
business; and the Placee will rank only as a general creditor of
Panmure Liberum.
The Placing Shares will not be
admitted to trading on any stock exchange other than
AIM.
Time is of the essence as regards
each Placee's obligations under this Appendix.
Any document that is to be sent to
it in connection with the Placing will be sent at its risk and may
be sent to it at any address provided by it to Panmure
Liberum.
The rights and remedies of Panmure
Liberum and the Company under the terms and conditions set out in
this Appendix are in addition to any rights and remedies which
would otherwise be available to each of them and the exercise or
partial exercise of one will not prevent the exercise of
others.
Each Placee may be asked to
disclose, in writing or orally to Panmure Liberum: (a) if they are
an individual, their nationality; or (b) if they are a
discretionary fund manager, the jurisdiction in which the funds are
managed or owned.
The price of shares and any income
expected from them may go down as well as up and investors may not
get back the full amount invested upon disposal of the shares. No
statement contained herein is intended to be a profit forecast or
estimate or should be interpreted to mean that earnings per share
of the Company for the current or future financial years would
necessarily match or exceed the historical published earnings per
share of the Company. Past performance is no guide to future
performance and persons needing advice should consult an
independent financial adviser.
All times and dates in this
Announcement may be subject to amendment. The Sole Bookrunner shall
notify the Placees and any person acting on behalf of the Placees
of any changes.
APPENDIX 2
Definitions
The following definitions apply
throughout this Announcement unless the context otherwise
requires:
"Admission"
|
means admission of the Offer Shares
to trading on AIM;
|
"Affiliate"
|
has the meaning given in Rule 501(b)
of Regulation D under the Securities Act or Rule 405 under the
Securities Act, as applicable and, in the case of the Company,
includes its subsidiary undertakings;
|
"AIM"
|
means the AIM market operated by the
London Stock Exchange;
|
"AIM Rules"
|
means the rules published by the
London Stock Exchange entitled "AIM Rules for Companies" in force
from time to time;
|
"Announcement"
|
means this announcement (including
its Appendices);
|
"Bookbuild"
|
means the bookbuilding process to be
commenced by Panmure Liberum immediately following release of this
Announcement to use reasonable endeavours to procure Placees for
the Placing Shares, as described in this Announcement and subject
to the terms and conditions set out in this Announcement and the
Placing Agreement;
|
"Business
Day"
|
a day (other than a Saturday, Sunday
or public holiday) when banks in London and Jersey are open for
business
|
"Closing
Date"
|
means the day on which the
transactions effected in connection with the Placing will be
settled;
|
"Company"
|
means Cirata plc;
|
"Conditions"
|
has the meaning given to it in
Appendix 1 to this Announcement;
|
"CREST"
|
means the relevant system (as
defined in the Uncertificated Securities Regulations 2001 (SI 2001
No. 3755)) in respect of which Euroclear is the Operator (as
defined in such Regulations) in accordance with which securities
may be held and transferred in uncertificated form;
|
"Direct
Subscribers"
|
means each investor who has signed
and returned a Direct Subscription Agreement;
|
"Direct
Subscription"
|
means the subscription for new
Ordinary Shares by the Direct Subscribers;
|
"Direct Subscription
Agreements"
|
means the subscription agreements
entered into by the Direct Subscribers and the Company today
relating to the Direct Subscription;
|
"Direct Subscription
Shares"
|
means the Ordinary Shares subscribed
for pursuant to the Direct Subscription;
|
"EU Prospectus
Regulation"
|
means Regulation (EU) 2017/1129 (as
amended);
|
"Euroclear"
|
means Euroclear UK &
International Limited, a company incorporated under the laws of
England and Wales;
|
"EUWA"
|
means the European Union
(Withdrawal) Act 2018 (as amended);
|
"Exchange
Information"
|
has the meaning given to it in
Appendix 1 to this Announcement;
|
"FCA"
|
means the UK Financial Conduct
Authority;
|
"FSMA"
|
means the Financial Services and
Markets Act 2000 (as amended);
|
"Group"
|
means the Company and its subsidiary
undertakings;
|
"JerseyCo"
|
means Orange Finance (Jersey)
Limited;
|
"London Stock
Exchange"
|
means London Stock Exchange
plc;
|
"Material Adverse
Change"
|
has the meaning given to such term
in the Placing Agreement;
|
"Management
Subscription"
|
means the subscription for Ordinary
Shares by certain directors and members of management of the
Company;
|
"Management Subscription
Letters"
|
means the subscription letters to be
entered into by certain directors and members of management of the
Company today relating to the Management Subscription;
|
"Management Subscription
Shares"
|
means the new Ordinary Shares
subscribed for pursuant to the Management Subscription;
|
"Offer"
|
means Placing, the Direct
Subscription, the Management Subscription and the Retail
Offer;
|
"Offer
Price"
|
means 55 pence per Offer
Share;
|
"Offer
Shares"
|
means the Placing Shares, the Direct
Subscription Shares, the Management Subscription Shares and the
Retail Offer Shares;
|
"Order"
|
means the Financial Services and
Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005;
|
"Ordinary
Share"
|
means an ordinary share of 10 pence
each in the capital of the Company;
|
"Panmure
Liberum"
|
Panmure Liberum Limited;
|
"Placee"
|
means any person (including
individuals, funds or otherwise) by whom or on whose behalf a
commitment to acquire Placing Shares is given;
|
"Placing"
|
means the placing to take place by
way of the Bookbuild for which Panmure Liberum has been appointed
as sole global coordinator and bookrunner;
|
"Placing
Agreement"
|
has the meaning given to it in
Appendix 1 to this Announcement;
|
"Placing
Shares"
|
means the new Ordinary Shares to be
acquired by the Placees under the Placing;
|
"QIB"
|
means a "qualified institutional
buyer" as defined in Rule 144A of the Securities Act;
|
"Qualified
Investors"
|
mean persons who are qualified
investors within the meaning of Article 2(e) of the EU Prospectus
Regulation;
|
"Regulation
S"
|
means Regulation S promulgated under
the Securities Act;
|
"Regulatory Information
Service"
|
means any of the services set out in
the AIM Rules;
|
"Relevant
Persons"
|
mean (i) Qualified Investors; (ii)
UK Qualified Investors; or (iii) persons to whom this Announcement
may otherwise be lawfully communicated;
|
"Representative"
|
has the meaning given to it in
Appendix 1 to this Announcement;
|
"Restricted
Territory"
|
means the United States, Australia,
Canada, Japan, New Zealand or the Republic of South Africa or any
jurisdiction in which the release, publication or distribution of
this Announcement is unlawful;
|
"Results
Announcement"
|
means the announcement (if any) to
be published by the Company confirming the results of the Fundraise
on a Regulatory Information Service immediately following the
execution of the Terms of Placing;
|
"Retail
Offer"
|
means the offer of new Ordinary
Shares being made by the Company on the PrimaryBid
platform;
|
"Retail Offer
Documents"
|
means (i) the engagement letter
entered into by the Company and PrimaryBid; and (ii) the
subscription and transfer agreement entered into between the
Company, PrimaryBid and JerseyCo on the date of the Placing
Agreement, in each case, relating to the Retail Offer;
|
"Retail Offer
Shares"
|
means the new Ordinary Shares
acquired pursuant to the Retail Offer;
|
"Securities
Act"
|
means the U.S. Securities Act of
1933, as amended;
|
Sole
Bookrunner
|
Panmure Liberum Limited
|
"Subscription and Transfer
Agreement"
|
means the subscription and transfer
agreement entered into between the Company, Panmure Liberum and
JerseyCo on the date of the Placing Agreement;
|
"subsidiary" or
"subsidiary
undertaking"
|
each have the meaning given to that
term in the Companies Act 2006;
|
"Terms of
Placing"
|
has the meaning given to it in
Appendix 1 to this Announcement;
|
"UK Market Abuse
Regulation"
|
means assimilated Regulation (EU)
596/2014 as it forms part of the laws of the United Kingdom by
virtue of the EUWA;
|
"UK MiFID
II"
|
means assimilated EU Directive
2014/65/EU as it forms part of the laws of the United Kingdom by
virtue of the EUWA;
|
"UK Prospectus
Regulation"
|
means assimilated Regulation (EU)
2017/1129 (as amended)as it forms part of the laws of the United
Kingdom by virtue of the EUWA;
|
"UK Qualified
Investors"
|
mean persons who are qualified
investors within the meaning of Article 2(e) of the UK Prospectus
Regulation who are: (i) persons who fall within the definition of
"investment professional" in Article 19(5) of the Order; or (ii)
persons who fall within Article 49(2)(a) to (d) ("High net worth
companies, unincorporated associations, etc.") of the
Order;
|
"uncertificated" or
"in uncertificated
form"
|
means in respect of a share or other
security, where that share or other security is recorded on the
relevant register of the share or security concerned as being held
in uncertificated form in CREST and title to which may be
transferred by means of CREST;
|
"United Kingdom" or
"UK"
|
means the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Northern Ireland;
|
"United States" or
"US"
|
means the United States of America,
its territories and possessions, any state of the United States of
America, the District of Columbia and all other areas subject to
its jurisdiction and any political sub-division thereof;
and
|
"US Investor
Letter"
|
means the letter in the form
provided by Panmure Liberum.
|
Unless otherwise indicated in this
Announcement, all references to "£", "GBP", "pounds", "pound sterling", "sterling", "p", "penny" or "pence" are to the lawful currency of
the United Kingdom. All references to "US$", "$" or "dollars" are to the lawful currency of
the United States of America.