THIS ANNOUNCEMENT AND THE INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN IS
RESTRICTED AND IS NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION, IN
WHOLE OR IN PART, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN, INTO OR FROM THE
UNITED STATES, AUSTRALIA, CANADA, JAPAN OR
THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA OR ANY OTHER JURISDICTION IN
WHICH SUCH RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION WOULD BE
UNLAWFUL.
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS FOR INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND DOES
NOT CONSTITUTE OR CONTAIN ANY INVITATION, SOLICITATION,
RECOMMENDATION, OFFER OR ADVICE TO ANY PERSON TO SUBSCRIBE FOR,
OTHERWISE ACQUIRE OR DISPOSE OF ANY SECURITIES IN SYSGROUP PLC OR
ANY OTHER ENTITY IN ANY JURISDICTION. NEITHER THIS ANNOUNCEMENT NOR
THE FACT OF ITS DISTRIBUTION SHALL FORM THE BASIS OF, OR BE RELIED
ON IN CONNECTION WITH, ANY INVESTMENT DECISION IN RESPECT OF
SYSGROUP PLC OR ANY OTHER
ENTITY.
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT SHOULD BE READ IN ITS ENTIRETY. IN
PARTICULAR, YOU SHOULD READ AND UNDERSTAND THE INFORMATION PROVIDED
IN THE APPENDIX.
THE
CONTENT OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT HAS NOT BEEN APPROVED BY AN AUTHORISED
PERSON WITHIN THE MEANING OF THE FINANCIAL SERVICES AND MARKETS ACT
2000. RELIANCE ON THIS ANNOUNCEMENT FOR THE PURPOSE OF ENGAGING IN
ANY INVESTMENT ACTIVITY MAY EXPOSE AN INDIVIDUAL TO A SIGNIFICANT
RISK OF LOSING ALL OF THE PROPERTY OR OTHER ASSETS
INVESTED.
THE
INFORMATION CONTAINED WITHIN THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS DEEMED BY THE
COMPANY TO CONSTITUTE INSIDE INFORMATION STIPULATED UNDER THE
MARKET ABUSE REGULATION (EU) NO. 596/2014 AS IT FORMS PART OF THE
DOMESTIC LAW OF THE UNITED KINGDOM BY VIRTUE OF
THE EUROPEAN UNION (WITHDRAWAL) ACT 2018 (AS AMENDED)
("MAR"). UPON THE PUBLICATION OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT VIA THE
REGULATORY INFORMATION SERVICE, THIS INSIDE INFORMATION IS NOW
CONSIDERED TO BE IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN.
6 June 2024
SysGroup
plc
("SysGroup", the "Group" or the "Company")
Proposed Fundraising to
raise approximately £10 million
SysGroup (AIM:SYS) the technology
partner for delivery and management of cloud, data and security
services to power Artificial Intelligence ("AI") and Machine
Learning ("ML") transformation, is delighted to announce a proposed
fundraising to conditionally raise approximately £10 million
(before expenses) at a price of 33 pence per New Ordinary Share
from new and existing Shareholders.
KEY
HIGHLIGHTS
· Proposed equity
fundraising of approximately £10 million, comprising of a
conditional Placing and a conditional Subscription, as well as a
conditional Retail Offer to raise up to a further £0.5
million
· Placing to be conducted by way of an ABB launching immediately
following this Announcement
· Retail
Offer to be launched following the close of the ABB on the
BookBuild Platform
· Net
proceeds of the proposed Fundraise will be used to fund an internal
transformation project, strengthen the balance sheet to provide for
ongoing working capital requirements as the business continues to
drive growth, as well as liquidity for M&A opportunities,
whilst ensuring that the Company remains compliant at all times
with its obligations under its existing financing
arrangements
· Issue
Price of 33 pence per Fundraising Share
· Management to provide an investor presentation at
11:00 a.m. on 10
June 2024
· A
General Meeting of the Company's Shareholders will take place at
1:00 p.m. on 24 June 2024
· Zeus
is acting as Nominated Adviser, Sole Broker and Bookrunner to the
Company in connection with the Fundraise
The Issue Price represents a
discount of approximately 5.7 per cent. to the Closing Price
of 35.0 pence per Ordinary Share on 5 June 2024,
being the last practicable date prior to announcement of the
Fundraising.
In addition, each of the Directors,
the Company Secretary and certain sophisticated investors have
indicated an intention to subscribe for New Ordinary Shares as part
of the Subscription.
Further announcements will be made
shortly in connection with the Retail Offer and its terms. The
Placing and Subscription are not conditional upon the Retail Offer
and, for the avoidance of doubt, neither the Retail Offer nor the
Subscription form part of the Placing.
The Placing will be conducted by way
of an ABB which will commence immediately following this
Announcement. The Placing is subject to the terms and conditions
set out in the Appendix of this Announcement (the "Terms and
Conditions").
Zeus is acting as sole broker in
relation to the Placing. A Placing Agreement has been entered into
today between the Company and Zeus in connection with the
Placing.
The Fundraising is conditional upon,
inter alia, the approval by the Shareholders of the Fundraising
Resolutions to be proposed at the General Meeting to be held
at Hill Dickinson LLP at 50 Fountain
Street, Manchester, M2 2AS on 24 June 2024 at 1:00
p.m.. A circular, containing further
details of the Fundraising, Notice of General Meeting and proxy
form (together the "Circular") will be posted to
Shareholders shortly after the results of the ABB and will be made
available on the Company's website at https://www.sysgroup.com/about-us/investor-relations/.
If the conditions relating to the
issue of the Placing Shares are not satisfied or the Placing
Agreement is terminated in accordance with its terms, the Placing
Shares will not be issued, and the Company will not receive the
associated placing monies. In this scenario, the Retail Offer and
the Subscription will similarly not proceed.
Applications will be made to the
London Stock Exchange for the admission of the Placing Shares,
Subscription Shares and Retail Offer Shares to be admitted to
trading on AIM. It is currently expected that Admission will become
effective, and that dealings in the respective shares will commence
on AIM, on or around 26 June 2024. The New Ordinary Shares,
when issued, will be fully paid and will rank pari passu in all
respects with the existing Ordinary Shares.
For
further information, please contact:
|
|
|
|
SysGroup plc
|
Tel: 0333
101 9000
|
Heejae Chae, Executive
Chairman
|
|
Owen Phillips, Chief Financial
Officer
|
|
|
|
Zeus (Nominated Adviser and
Joint Broker)
|
Tel: 0161
831 1512
|
Jordan Warburton
|
|
Nick Cowles
|
|
Alex Campbell-Harris
|
|
Nick Searle
|
|
Information on
SysGroup
Introduction
SysGroup plc was incorporated in 2007 and is a
technology partner specialising in the delivery and management of
cloud, data and security services to power Artificial Intelligence
("AI") and Machine Learning ("ML") transformation. The Group offers
an integrated set of modern technologies that collectively meets
customers end-to-end data needs including connectivity, cloud
hosting, delivery, analytics and governance of customer data, as
well as a security layer for users and applications.
The Group has offices in Manchester, Edinburgh,
London, Bristol and Newport.
While many small and medium-sized enterprises
("SME") are eager to adopt AI/ML, they often lack a clear strategy
or implementation path. There is significant demand for a partner
to support their development of an AI/ML strategy and enable its
implementation.
To support this strategy, the Company has made
significant investments in both technology and people. SysGroup has
transformed its senior management team reducing it from thirteen to
eight members, with six external appointments. The new management
team has a strong track record in managing rapid growth, executing
acquisitions and building sales teams. SysGroup has already hired
four experienced salespeople from Softcat, implemented
performance-driven commission schemes and built a blue-chip team of
AI experts from JP Morgan, AWS, McLaren and Validus. Throughout the
organisation, there is a culture of customer focus and outstanding
service underpinned by innovation, entrepreneurialism and high
performance.
The core Managed Services business, which has
more than 70% recurring revenues provides a solid base from which
the Company can expand.
Market
Opportunity
Factors driving the AI/ML adoption generally
include:
• the growing
availability of data, crucial for training AI/ML algorithms.
As the amount of data that companies collect continues to grow, so
does the potential for AI and ML to deliver value;
• decreasing costs of
computing power, making AI/ML algorithms more accessible across
various company sizes and budgets; and
• the increasing
sophistication and user-friendliness of AI/ML tools and
technologies.
According to an IONOS / YouGov[1] study of 4,807 SME owners across the UK, US,
France, Germany and Spain: (1) UK business leaders have the lowest
number of people already using AI frequently for work (9% compared
to 15% average); (2) only 7% of UK SMEs consider their level of AI
knowledge to be very good compared to 32% in the US; (3) 48% of UK
SMEs state their knowledge of the technology to be fairly poor or
very poor; and (4) 56% of respondents have never used AI tools
before in work, the highest percentages of the countries
surveyed.
This failure to adopt is not due to a lack of
desire to engage with technology, and there are a number of factors
considered to be barriers to using AI more widely. AI/ML strategy
requires a holistic approach where the outcome is delivered from
both software and hardware solutions. Generally, AI projects
fail because they have not taken a holistic approach, for example,
by not defining the correct business case or not employing
appropriate data architecture framed by the right technology
infrastructure.
Underpinned by its relationships with
customers, SysGroup proposes a modern unified data solution
platform that is simple to sell and support and is simple for
customers to consume and benefit from. This will comprise an
integrated set of technologies that collectively meets the
customer's end-to-end data needs. It will allow for connectivity,
storage, preparation, delivery, analytics and governance of
customer data, as well as a security layer for users and
applications.
Acquisition
strategy
SysGroup has a solid track record of
acquiring and integrating managed IT services businesses, with its
acquisitions supported by a company-wide sales and
marketing, customer support and billing platform.
In order to build the size and scale of
business the Company is looking to create, continuing to explore
acquisitions will be core to the future growth strategy. The focus
here will be on (i) expanding capabilities in certain areas of
technology expertise as well as (ii) acquiring companies or
businesses that have interesting and relevant customer bases;
ideally opportunities will satisfy both criteria.
In executing the strategy, the Company screens
the market using various industry databases (among other resources)
to identify opportunities that meet its objectives.
Thereafter more detailed analysis is done, narrowing down on key
metrics (financials, organisational size, business profile, etc.)
depending on the results of these searches.
The Company also receives inbound acquisition
opportunities and enquiries and works closely with intermediaries
who are aware of its focus and criteria.
Current
Trading and Outlook
As recently reported in the
Company's RNS announcement on 30 April 2024 entitled "Year End
Trading Update", revenue for FY24 was marginally higher than prior
year at £22.7m (FY23: £21.6m), driven by a significant increase of
14% in the second half of the year (compared with the same period
in FY23), which offset a decline of 3% in the first half of FY24.
At the end of April 2024, SysGroup closed the second largest
contract in its history, totalling £2.2m of revenue over three
years, providing cyber security managed services to a leading
challenger bank. Its AI/ML proposition continues to gain
traction amongst both new and existing customers, with a growing
pipeline of opportunities.
Following significant investment in
technology and people to support our strategic growth, the Group
expects to report FY24 Adjusted EBITDA of approximately £2m (FY23:
£3.3m*).
The Group finished the year with a
gross cash balance of £1.9m (FY23: £4.2m) and a net debt position
of £3.4m (FY23: net debt of £1.3m), excluding contingent
consideration of £1.8m (FY23: £2.7m). Cash balances have been
utilised in satisfaction of: (i) £0.9m in the Truststream Year 1
earn-out and (ii) £1.5m in settlement of the former CEO's
contractual departure terms including the Company's purchase of
2,076,394 ordinary SysGroup shares (now held in treasury) following
the exercise of share options and immediate sale of those
shares.
*As part of the Group's FY24 audit process, which is still
ongoing at the time of the publication of this Document, the Group
is aware of a potential restatement to the FY23 reported accounts
which is likely to reduce the FY23 Adjusted EBITDA by up to
£0.2m.
Background to and reasons for the Fundraise
As set out above, SysGroup aims to
become partner of choice for SMEs in their AI and digital
transformation.
The Board is confident that the Company is well
positioned to fill the existing gap in the market and, with a
strong AI offering and a large customer base, expects the new
management team to continue accelerating sales growth and expand
margins.
Approximately £2 million of the
proceeds of the Fundraising is intended to be used to fund an
internal transformation project to provide the Group with systems
utilising AI driven technologies. This will enable the Company to
be a true AI adopter and innovator, acting as a live real case
study of best practice to customers. Rather than drawing the
Group's existing Bank facility, a further £2 million will be used
to meet the contingent earnout payment due in August 2024 in
relation to the acquisition of Truststream Security Solutions
Limited ("Truststream"). The remainder of the Fundraising proceeds
will strengthen the balance sheet to provide for ongoing working
capital requirements as the business continues to drive growth, as
well as liquidity for M&A opportunities, whilst ensuring that
the Company remains compliant at all times with its obligations
under its existing financing arrangements.
Information on
the Fundraise
Structure
At the 2023 AGM, certain resolutions were
passed by Shareholders which granted the Directors the authority to
allot, on a non-pre-emptive basis, Ordinary Shares up to an
aggregate nominal amount of £25,748 (being
approximately 5 per cent. of the issued share capital of the
Company as at the date of the 2023 AGM).
Given the proposed size of the Fundraising and
the limit on the Company's allotment authorities, the Fundraising
will only be implemented if the new shareholder authorities being
sought pursuant to the Fundraising Resolutions are duly passed at
the General Meeting.
Placing
The Placing will be conducted by Zeus on behalf
of the Company. The Placing will be conducted by way of an ABB
which will commence immediately following this Announcement. The
Placing is subject to the detailed Terms and Conditions contained
in the Appendix to this Announcement, which should be read in its
entirety.
The number of Placing Shares will be determined
by Zeus and the Company, and will be confirmed orally or by email
following the close of the ABB. The Placing Shares, when issued,
will be fully paid and will rank pari passu in all respects with
the existing Ordinary Shares.
The timing of the closing of the ABB and
allocations are at the absolute discretion of Zeus having consulted
with the Company. Details of the results of the Placing will be
announced as soon as practicable after the close of the
ABB.
By choosing to participate in the Placing and
by making a legally binding Recorded Commitment to acquire Placing
Shares, investors will be deemed to have read and understood this
announcement in its entirety (including the appendices) and to be
making such offer on the terms and subject to the conditions of the
Placing contained here, and to be providing the representations,
warranties and acknowledgements contained in the Terms and
Conditions.
The Placing (which is not being
underwritten) is conditional, amongst other things,
upon:
(a) the Placing
Agreement becoming unconditional in all respects (save for
Admission) and not having been terminated in accordance with its
terms prior to Admission;
(b) the passing of
the Fundraising Resolutions at the General Meeting; and
(c) Admission of the
Placing Shares becoming effective on or before 8.00 am on 26
June 2024 or such later time
and/or date as the Company and Zeus may agree, being no later than
8.00 am on the Long Stop Date.
If such conditions are not satisfied
or, if capable of waiver, waived, by the date(s) and time(s)
referred to above, the Placing will not proceed.
The Placing
Agreement
In connection with the Placing, the Company and
Zeus have entered into the Placing Agreement. Pursuant to the terms
of the Placing Agreement, Zeus has conditionally agreed to use its
reasonable endeavours, as agent for the Company,
to procure Placees for the Placing Shares at the Issue Price.
The Placing is not being underwritten.
The Placing Agreement is
conditional, amongst other things, upon the passing of the
Fundraising Resolutions, the conditions in the Placing Agreement
being satisfied or (if capable of waiver) waived and the Placing
Agreement not having been terminated in accordance with its terms
prior to Admission, Admission occurring on or before 8:00 a.m.
on 26 June 2024 (or such later date as the
Company and Zeus may agree, not being later than 8:00 a.m. on the
Long Stop Date).
The Placing Agreement contains
certain customary warranties given by the Company in favour of Zeus
in relation to, inter
alia, the
accuracy of the information in the Circular and other matters
relating to the Company and its
business.
In addition, the Company has agreed
to indemnify Zeus in relation to certain
liabilities its business may incur in respect of the
Placing.
Zeus has the right to terminate the
Placing Agreement in certain circumstances
prior to Admission, including, in particular, in the event of
a breach of the warranties given in the
Placing Agreement, the failure of the Company to comply in any
material respect with its obligations under the Placing Agreement
or the occurrence of a force
majeure event or a material adverse change affecting the
financial position, business or prospects of the
Company.
The Placing is not conditional on
the Subscription or the Retail Offer proceeding or on any minimum
take-up under the Retail Offer.
Subscription
Certain Directors, PDMRs and sophisticated
investors have indicated their intention to subscribe directly with
the Company for Subscription Shares.
The Subscription Shares will be issued
conditional upon the Fundraising Resolutions being duly passed at
the General Meeting and Admission.
The Subscription has not been underwritten and,
pursuant to the terms of the Subscription Agreements, is
conditional, inter alia,
upon the Placing proceeding and Admission becoming effective by no
later than 8.00 a.m. on 26 June 2024 (or
such later date as the Company and Zeus may agree, not being later
than the Long Stop Date).
If such conditions are not satisfied, the
Subscription will not proceed.
Retail
Offer
The Company values its Shareholder base and
believes that it is appropriate to provide its eligible Retail
Investors in the United Kingdom the opportunity to participate in
the Retail Offer. The Retail Offer will allow existing Retail
Investors to participate in the Fundraising by subscribing for
Retail Offer Shares at the Issue Price.
Conditional on, amongst other things, the
Fundraising Resolutions being duly passed at the General Meeting,
the Placing proceeding and Admission, up to 1,515,151 Retail Offer
Shares will be issued to eligible Retail Investors by way of the
Retail Offer at the Issue Price to raise proceeds of up to
approximately £0.5 million (before expenses).
The Retail Offer Shares are not part of the
Placing and are not Placing Shares. The Retail Offer is not being
underwritten. No prospectus will be published in connection with
the Retail Offer.
Further information on the Retail Offer and how
Retail Investors can participate in the Fundraising will be
contained in a further announcement.
Incentive
Arrangements
The Company's approach to
incentivisation is to reward key contributors to Company
performance with incentive structures that are tied to the delivery
of Shareholder value over a sustained period and are funded through
issuance of equity or equity-linked instruments.
These incentive plans will form part
of the overall remuneration structure for senior employees within
the Company, in order to incentivise the management team to deliver
substantial value and realise its growth ambitions. It is envisaged
that if these growth plans are realised, the long-term incentive
arrangements would form the significant majority of remuneration
for the senior team, alongside fixed pay and short term bonus
plans. If the stretching targets are met, the majority of potential
remuneration would be earned under the long-term incentive plans
which are aligned with Shareholder value.
The Company is proposing to adopt
two share incentive share schemes, for which it seeks shareholder
approval which are summarised below. Further details relating to
each scheme can be found in the appendix to the Circular. Copies of
the VCP and PSP scheme rules will be available at the General
Meeting. In addition, the Company will adopt a SAYE (Save as you
Earn) scheme for participation of all employees. This is expected
to be approved by the Board, in the near future, and will not
therefore be subject to Shareholder approval.
Value Creation
Plan (VCP)
The VCP is a one-off leveraged plan,
designed to incentivise the Executive Directors and senior
management to deliver significant returns for Shareholders over a
five-year period. Under the VCP, participants will receive (in the
form of Ordinary Shares) a proportion of the returns delivered for
Shareholders if a threshold rate is achieved. Subject to meeting
the hurdle rates (as described below), participants in the VCP as a
whole are eligible to receive between 15% and 25% share of the
value created for Shareholders above the market capitalisation at
the placing depending on the Company's share price at the end of
the performance period. The minimum hurdle rate to be achieved
before there is any value sharing is 12.5% compound annual growth
and in order for the sharing ratio to increase, share prices of
£2.25 (i.e. 46.54% compound annual growth) and £3 (i.e. 55.22%
compound annual growth) must be reached. These targets have been
set at a significant premium to the Issue Price to incentivise and
drive substantial growth.
Performance Share Plan
(PSP)
The PSP is a discretionary incentive
plan allowing for the grant of a variety of awards over Ordinary
Shares ("Awards") to be made to eligible employees of the Group on
an annual basis, with targets set over rolling three-year periods.
Awards made under the PSP may take the form of options to acquire
Ordinary Shares, conditional share awards or awards of restricted
shares. The vesting of Awards may be subject to the achievement of
a performance target (which may comprise a combination of separate
targets) measured over a specified three-year period. Awards may be
satisfied by the issue of new Ordinary Shares or by the transfer of
Ordinary Shares held in treasury or by the trustee of an employee
benefit trust.
An offset feature will be built into
awards for employees who are participants in both the VCP and PSP
to reduce the number of shares vesting under the PSP to reflect
shares realised under the VCP. This will prevent participants being
remunerated twice for the same performance.
The adoption by the Company of the VCP and PSP
is subject to the MIP Resolutions being duly passed at the General
Meeting.
Director and
non-Board PDMR participation in the Placing
Each of the Directors and the Company Secretary
have indicated their intention to participate in the Fundraising
for New Ordinary Shares. Their intended participation is as
below:
Director / PDMR
|
Position
|
Intended participation
|
Number of Fundraising Shares at the Issue
Price
|
Heejae Chae
|
Executive Chairman
|
£250,000
|
757,575
|
Owen Phillips
|
Chief Finance Officer
|
£20,000
|
60,606
|
Paul Edwards
|
Non-Executive Director
|
£50,000
|
151,515
|
Mike Fletcher
|
Non-Executive Director
|
£15,000
|
45,454
|
Mark Reilly
|
Non-Executive Director
|
£15,000
|
45,454
|
Wendy Baker*
|
Company Secretary
|
£60,000
|
181,818
|
*Shares will be registered in the
name of Wendy Baker & Organon Pension Trustees Limited as
Trustees of the Organon SIPP regarding Wendy Baker
It was announced by the Company on 3 June 2024 that
Davin Cushman is to be appointed as a Non-Executive Director with
effect from 10 June 2024 and Davin Cushman intends to
participate in the Fundraising, subscribing in aggregate for
£100,000. Senior Management also intend to participate in the
Subscription in aggregate for £120,000.
Investor Presentation
The Company will provide a live
presentation and Q&A for investors Retail Investors and any
other interested parties via Investor Meet Company at
11:00 a.m. on
10 June 2024.
The presentation is open to all
existing shareholders. Questions can be submitted pre-event via
your Investor Meet Company dashboard up until 9:00
a.m. on 9 June 2024, or at any time during the live
presentation.
Investors can sign up
to Investor Meet Company for free and add to
meet SysGroup plc via:
https://www.investormeetcompany.com/sysgroup-plc/register-investor
Investors who already
follow SysGroup plc on the Investor Meet
Company platform will automatically be invited.
Expected
Timetable of Principal Events
|
2024
|
Publication and posting of the
Circular and Forms of Proxy
|
7 June
|
Launch of Retail Offer
|
8:00 a.m. on 7
June
|
Close of Retail Offer
|
4:30 p.m. on 13
June
|
Latest time and date for receipt of
Forms of Proxy or electronic proxy appointments for the General Meeting
|
1:00 p.m. on 20
June
|
General Meeting
|
1:00 p.m. on 24
June
|
Results of the General Meeting
announced
|
24 June
|
Admission and commencement of
dealings in the New Ordinary Shares on AIM
|
8:00 a.m. on 26
June
|
CREST accounts expected to be
credited with New Ordinary Shares in uncertificated form
(uncertificated holders only)
|
26 June
|
Expected dispatch of definitive
share certificates in respect of New Ordinary Shares to be issued
in certificated form (certificated holders only)
|
Within 10 business days of
Admission
|
Notes:
1.
Each of the times and dates above are indicative only and are
subject to change. If any of the above times and/or dates change,
the revised times and/or dates will be notified by the Company to
Shareholders by announcement through a Regulatory Information
Service.
2.
All of the above times refer to London time unless otherwise
stated.
3.
The admission and commencement of dealings in the New Ordinary
Shares on AIM are conditional on, inter alia, the passing of the
Fundraising Resolutions at the General Meeting.
IMPORTANT
NOTICES
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT AND THE
INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN IS RESTRICTED AND IS NOT FOR RELEASE,
PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, DIRECTLY OR
INDIRECTLY, IN OR INTO OR FROM THE UNITED STATES (INCLUDING ITS TERRITORIES AND POSSESSIONS,
ANY STATE OF THE UNITED STATES AND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
(COLLECTIVELY, THE "UNITED STATES"), AUSTRALIA, CANADA, THE
REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA, JAPAN OR ANY OTHER JURISDICTION IN WHICH
SUCH RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION WOULD BE UNLAWFUL
("RESTRICTED TERRITORY"). ANY FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH THESE RESTRICTIONS
MAY CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF THE SECURITIES LAWS OF SUCH
JURISDICTIONS.
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT AND THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS SET OUT HEREIN
ARE FOR INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND DOES NOT CONSTITUTE OR FORM
ANY PART OF AN OFFER TO SELL OR ISSUE, OR A SOLICITATION OF AN
OFFER TO BUY, SUBSCRIBE FOR OR OTHERWISE ACQUIRE ANY SECURITIES IN
THE UNITED STATES, AUSTRALIA, CANADA, SOUTH AFRICA, JAPAN OR ANY
OTHER JURISDICTION IN WHICH THE SAME WOULD BE UNLAWFUL. NO PUBLIC
OFFERING OF THE PLACING SHARES IS BEING MADE IN ANY SUCH
JURISDICTION.
The securities referred to herein
have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities
Act of 1933, as amended (the "US Securities Act"), and may not be
offered or sold in the United States, except pursuant to an
applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the US
Securities Act and in compliance with any applicable securities
laws of any state or other jurisdiction of the United States, or
under the securities laws of Australia, Canada, the Republic of
South Africa, Japan, or any state, province or territory thereof or
any other jurisdiction outside the United Kingdom, except pursuant
to an applicable exemption from the registration requirements and
in compliance with any applicable securities laws of any state,
province or other jurisdiction of Australia, Canada, the Republic
of South Africa or Japan (as the case may be).
No public offering of the Placing
Shares is being made in Australia, Canada, the Republic of South
Africa or Japan or elsewhere.
No action has been taken by the
Company or Zeus or any of their respective affiliates, or any of
its or their respective directors, officers, partners, employees,
advisers and/or agents (collectively, "Representatives") that would permit an
offer of the Placing Shares or possession or distribution of this
Announcement or any other publicity material relating to such
Placing Shares in any jurisdiction where action for that purpose is
required. Persons receiving this Announcement are required to
inform themselves about and to observe any restrictions contained
in this Announcement. 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. Persons distributing
any part of this Announcement must satisfy themselves that it is
lawful to do so.
No offering document or prospectus
will be made available in any jurisdiction in connection with the
matters contained or referred to in this Announcement or the
Placing and no such offering document or prospectus is required to
be published by the Company.
Certain statements in this
Announcement are forward-looking statements with respect to the
Company's expectations, intentions and projections regarding its
future performance, strategic initiatives, anticipated events or
trends and other matters that are not historical facts and which
are, by their nature, inherently predictive, speculative and
involve risks and uncertainty because they relate to events and
depend on circumstances that may or may not occur in the future.
All statements that address expectations or projections about the
future, including statements about operating performance, strategic
initiatives, objectives, market position, industry trends, general
economic conditions, expected expenditures, expected cost savings
and financial results, are forward-looking statements. Any
statements contained in this Announcement that are not statements
of historical fact are, or may be deemed to be,
forward‐looking
statements. These forward-looking statements, which may use words
such as "aim", "anticipate", "believe", "could", "intend",
"estimate", "expect", "may", "plan", "project" or words or terms of
similar meaning or the negative thereof, are not guarantees of
future performance and are subject to known and unknown risks and
uncertainties. There are a number of factors including, but not
limited to, commercial, operational, economic and financial
factors, that could cause actual results, financial condition,
performance or achievements to differ materially from those
expressed or implied by any of these forward‐looking statements. Many of these
risks and uncertainties relate to factors that are beyond the
Company's ability to control or estimate precisely, such as changes
in taxation or fiscal policy, future market conditions, currency
fluctuations, the behaviour of other market participants, the
actions of governments or governmental regulators, or other risk
factors, such as changes in the political, social and regulatory
framework in which the Company operates or in economic or
technological trends or conditions, including inflation, recession
and consumer confidence, on a global, regional or national basis.
Given those risks and uncertainties, readers are cautioned not to
place specific reliance on forward-looking statements.
Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this
Announcement. Each of the Company and Zeus expressly disclaims any
obligation or undertaking to update or revise 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.
Zeus, which is authorised and
regulated by the Financial Conduct
Authority ("FCA") in
the United Kingdom, is acting as nominated adviser, sole broker and
sole bookrunner exclusively for the Company and no one else in
connection with the Placing or any other matter referred to in this
Announcement, and will not regard any other person (whether or not
a recipient of this Announcement) as a client in relation to the
Placing and will not be responsible to anyone (including any
Placees) other than the Company in connection with the
Placing or for providing the protections afforded to their clients
or for giving advice in relation to the Placing or any other
matters referred to in this Announcement. The responsibilities of
Zeus, as nominated adviser, are owed solely to London Stock
Exchange plc and are not owed to the Company or to any
director or any other person and accordingly no duty of care is
accepted in relation to them. No representation or warranty,
express or implied, is made by Zeus as to, and no liability
whatsoever is accepted by Zeus in respect of, any of the contents
of this Announcement (without limiting the statutory rights of any
person to whom this Announcement is issued).
This Announcement is being 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 or on behalf of Zeus (apart from the responsibilities
or liabilities that may be imposed by the Financial
Services and Markets Act 2000, as amended ("FSMA") or the regulatory regime
established thereunder) and/or by any of its affiliates and/or any
of its Representatives as to, or in relation to, the accuracy,
adequacy, fairness or completeness of this Announcement or any
other written or oral information made available to or publicly
available to any interested party or their respective advisers or
any other statement made or purported to be made by or on behalf of
Zeus and/or any of its affiliates and/or by any of its
Representatives in connection with the Company, the Placing Shares
or the Placing and any responsibility and liability whether arising
in tort, contract or otherwise therefor is expressly disclaimed. No
representation or warranty, express or implied, is made by Zeus
and/or any of its affiliates and/or any of its Representatives as
to the accuracy, fairness, verification, completeness or
sufficiency of the information or opinions contained in this
Announcement or any other written or oral information made
available to or publicly available to any interested party or their
respective advisers, and any liability therefor is expressly
disclaimed.
This Announcement does not
constitute a recommendation concerning any investor's options with
respect to the Placing. Recipients of this Announcement should
conduct their own investigation, evaluation and analysis of the
business, data and other information described in this
Announcement. 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 Placing Shares. The
price and value of securities can go down as well as up and
investors may not get back the full amount invested upon the
disposal of the shares. Past performance is not a guide to future
performance. The contents of this Announcement are not to be
construed as legal, business, financial or tax advice. Each
investor or prospective investor should consult his or her or its
own legal adviser, business adviser, financial adviser or tax
adviser for legal, business, financial or tax advice.
All offers of the Placing Shares in
the United Kingdom or the EEA will be made pursuant to an exemption
from the requirement to produce a prospectus under the UK
Prospectus Regulation or the Prospectus Regulation (as
appropriate). This Announcement is being distributed and
communicated to persons in the United Kingdom only in circumstances
in which section 21(1) of FSMA does not require the approval of the
relevant communication by an authorised person.
The Appendix to this Announcement
sets out the terms and conditions of the Placing. By participating
in the Placing, each Placee will be deemed to have read and
understood this Announcement (including the Appendix) in its
entirety, to be participating in the Placing and making an offer to
acquire and acquiring Placing Shares on the terms and subject to
the conditions set out in the Appendix to this Announcement and to
be providing the representations, warranties, undertakings and
acknowledgements contained in the Appendix to 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.
APPENDIX
TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THE
PLACING
IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR INVITED
PLACEES ONLY REGARDING THE PLACING.
MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC ARE NOT
ELIGIBLE TO TAKE PART IN THE PLACING. THE TERMS AND
CONDITIONS SET OUT HEREIN (THE "TERMS AND CONDITIONS") ARE FOR
INFORMATION ONLY AND ARE DIRECTED ONLY AT PERSONS WHOSE ORDINARY
ACTIVITIES INVOLVE THEM IN 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: (1) IF IN THE UNITED KINGDOM,
"QUALIFIED INVESTORS", BEING PERSONS FALLING WITHIN THE MEANING OF
ARTICLE 2(E) OF THE UK PROSPECTUS REGULATION, WHO (A) FALL WITHIN
ARTICLE 19(5) (INVESTMENT PROFESSIONALS) OF THE FINANCIAL SERVICES
AND MARKETS ACT 2000 (FINANCIAL PROMOTION) ORDER 2005, AS AMENDED
(THE "ORDER") OR (B) FALL
WITHIN ARTICLE 49(2)(A) TO (D) (HIGH NET WORTH COMPANIES,
UNINCORPORATED ASSOCIATIONS, ETC.) OF THE ORDER; (2) IF IN MEMBER
STATES OF THE EEA, "QUALIFIED INVESTORS", BEING PERSONS FALLING
WITHIN THE MEANING OF ARTICLE 2(E) OF THE PROSPECTUS REGULATION; OR
(3) PERSONS TO WHOM THEY MAY OTHERWISE LAWFULLY BE COMMUNICATED
(ALL SUCH PERSONS TOGETHER BEING REFERRED TO AS "RELEVANT PERSONS").
THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND THE
INFORMATION HEREIN MUST NOT BE ACTED ON OR RELIED ON BY PERSONS WHO
ARE NOT RELEVANT PERSONS. ANY INVESTMENT OR INVESTMENT
ACTIVITY TO WHICH THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS RELATE IS AVAILABLE ONLY
TO RELEVANT PERSONS AND WILL BE ENGAGED IN ONLY WITH RELEVANT
PERSONS. THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS DO NOT THEMSELVES
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 AND RELATED ASPECTS OF AN INVESTMENT IN
PLACING SHARES.
THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS ARE
RESTRICTED AND ARE NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION, IN
WHOLE OR IN PART, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN OR INTO OR FROM THE
UNITED STATES, AUSTRALIA, CANADA, THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA OR
JAPAN OR ANY OTHER JURISDICTION IN WHICH SUCH RELEASE, PUBLICATION
OR DISTRIBUTION WOULD BE UNLAWFUL.
THIS DOCUMENT IS NOT AN OFFER OF
SECURITIES IN THE UNITED STATES. THE PLACING SHARES HAVE NOT BEEN
AND WILL NOT BE REGISTERED UNDER THE UNITED STATES SECURITIES
ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED (THE "SECURITIES ACT") OR UNDER THE
APPLICABLE SECURITIES LAWS OR WITH ANY SECURITIES REGULATORY
AUTHORITY OF ANY STATE OR JURISDICTION OF THE UNITED STATES, AND
MAY NOT BE OFFERED, SOLD OR OTHERWISE 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 ANY APPLICABLE SECURITIES LAWS OF ANY STATE OR OTHER
JURISDICTION OF THE UNITED STATES. THE PLACING SHARES ARE
BEING OFFERED AND SOLD ONLY OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES IN "OFFSHORE
TRANSACTIONS" WITHIN THE MEANING OF, AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH,
REGULATION S UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT AND OTHERWISE IN ACCORDANCE
WITH APPLICABLE LAWS. NO PUBLIC OFFERING OF THE PLACING
SHARES IS BEING MADE IN THE UNITED STATES OR ELSEWHERE.
The distribution of the Announcement
and/or the Placing and/or issue of the Placing Shares in certain
jurisdictions may be restricted by law. No action has been
taken by the Company, Zeus or any of their respective
affiliates and/or Representatives
that would permit an offer of the Placing Shares
or possession or distribution of the Announcement or any other
offering or publicity material relating to such Placing Shares in
any jurisdiction where action for that purpose is required.
Persons into whose possession the Announcement comes are required
by the Company and Zeus to inform themselves about and to observe
any such restrictions, for which such persons shall be solely
responsible.
The Announcement or any part of it
is for information purposes only and do 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 (including its territories and possessions, any state of the
United States and the District of Columbia), Australia, Canada, the
Republic of South Africa or Japan or any other jurisdiction in
which the same would be unlawful. No public offering of the
Placing Shares is being made in any such jurisdiction.
The Placing Shares have not been
approved or disapproved by the US Securities and Exchange
Commission, any state securities commission or 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 these Terms and Conditions, the
Announcement or the Circular. Any representation to the
contrary is a criminal offence in the United States. 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 Placing
Shares and the Placing 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, the
Republic of South Africa or Japan. Accordingly, the Placing
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, the Republic of South
Africa or Japan or any other jurisdiction in which such offer,
sale, re-sale or delivery would be unlawful.
UK
Product Governance Requirements
Solely for the purposes of the
product governance requirements 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 the Placing Shares are: (i) compatible with an end
target market of: (A) retail investors; (B) investors who meet the
criteria of professional clients; and (C) eligible counterparties
(each as defined in MiFID II (as defined below)); and (ii) eligible
for distribution through all distribution channels as are permitted
by MiFID II (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 offer. Furthermore, it is noted
that, notwithstanding the UK Target Market Assessment, Zeus 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 an assessment
of suitability or appropriateness for the purposes of Chapter 9A or
10A respectively of the FCA Handbook Conduct of Business
Sourcebook, or 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"); 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 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) 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: (A) retail investors; (B) investors
who meet the criteria of professional clients; and (C) 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 offer. Furthermore, it is noted
that, notwithstanding the EU Target Market Assessment, Zeus 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 an assessment
of suitability or appropriateness for the purposes of MiFID II, or
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.
Persons (including, without
limitation, nominees and trustees) who have a contractual right or
other legal obligations to forward a copy of the Announcement (or
any part of it) should seek appropriate advice before taking any
action.
The Announcement should be read in
their entirety. In particular, you should read and understand the
information provided in the "Important Notices" section of the
Announcement.
Introduction
These Terms and Conditions apply to
persons making an offer to acquire Placing Shares under the
Placing. Each Placee which confirms its agreement to Zeus to
subscribe for Placing Shares under the Placing hereby agrees with
Zeus and the Company that it will be bound by these Terms and
Conditions and will be deemed to have accepted them in
full.
The Company and Zeus may require any
Placee to agree to such further terms and/or conditions and/or give
such additional warranties and/or representations as they (in their
absolute discretion) see fit and/or may require any such Placee to
execute a separate placing letter to enable a Placee to participate
in the Placing.
By participating in the Placing
(such participation to be confirmed in and evidenced by either (i)
a recorded telephone conversation or (ii) email correspondence, in
either case between representatives of Zeus and the relevant Placee
(a "Recorded Commitment")),
each Placee will be deemed to have read and understood the
Announcement in its entirety, to be providing the representations,
warranties, indemnities, acknowledgements and undertakings
contained in these Terms and Conditions, and to be irrevocably
offering to participate and acquire Placing Shares on these Terms
and Conditions. Such offer shall be deemed to be accepted,
and a Placee shall become bound to acquire Placing Shares, when
Zeus confirms to such Placee its allocation of Placing
Shares. Upon being notified of its allocation of Placing
Shares, a Placee shall be contractually committed to acquire the
number of Placing Shares allocated to it at the Issue
Price.
EACH PLACEE SHOULD CONSULT WITH ITS
OWN ADVISERS AS TO LEGAL, REGULATORY, TAX, BUSINESS AND RELATED
ASPECTS OF A SUBSCRIPTION FOR THE PLACING SHARES.
Each Placee irrevocably represents,
warrants, undertakes, agrees and acknowledges (amongst other
things) to the Company and Zeus that:
1.
it is a Relevant Person and that it will acquire,
hold, manage or dispose of any Placing Shares that are allocated to
it for the purposes of its business;
2.
it is acquiring the Placing Shares for its own
account or is acquiring the 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, indemnities, acknowledgements, undertakings and
agreements contained in these Terms and Conditions;
3.
it understands (or if acting for the account of
another person, such person has confirmed that such person
understands) and agrees to comply with the resale and transfer
restrictions set out in these Terms and Conditions;
4.
it (and any account referred to in
paragraph 2 above)
is and, at the time the Placing Shares are acquired, will be
outside of the United States and is acquiring the Placing Shares in
an "offshore transaction" as defined in, and in accordance with,
Regulation S under the Securities Act; and
5.
the Company and Zeus will rely upon the truth and
accuracy of the foregoing representations, warranties,
acknowledgments and agreements.
No
prospectus or other offering document
The Placing Shares are being offered
to a limited number of specifically invited persons only and will
not be offered in such a way as to require any prospectus or other
offering document to be published. No prospectus or other
offering document has been or will be submitted to be approved by
(i) the FCA or (ii) any competent authority of any Relevant Member
State, in relation to the Placing or the Placing Shares and
Placees' commitments will be made solely on the basis of the
information contained in this Announcement and any information
publicly announced through a Regulatory Information Service (as
defined in the AIM Rules for Companies (the "AIM Rules")) by or on behalf of the
Company on or prior to the date of this Announcement (the
"Publicly Available
Information") and subject to any further terms set forth in
writing in any contract note sent to an individual
Placee.
Each Placee, by participating in the
Placing, agrees that the content of this Announcement is
exclusively the responsibility of the Company and confirms that it
has neither received nor relied on any information (other than the
Publicly Available Information), representation, warranty or
statement made by or on behalf of Zeus or the Company or any other
person and none of Zeus, the Company nor any other person acting on
such person's behalf nor any of their respective affiliates has or
shall have any liability for any Placee's decision to participate
in the Placing based on any other information, representation,
warranty or statement. 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. No Placee should consider any
information in this Announcement or these Terms and Conditions to
be legal, tax, business or other advice. Nothing in this
paragraph shall exclude the liability of any person for fraudulent
misrepresentation.
Details of the Placing Agreement and the Placing
Shares
Zeus has entered into the Placing
Agreement with the Company under which, on the terms and subject to
the conditions set out in the Placing Agreement, Zeus, as agent for
and on behalf of the Company, has agreed to use its reasonable
endeavours to procure Placees for the Placing Shares at the Issue
Price. The Placing is not being underwritten by
Zeus.
The Placing Shares will, when
issued, be subject to the memorandum and articles of association of
the Company and credited as fully paid and will rank pari passu in all respects with the
existing issued Ordinary Shares, including the right to receive all
dividends and other distributions declared, made or paid in respect
of such Ordinary Shares after the date of Admission.
Lock-up
As part of the Placing, the Company
has agreed that it will not for a period of 180 days from
Admission, directly or indirectly, issue, allot, offer, pledge,
sell, contract to sell, grant any option, right or warrant to
purchase, lend or otherwise transfer or dispose of any Ordinary
Shares or other shares in the capital of the Company or any
securities convertible into or exchangeable for Ordinary Shares or
other shares in the capital of the Company or otherwise enter into
any swap or other arrangement that transfers to another, in whole
or in part, any of the economic consequences of ownership of the
Ordinary Shares or other shares in the capital of the Company. This
agreement is subject to certain customary exceptions and does not
prevent (i) the issue or offer by or on behalf of the Company of
any Ordinary Shares in relation to the Placing, the Subscription
and the Retail Offer; or (ii) the grant or exercise of options or
awards under any of the Company's existing employee share schemes
(including any long term incentive plan) (in accordance with normal
practice) and the new management incentive schemes proposed to be
implemented by the Company in conjunction with the
Placing.
Application for admission to trading
Application will be made to the
London Stock Exchange for admission of the Placing Shares to
trading on AIM.
Subject to, amongst other things,
the Fundraising Resolutions being passed by the requisite
majorities at the General Meeting, it is expected that settlement
of the Placing Shares and Admission will become effective on or
around 8:00 a.m. on the Admission Date and that dealings in the
Placing Shares on AIM will commence at the same time or such later
time and/or dates as the Company and Zeus may agree (being in any
event no later than 8:00 a.m. on the Long Stop Date). The
Placing and the Subscription are not conditional
upon the Retail Offer. The Retail Offer is not part of the
Placing nor the Subscription. The Subscription is conditional
upon the Placing. If the conditions
relating to the issue of the Placing Shares are not satisfied or
the Placing Agreement is terminated in accordance with its terms,
the Placing Shares will not be issued and the Retail Offer and the
Subscription will not proceed.
Principal terms of the Placing
1.
Zeus is acting as nominated adviser, broker and
bookrunner to the Placing, as agent for and on behalf of the
Company.
2.
Participation in the Placing is by invitation only and will only be
available to persons who may lawfully be, and are, invited by Zeus
to participate. Zeus and any of its affiliates are entitled
to participate in the Placing as principal.
3. The price
per Placing Share (the "Issue
Price") is fixed at 33 pence.
4. Each
Placee's allocation will be confirmed to Placees orally, or in
writing (which can include email), by Zeus and a trade confirmation
or contract note will be dispatched as soon as possible thereafter.
Zeus' oral or written confirmation will give rise to an immediate,
irrevocable, legally binding commitment by that Placee, in favour
of Zeus and the Company, under which it agrees to acquire by
subscription the number of Placing Shares allocated to it at the
Issue Price and otherwise on these Terms and Conditions.
Except with the consent of Zeus, such commitment will not be
capable of variation or revocation.
5.
The Issue Price is payable to Zeus (as agent for
the Company) by all Placees.
6.
Each Placee's allocation and whether such Placee
participates in the Placing will be determined by Zeus in its
reasonable discretion following consultation with the Company and
will be confirmed to Placees by Zeus.
7.
Each Placee's commitment will be confirmed in and
evidenced by a Recorded Commitment. These Terms and
Conditions will be deemed incorporated into the contract which is
entered into by way of a Recorded Commitment, and each Placee's
allocation and commitment to acquire Placing Shares will be made on
and subject to the Terms and Conditions and will be legally binding
on the relevant Placee(s) on behalf of whom the commitment is made
with effect from the end of the Recorded Commitment and, except
with Zeus' prior written consent, will not be capable of variation
or revocation after such time. Without prejudice to the
foregoing, a contract note recording each Placee's commitment will
be sent to them following the Recorded Commitment. These Terms and
Conditions shall be deemed incorporated into any such contract
note.
8.
Each Placee will confirm the maximum number of
Placing Shares it is willing to acquire in a Recorded Commitment.
Once they have made a Recorded Commitment, each Placee will have an
immediate, separate, irrevocable and binding obligation, owed to
Zeus (as agent for the Company), to pay to it (or as it may direct)
in cleared funds an amount equal to the product of the Issue Price
and the number of Placing Shares such Placee has agreed to
acquire.
9.
Zeus reserves the right to scale back the number
of Placing Shares to be subscribed by any Placee in the event that
the Placing is oversubscribed. Zeus also reserves the right not to
accept offers to subscribe for Placing Shares or to accept such
offers in part rather than in whole. The acceptance and, if
applicable, scaling back of offers shall be at the absolute
discretion of Zeus. Zeus may also, notwithstanding paragraphs 6 and
7 above, subject to the prior consent of the Company:
(a.) allocate Placing Shares after
the time of any initial allocation to any person submitting a bid
after that time; and
(b.) allocate Placing Shares after
the bookbuilding process has closed to any person submitting a bid
after that time.
10.
Any Placees who are existing shareholders of the
Company undertake that they shall vote in favour of each of the
Fundraising Resolutions to be proposed at the General
Meeting.
11.
Except as required by law or regulation, no press
release or other announcement will be made by Zeus 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.
12.
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".
13.
All obligations under the Placing will be subject
to fulfilment 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 "Termination of the
Placing".
14.
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.
15.
To the fullest extent permissible by law and
applicable FCA rules and regulations, none of:
(a) Zeus;
(b) any of its
affiliates, agents, advisers, directors, officers, consultants or
employees; nor
(c) to the extent
not contained within (a) or (b), any person connected with Zeus as
defined in the FSMA ((b) and (c) being together "affiliates" and individually an
"affiliate" of
Zeus),
shall have any liability (including
to the extent permissible by law, any fiduciary duties) to Placees
or to any other person whether acting on behalf of a Placee or
otherwise. In particular, neither Zeus nor any of its
affiliates shall have any liability (including, to the extent
permissible by law, any fiduciary duties) in respect of Zeus'
conduct of the Placing or of such alternative method of effecting
the Placing as Zeus and the Company may agree.
Registration and settlement
By participating in the Placing,
each Placee will be deemed to agree that it will do all things
necessary to ensure that delivery and payment is completed as
directed by Zeus in accordance with either the standing CREST or
certificated settlement instructions which they have in place with
Zeus.
Settlement of transactions in the
Placing Shares following Admission will take place within the CREST
system, subject to certain exceptions. Settlement through CREST is
expected to occur (subject to the Fundraising Resolutions having
been duly passed at the General Meeting), on 26 June 2024 (the
"Admission Settlement
Date"), in accordance with the contract notes or electronic
trade confirmation or other (oral or written) confirmation.
Settlement will be on a delivery versus payment basis unless
otherwise notified by Zeus.
However, in the event of any
difficulties or delays in the admission of the Placing Shares to
CREST or the use of CREST in relation to the Placing, the Company
and Zeus may agree that the Placing Shares (or any of them) should
be issued in certificated form. Zeus reserves the right to
require settlement for any of the Placing Shares, and to deliver
any of the Placing Shares to any Placees, by such other means as
they deem necessary if delivery or settlement to any Placee is not
practicable within the CREST system or would not be consistent with
regulatory requirements in the jurisdiction in which a Placee is
located.
Interest is chargeable daily on
payments not received from Placees on or before the due date in
accordance with the arrangements set out above, in respect of
either CREST or certificated deliveries, at the rate of 3
percentage points above prevailing base rate of Barclays Bank plc
as determined by Zeus.
Each Placee is deemed to agree that
if it does not comply with these obligations, Zeus may sell any or
all of the Placing Shares allocated to that Placee on their behalf
and retain from the proceeds, for Zeus' own account and benefit, an
amount equal to the aggregate amount owed by the Placee plus any
interest due. The relevant Placee will, however, remain liable for
any shortfall below the Issue Price and for any stamp duty or stamp
duty reserve tax (together with any interest or penalties) imposed
in any jurisdiction which may arise upon the sale of its Placing
Shares on its behalf. By communicating a bid for Placing Shares,
such Placee confers on Zeus all such authorities and powers
necessary to carry out such sale and agrees to ratify and confirm
all actions which Zeus lawfully takes in pursuance of such
sale.
If Placing Shares are to be
delivered to a custodian or settlement agent, Placees must ensure
that, upon receipt, any relevant contract note 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 United Kingdom stamp
duty or stamp duty reserve tax. If there are any circumstances in
which any United Kingdom stamp duty or stamp duty reserve tax or
other similar taxes or duties (including any interest and penalties
relating thereto) is payable in respect of the allocation,
allotment, issue, sale, transfer 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
or agreement to transfer Placing Shares), the Company shall not be
responsible for payment thereof. Placees will not be entitled to
receive any fee or commission in connection with the
Placing.
Conditions of the Placing
The Placing is conditional upon the
Placing Agreement becoming unconditional in all respects and not
having been terminated in accordance with its terms prior to
Admission.
The obligations of Zeus under the
Placing Agreement are, and the Placing of the Placing Shares is,
conditional upon customary conditions including, inter alia, (the "Placing Conditions") set out below:
(a) the Company
having complied, in the opinion of Zeus (acting in good faith),
with its obligations under the Placing Agreement to the extent that
such obligations fall to be performed prior to Admission and there
having occurred no material default or breach by the Company of its
terms at any time immediately prior to Admission;
(b) the General
Meeting having taken place on the date set out in the Notice of
General Meeting, no adjournment of the General Meeting having
occurred without the prior written consent of Zeus and each of the
Fundraising Resolutions having been passed thereat by the requisite
majority without amendment;
(c) in the opinion
of Zeus (acting in good faith), none of the warranties and
undertakings contained in the Placing Agreement ("Warranties") being untrue, inaccurate
or misleading at date of the Placing Agreement or having ceased to
be true and accurate or having become misleading at any time
following the date of the Placing Agreement and up to and including
the time of Admission with reference to the facts and circumstances
subsisting at that time, which in any case is material;
(d) the obligations
of Zeus not having been terminated pursuant to the Placing
Agreement prior to Admission; and
(e) Admission having
taken place by not later than 8:00 a.m. on the Admission Date
or such later time or date (being not later than 5:00 p.m. on the
Long Stop Date), as the Company and Zeus may agree in
writing.
Once Admission has occurred, no
party to the Placing Agreement shall be able to terminate any part
of the Placing Agreement which relates to Admission and/or the
placing, allotment or issue of the Placing Shares.
If any of the Placing Conditions is
not fulfilled or, where permitted, waived in accordance with the
Placing Agreement within the stated time periods (or such later
time and/or date as the Company and Zeus may agree), or the Placing
Agreement is terminated in accordance with its terms, the Placing
will not proceed and the Placee's 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 Placee is
acting) in respect thereof.
By participating in the Placing,
each Placee agrees that its rights and obligations cease and
terminate only in the circumstances described above and under
"Termination of the
Placing" below and will not be capable of rescission or
termination by it.
Zeus may, in its absolute discretion
and upon such terms as it thinks fit, waive compliance by the
Company with certain of the Company's obligations in relation
to the Placing Conditions in the Placing Agreement which are
capable of waiver, in whole or in part, or extend the time provided
for fulfilment of one or more Placing Conditions, save that the
Placing Conditions in respect of the passing of the Fundraising
Resolutions referred to in paragraph (b) above and the Placing
Condition relating to Admission referred to in paragraph (e) above
may not be waived. Any such extension or waiver will not affect
Placees' commitments as set out in these Terms and
Conditions.
Zeus may terminate the Placing
Agreement in certain circumstances, details of which are set out
below.
None of Zeus, the Company, or any of
their respective affiliates nor any of
their respective Representatives shall have
any liability to any Placee (or to any other person whether acting
on behalf of a Placee or otherwise) in respect of any decision any
of them may make as to whether or not to waive or to extend the
time and/or date for the satisfaction of any Placing
Condition (or any part thereof) nor for any decision any of
them may make as to the satisfaction of any Placing Condition or in
respect of the Placing generally (or any part thereof) and by
participating in the Placing each Placee agrees that any such
decision is within the absolute discretion of Zeus.
Termination of the Placing
Zeus may, in its absolute
discretion, by notice to the Company, terminate the Placing
Agreement at any time up to Admission if, in the opinion of Zeus
(acting in good faith), inter
alia:
(a) any statement
contained in the Announcement, the investor presentation relating
to the Placing or the Circular or any other announcement,
presentation or document issued by or on behalf of the Company in
connection with the Placing has become untrue, incorrect or
misleading;
(b) any of the
Warranties was untrue, inaccurate or misleading when made and/or
that any of the Warranties has ceased to be true or accurate or has
become misleading at any time prior to Admission, in each case by
reference to the facts and circumstances subsisting at that
time;
(c) any matter or
circumstance has arisen which would be likely to give rise to an
entitlement on the part of any indemnified person to make a claim
under the indemnity contained in the Placing Agreement;
(d) the Company has
not complied or cannot comply with any of its obligations under the
Placing Agreement or under the Terms and Conditions (to the extent
that such obligations fall to be complied with prior to Admission);
or
(e) the occurrence
of certain force majeure events, the effect of which is such as to
make it impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the Placing in
the manner contemplated in the Placing Agreement or which, will or
may materially and adversely affect the Group or the successful
outcome of the Placing.
Upon termination, Zeus shall be
released and discharged (except for any liability arising before or
in relation to such termination) from its obligations under or
pursuant to the Placing Agreement, subject to certain exceptions.
If Zeus exercises its right to terminate the Placing Agreement
before Admission, then the Placing Agreement shall cease and
terminate and the Placing will not proceed.
By participating in the Placing,
each Placee agrees with the Company and Zeus that the exercise by
the Company or Zeus of any right of termination or any other right
or other discretion under the Placing Agreement shall be within the
absolute discretion of the Company or Zeus or for agreement between
the Company and Zeus (as the case may be) and that neither the
Company nor Zeus need make any reference to, or consult with, such
Placee and that none of the Company, Zeus nor any of their
respective affiliates nor any of their
respective Representatives shall have any
liability to Placees (or to any other person whether acting on
behalf of a Placee or otherwise) whatsoever in connection with any
such exercise.
By agreeing with Zeus as agent of
the Company to subscribe for Placing Shares under the Placing, a
Placee (and any person acting on a Placee's behalf) will
irrevocably acknowledge and confirm and warrant and undertake to,
and agree with, each of the Company and Zeus, in each case as a
fundamental term of such Placee's application for Placing Shares
and of the Company's obligation to allot and/or issue any Placing
Shares to it or at its direction, that its rights and obligations
in respect of the Placing (or any part of it) will terminate only
in the circumstances described above and under the "Conditions of the Placing" section
above and will not be capable of rescission or termination by it in
any other circumstances.
Representations, warranties and further
terms
By participating in the Placing,
each Placee (and any person acting on such Placee's behalf)
irrevocably represents, warrants, acknowledges, undertakes,
confirms and agrees (for itself and for any such prospective
Placee) with the Company and Zeus (in its capacity as placing agent
of the Company in respect of the Placing) that (save where Zeus
expressly agrees in writing to the contrary):
1.
it has read and understood the Announcement in its
entirety and that its acquisition of the 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 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 Placing, the Company, the
Placing Shares or otherwise, other than the information contained
in this Announcement and the Publicly Available
Information;
2.
it has not received and will not receive a
prospectus or other offering document in connection with the
Placing and acknowledges that no prospectus or other offering
document:
(a) is required
under the Prospectus Regulation or any other applicable law;
and
(b) has been or will
be prepared in connection with the Placing,
and, in particular, that the
Subscription and Retail Offer referred to in the Announcement and
in the Circular relating thereto are separate from the Placing and
do not form part of any offer or agreement concerning the Placing
and/or any Placing Shares;
3.
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 AIM Rules
and the Market Abuse Regulation (EU Regulation No. 596/2014) as it
forms part of UK domestic law by virtue of the European Union
(Withdrawal) Act 2018 ("MAR")), which includes a description
of the nature of the Company's business and the Company's most
recent balance sheet and profit and loss account and that it is
able to obtain or access such information without undue difficulty,
and is able to obtain access to such information or comparable
information concerning any other publicly traded company, without
undue difficulty;
4.
it has made its own assessment of the Placing
Shares and the terms of the Placing and has relied on its own
investigation of the business, financial position and other aspects
of the Company in accepting a participation in the Placing and none
of Zeus, the Company, any of their respective affiliates or Representatives or any
person acting on behalf of any of them has provided, and will not
provide, it with any material regarding the Placing Shares or the
Company or any other person other than the information in the
Announcement (including these Terms and Conditions) or the Publicly
Available Information; nor has it requested Zeus, the Company, any
of their respective affiliates, any of
their respective Representatives or any
person acting on behalf of any of them to provide it with any such
information;
5.
none of Zeus, any person acting on behalf of it,
any of their respective affiliates or
Representatives has or shall have any
liability for any Publicly Available Information, or any
representation relating to the Company, provided that nothing in
this paragraph excludes the liability of any person for any
fraudulent misrepresentation made by that person;
6.
(a) the only
information which it is entitled to rely on and on which it has
relied in committing to acquire the Placing Shares is contained in
this Announcement and the Publicly Available Information, such
information being all that it deems necessary to make an investment
decision in respect of the Placing Shares and it has made its own
assessment of the Company, the Placing Shares and the terms of the
Placing based on this Announcement and the Publicly Available
Information;
(b) none of Zeus,
the Company, or any of their respective affiliates or Representatives have
made any representation or warranty to it, express or implied, with
respect to the Company, the Placing or the Placing Shares or the
accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the Publicly Available
Information, nor will it provide any material or information
regarding the Company, the Placing or the Placing
Shares;
(c) it has conducted
its own investigation of the Company, the Placing (including the
Terms and Conditions) and the Placing Shares, satisfied itself that
the information is still current and relied on that investigation
for the purposes of its decision to participate in the Placing;
and
(d) it has not
relied on any investigation that Zeus or any person acting on its
behalf may have conducted with respect to the Company, the Placing
or the Placing Shares;
7.
the content of the Announcement and the other
Publicly Available Information as well as any information made
available (in written or oral form) in presentations or as part of
roadshow discussions with investors relating to the Company in
connection with the Placing (together the "Information") has been prepared by and
is exclusively the responsibility of the Company and that none of
Zeus, any persons acting on its behalf or any of its affiliates or
Representatives is responsible for or has or shall have any
liability for any such Information, representation, warranty or
statement relating to the Company contained therein nor will they
be liable for any Placee's decision to participate in the Placing
based on any Information or any representation, warranty or
statement contained therein or otherwise. Nothing in these
Terms and Conditions shall exclude any liability of any person for
fraudulent misrepresentation;
8. the Placing
Shares have not been registered or otherwise qualified, and will
not be registered or otherwise qualified, for offer and sale nor
will a prospectus be cleared or approved in respect of any of the
Placing Shares under the US Securities Act or any other securities
laws of the United States, or any state or other jurisdiction of
the United States, Australia, Canada, the Republic of South Africa
or Japan and, therefore the Placing Shares may not be offered,
re-offered, sold, re-sold, taken up, renounced or delivered or
transferred, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States,
Australia, Canada, the Republic of South Africa or Japan or in any
country or jurisdiction where any such action for that purpose is
required;
9. it may be
asked to disclose in writing or orally to Zeus: (i) if he or she is
an individual, his or her nationality; or (ii) if he or she is a
discretionary fund manager, the jurisdiction in which the funds are
managed or owned;
10. where it is
acquiring Placing Shares for one or more managed accounts,
represents and warrants that it is authorised in writing by each
managed account: (a) to acquire the Placing Shares for each managed
account; (b) to make on its behalf the representations, warranties,
acknowledgements, undertakings and agreements in this Announcement
of which it forms part; and (c) to receive on its behalf any
investment letter relating to the Placing in the form provided to
it by Zeus;
11.
it has the funds available to pay for the Placing
Shares which it has agreed to acquire and acknowledges and agrees
that it will pay the total subscription amount in accordance with
the terms of the Announcement by the due time and date set out
herein, failing which the relevant Placing Shares may be placed
with other Placees or sold at such price as Zeus
determines;
12.
it and/or each person on whose behalf it is
participating:
(a) is entitled to
acquire Placing Shares pursuant to the Placing under the laws and
regulations of all relevant jurisdictions;
(b) has fully
observed such laws and regulations;
(c) has capacity and
authority and is entitled to enter into and perform its obligations
as an acquirer of Placing Shares and will honour such obligations;
and
(d) has obtained all
necessary consents and authorities (including, without limitation,
in the case of a person acting on behalf of a Placee, all necessary
consents and authorities to agree to the terms set out or referred
to in these Terms and Conditions) under those laws or otherwise and
complied with all necessary formalities to enable it to enter into
the transactions contemplated hereby and to perform its obligations
in relation thereto and, in particular, if it is a pension fund or
investment company it is aware of and acknowledges it is required
to comply with all applicable laws and regulations with respect to
its acquisition of Placing Shares;
13.
in the case of any Placing Shares acquired by it
as a financial intermediary, as that term is used in Regulation
5(1) of the Prospectus Regulation and Regulation 5(1) of the UK
Prospectus Regulation:
(a)
the Placing Shares acquired by it in the Placing
have not been acquired on behalf of, nor have they been acquired on
a non-discretionary basis on behalf or, nor will they be acquired
with a view to their offer or resale, in circumstances where either
the Prospectus Regulation or the UK Prospectus Regulation applies,
to persons in any Relevant Member State or in the UK other than
Qualified Investors (as defined under the Prospectus Regulation or
the UK Prospectus Regulation respectively) or in circumstances in
which the express prior written consent of Zeus has not been given
to the proposed offer or resale; or
(b)
where Placing Shares have been acquired by it on
behalf of persons in any member state of the EEA or in the UK other
than EU or UK Qualified Investors (as defined under the Prospectus
Regulation or the UK Prospectus Regulation respectively), the offer
of those Placing Shares to it is not treated under the Prospectus
Regulation or the EU Prospectus Regulation as having been made to
such persons;
14.
if in the United Kingdom, unless otherwise agreed
by Zeus, it is a "professional client" or an "eligible
counterparty" within the meaning of Chapter 3 of the FCA Handbook
Conduct of Business Sourcebook ("COBS") and it is acquiring Placing
Shares for investment only and not with a view to resale or
distribution;
15.
it is not, and any person who it is acting on
behalf of is not, and at the time the Placing Shares are acquired
will not be, a resident of, or be located in or have an address in,
or be subject to the laws of, Australia, Canada, the Republic of
South Africa or Japan, and it acknowledges and agrees that the
Placing Shares have not been and will not be registered or
otherwise qualified under the securities legislation of Australia,
Canada, the Republic of South Africa or Japan and may not be
offered, sold, or acquired, directly or indirectly, within those
jurisdictions;
16.
it (and any account for which it is purchasing)
is, and at the time the Placing Shares are acquired will be,
outside the United States and acquiring the Placing Shares in an
"offshore transaction" as defined in, and in accordance with,
Regulation S under the Securities Act;
17.
it understands that the Placing Shares have not
been, and will not be, registered under the Securities Act and may
not be offered, sold or resold in or into or from the United States
except pursuant to an effective registration under the Securities
Act, or pursuant to an exemption from, or in a transaction not
subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act and
in accordance with applicable state securities laws; and no
representation is being made as to the availability of any
exemption under the Securities Act for the reoffer, resale, pledge
or transfer of the Placing Shares;
18.
it (and any account for which it is purchasing) is
not acquiring the Placing Shares with a view to any offer, sale or
distribution thereof within the meaning of the Securities
Act;
19.
it understands that the Placing Shares will be
restricted securities and it will not offer, sell, transfer, pledge
or otherwise dispose of any Placing Shares except:
(a) in an offshore
transaction in accordance with Rules 903 or 904 of Regulation S
under the Securities Act; or
(b) pursuant to
another exemption from registration under the Securities Act, if
available,
and in each case in accordance with
all applicable securities laws of the states of the United States
and all other applicable jurisdictions;
20.
no representation has been made as to the
availability of the exemption provided by Rule 144, Rule 144A or
any other exemption under the Securities Act for the reoffer,
resale, pledge or transfer of the Placing Shares;
21.
it understands that the Placing Shares are
expected to be issued to it through CREST but may be issued to it
in certificated, definitive form and acknowledges and agrees that
the Placing Shares will, to the extent they are delivered in
certificated form, bear a legend to the following effect unless
agreed otherwise with the Company and Zeus:
"THESE SECURITIES HAVE NOT BEEN AND
WILL NOT BE REGISTERED UNDER THE UNITED STATES SECURITIES ACT OF
1933, AS AMENDED (THE "SECURITIES
ACT"), OR UNDER THE APPLICABLE SECURITIES LAWS OR WITH ANY
SECURITIES REGULATORY AUTHORITY OF ANY STATE OR OTHER JURISDICTION
OF THE UNITED STATES, AND MAY NOT BE OFFERED, SOLD, PLEDGED OR
OTHERWISE TRANSFERRED, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, WITHIN, INTO OR FROM
THE UNITED STATES OR TO, OR FOR THE ACCOUNT OR BENEFIT OF, US
PERSONS (AS DEFINED IN REGULATION S UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT)
EXCEPT (A) PURSUANT TO A REGISTRATION STATEMENT WHICH HAS BEEN
DECLARED EFFECTIVE UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT, (B) IN AN OFFSHORE
TRANSACTION IN ACCORDANCE WITH RULE 903 OR RULE 904 OF REGULATION S
UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OR (C) PURSUANT TO ANY OTHER AVAILABLE
EXEMPTION FROM THE REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS OF THE SECURITIES ACT
AND, IN EACH CASE, IN ACCORDANCE WITH ANY APPLICABLE SECURITIES
LAWS OF ANY STATE OR OTHER JURISDICTION OF THE UNITED STATES.
NOTWITHSTANDING ANYTHING TO THE CONTRARY IN THE FOREGOING, THE
SECURITIES MAY NOT BE DEPOSITED INTO ANY UNRESTRICTED DEPOSITARY
RECEIPT FACILITY IN RESPECT OF THE COMPANY'S SECURITIES ESTABLISHED
OR MAINTAINED BY A DEPOSITARY BANK. EACH HOLDER, BY ITS
ACCEPTANCE OF THESE SHARES, REPRESENTS THAT IT UNDERSTANDS AND
AGREES TO THE FOREGOING RESTRICTIONS";
22.
it is not taking up the Placing Shares as a result
of any "directed selling efforts" (as such term is defined in
Regulation S under the Securities Act);
23.
it will not distribute, forward, transfer or
otherwise transmit these Terms and Conditions and/or the
Announcement or any part of them, or any other presentational or
other materials concerning the Placing in or into or from the
United States (including electronic copies thereof) to any person,
and it has not distributed, forwarded, transferred or otherwise
transmitted any such materials to any person;
24.
none of Zeus, the Company, their respective
affiliates or Representatives or any person acting on behalf of any
of them is making any recommendations to it or advising it
regarding the suitability of any transactions it may enter into in
connection with the Placing and that participation in the Placing
is on the basis that it is not and will not be a client of Zeus and
that Zeus has no duties or responsibilities to it for providing the
protections afforded to its clients 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 any of its rights
and obligations thereunder including any rights to waive or vary
any conditions or exercise any termination right;
25.
it will make payment to Zeus for the Placing
Shares allocated to it in accordance with these Terms and
Conditions on or by the specified time (being the Admission
Settlement Date), failing which the relevant Placing Shares may be
placed with others on such terms as Zeus determines in its absolute
discretion without liability to the Placee and it will 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 or penalties due pursuant to the terms set out or referred
to in these Terms and Conditions) which may arise upon the sale of
such Placee's Placing Shares on its behalf;
26.
its allocation (if any) of Placing Shares will
represent a maximum number of Placing Shares which it will be
entitled, and required, to subscribe for, and that Zeus may call
upon it to subscribe for a lower number of Placing Shares (if any),
but in no event in aggregate more than the aforementioned
maximum;
27.
no action has been or will be taken by any of the
Company, Zeus or any person acting on behalf of the Company or Zeus
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;
28.
the person who it specifies for registration as
holder of the Placing Shares will be:
(a) the Placee;
or
(b) a nominee of the
Placee, as the case may be;
and that neither Zeus or the Company
will be responsible for any liability to stamp duty or stamp duty
reserve tax resulting from a failure to observe this
requirement. Each Placee and any person acting on behalf of
such Placee agrees to acquire Placing Shares pursuant to the
Placing and agrees to indemnify the Company and Zeus in respect of
the same on the basis that the Placing Shares will be allotted to a
CREST stock account of Zeus or transferred to a CREST stock account
of Zeus who will hold them as nominee on behalf of the Placee until
settlement in accordance with its standing settlement instructions
with it;
29.
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 stamp duty or stamp duty
reserve tax liability under (or at a rate determined under) any of
sections 67, 70, 93 or 96 of the Finance Act 1986 (depository
receipts and clearance services) and that it, or the person
specified by it for registration as holder of Placing Shares, is
not participating in the Placing as nominee or agent for any person
or persons to whom the allocation, allotment, issue or delivery of
Placing Shares would give rise to such a liability;
30.
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;
31. its
participation in the Placing would not give rise to an offer being
required to be made by it, or any person with whom it is acting in
concert (within the meaning given in The City Code on Takeovers and
Mergers) with any other person in relation to the Company, pursuant
to Rule 9 of the City Code on Takeovers and Mergers;
32.
if it is within the United Kingdom, it and any
person acting on its behalf (if within the United Kingdom) falls
within Article 19(5) and/or 49(2) of the Order and undertakes that
it will acquire, hold, manage and (if applicable) dispose of any
Placing Shares that are allocated to it for the purposes of its
business only;
33.
it has not offered or sold and will not offer or
sell any Placing Shares to persons in the United Kingdom or in a
Relevant State except to persons whose ordinary activities involve
them in acquiring, holding, managing or disposing of investments
(as principal or agent) for the purposes of their 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 or within the meaning of
the UK Prospectus Regulation, or an offer to the public in any
member state of the EEA within the meaning of the Prospectus
Regulation;
34.
if it is within the United Kingdom, it is a
Qualified Investor as defined in Article 2(e) of the UK Prospectus
Regulation and if it is within a Relevant State, it is a Qualified
Investor as defined in Article 2(e) of the Prospectus
Regulation;
35.
it has only communicated or caused to be
communicated and it 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
Placing Shares in circumstances in which section 21(1) of the FSMA
does not require approval of the communication by an authorised
person and it acknowledges and agrees that neither these Terms and
Conditions nor the Announcement has been approved by Zeus in its
capacity as an authorised person under section 21 of the FSMA and
it may not therefore be subject to the controls which would apply
if it was made or approved as financial promotion by an authorised
person;
36.
it has complied and it will comply with all
applicable laws in any jurisdiction with respect to anything done
by it or on its behalf in relation to the Placing Shares (including
all relevant provisions of the FSMA and the MAR in respect of
anything done in, from or otherwise involving the United
Kingdom);
37.
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, any
person save in circumstances in which the express prior written
consent of Zeus has been given to the offer or resale;
38.
if it has received any inside information (for the
purposes of the MAR and/or section 56 of the Criminal Justice Act
1993 or other applicable law) about the Company in advance of the
Placing, it has not:
(a) dealt (or
attempted to deal) in the securities of the Company or cancelled or
amended a dealing in the securities of the Company;
(b) encouraged,
recommended or induced another person to deal in the securities of
the Company or to cancel or amend an order concerning the Company's
securities; or
(c) unlawfully
disclosed such information to any person, prior to the information
being made publicly available;
39.
neither of Zeus, nor the Company nor any of their
respective affiliates nor any of their
respective Representatives nor any person
acting on behalf of Zeus or its affiliates
or its Representatives nor any person
acting on behalf of any of them is making any recommendations to
it, advising it regarding the suitability of any transactions it
may enter into in connection with the Placing nor providing advice
in relation to the Placing nor in respect of any representations,
warranties, acknowledgements, agreements, undertakings, or
indemnities contained in the Placing Agreement nor the exercise or
performance of any of Zeus' rights and obligations thereunder
including any rights to waive or vary any conditions or exercise
any termination right;
40.
Zeus and its affiliates, acting as an investor for
its or their own account(s), may bid or subscribe for and/or
purchase Placing Shares and, in that capacity, may retain,
purchase, offer to sell or otherwise deal for its or their own
account(s) in the Placing Shares, any other securities of the
Company or other related investments in connection with the Placing
or otherwise. Accordingly, references in this Announcement
and/or these Terms and Conditions to the Placing Shares being
offered, subscribed, acquired or otherwise dealt with should be
read as including any offer to, or subscription, acquisition or
dealing by, Zeus and/or any of its affiliates acting as an investor
for its or their own account(s). Neither of Zeus nor the
Company intend to disclose the extent of any such investment or
transaction otherwise than in accordance with any legal or
regulatory obligation to do so;
41.
it:
(a) has complied,
and will comply, with its obligations in connection with money
laundering and terrorist financing under the Proceeds of Crime Act
2002 (as amended), the Terrorism Act 2000 (as amended), the
Terrorism Act 2006, the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and
Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017 (as
amended) and all related or similar rules, regulations or
guidelines, issued, administered or enforced by any government
agency having jurisdiction in respect thereof and the Money
Laundering Sourcebook of the FCA;
(b) is not a
person:
(i)
with whom transactions are prohibited under the US
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 or any economic sanction
programmes administered by, or regulations promulgated by, the
Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Department of the
Treasury;
(ii)
named on the Consolidated List of Financial
Sanctions Targets maintained by HM Treasury of the United Kingdom;
or
(iii)
subject to financial sanctions imposed pursuant to
a regulation of the European Union or a regulation adopted by the
United Nations or other applicable law,
(all such statutes, rules and
regulations referred to in this paragraph 41 together, the "Regulations") and if making payment on
behalf of a third party, satisfactory evidence has been obtained
and recorded by it to verify the identity of the third party as
required by the Regulations and it has obtained all governmental
and other consents (if any) which may be required for the purpose
of, or as a consequence of, such purchase, and it will provide
promptly to Zeus such evidence, if any, as to the identity or
location or legal status of any person which they may request from
it in connection with the Placing (for the purpose of complying
with the Regulations or ascertaining the nationality of any person
or the jurisdiction(s) to which any person is subject or otherwise)
in the form and manner requested by Zeus on the basis that any
failure by it to do so may result in the number of Placing Shares
that are to be acquired by it or at its direction pursuant to the
Placing being reduced to such number, or to nil, as Zeus may decide
at its sole discretion;
42.
in order to ensure compliance with the
Regulations, Zeus (for itself and as agent on behalf of the
Company) or the Company's registrars may, in their absolute
discretion, require verification of its identity. Pending the
provision to Zeus or the Company's registrars, as applicable, of
evidence of identity, definitive certificates in respect of the
Placing Shares may be retained at Zeus' absolute discretion or,
where appropriate, delivery of the Placing Shares to it in
uncertificated form may be delayed at Zeus' or the Company's
registrars', as the case may be, absolute discretion. If within a
reasonable time after a request for verification of identity Zeus
(for itself and as agent on behalf of the Company) or the Company's
registrars have not received evidence satisfactory to them, either
Zeus and/or the Company may, at its absolute discretion, terminate
its commitment in respect of the Placing, in which event the monies
payable on acceptance of allotment will, if already paid, be
returned without interest to the account of the drawee's bank from
which they were originally debited;
43. any money held
in an account with Zeus 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 relevant 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
Zeus's money in accordance with the client money rules and will be
used by Zeus in the course of its business; and the Placee will
rank only as a general creditor of Zeus;
44. neither it nor,
as the case may be, its clients expect Zeus to have any duties or
responsibilities to such persons similar or comparable to the
duties of "best execution" and "suitability" imposed by the COBS,
and that Zeus is not acting for it or its clients, and that Zeus
will not be responsible for providing the protections afforded to
clients of Zeus or for providing advice in respect of the
transactions described in the Announcement;
45.
its commitment to acquire Placing Shares on these
Terms and Conditions 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 Zeus' conduct of the Placing;
46.
it has knowledge and experience in financial,
business and international investment matters as is required to
evaluate the merits and risks of acquiring the Placing
Shares. It further acknowledges that it is experienced in
investing in securities of this nature and is aware that it may be
required to bear, and is able to bear, the economic risk of, and is
able to sustain, a complete loss in connection with the
Placing. It has relied upon its own examination and due
diligence of the Company and its affiliates taken as a whole, and
the terms of the Placing, including the merits and risks
involved;
47.
it irrevocably appoints any duly authorised
officer of Zeus as its agent for the purpose 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 which it agrees to acquire upon these
Terms and Conditions;
48.
the Company, Zeus and others (including each of
their respective affiliates and
Representatives) will rely upon the truth
and accuracy of the foregoing representations, warranties,
acknowledgements and agreements, which are given to Zeus on its own
behalf and on behalf of the Company and are irrevocable;
49.
it is acting as principal only in respect of the
Placing or, if it is acquiring the Placing Shares as a fiduciary or
agent for one or more investor accounts:
(a) it is duly
authorised to do so and 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; nd
(b) will remain
liable to the Company and Zeus 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);
50.
time is of the essence as regards its obligations
under these Terms and Conditions;
51.
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 Zeus;
52.
the Placing Shares will be issued subject to these
Terms and Conditions; and
53.
these Terms and Conditions and all documents into
which these Terms and Conditions are incorporated by reference or
of which they otherwise validly form a part and/or any agreements
entered into pursuant to these Terms and Conditions and all
agreements to acquire Placing Shares pursuant to the Placing and
all non-contractual or other obligations arising out of or in
connection with them, will be governed by and construed in
accordance with English law and it submits to the exclusive
jurisdiction of the English courts in relation to any claim,
dispute (contractual or otherwise) or matter arising out of or in
connection with 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 interest chargeable thereon) may be taken by the
Company or Zeus 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.
By participating in the Placing,
each Placee (and any person acting on such Placee's behalf) agrees
to indemnify and hold the Company, Zeus and each of their
respective affiliates and
Representatives harmless from any and all
costs, claims, liabilities and expenses (including legal fees and
expenses) arising out of or in connection with any breach of the
representations, warranties, acknowledgements, agreements and
undertakings given by the Placee (and any person acting on such
Placee's behalf) in these Terms and Conditions or incurred by Zeus,
the Company or any of their respective affiliates and Representatives arising
from the performance of the Placee's obligations as set out in
these Terms and Conditions, and further agrees that the provisions
of these Terms and Conditions shall survive after the completion of
the Placing.
The rights and remedies of Zeus and
the Company under these Terms and Conditions 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.
The agreement to allot and issue
Placing Shares to Placees (or the persons for whom Placees are
contracting as agent) free of stamp duty and stamp duty reserve tax
in the United Kingdom relates only to their allotment and issue to
Placees, or such persons as they nominate as their agents, directly
by the Company. Such agreement assumes that the Placing
Shares are not being acquired in connection with arrangements to
issue depositary receipts or to transfer the Placing Shares into a
clearance service. If there are any such arrangements, or the
settlement related to any other dealings in the Placing Shares,
stamp duty or stamp duty reserve tax may be payable. In that
event, the Placee agrees that it shall be responsible for such
stamp duty or stamp duty reserve tax and neither the Company nor
Zeus shall be responsible for such stamp duty or stamp duty reserve
tax. If this is the case, each Placee should seek its own
advice and they should notify Zeus accordingly. In addition,
Placees should note that they will be liable for any capital duty,
stamp duty and all other stamp, issue, securities, transfer,
registration, documentary or other duties or taxes (including any
interest, fines or penalties relating thereto) payable outside the
United Kingdom by them or any other person on the acquisition by
them of any Placing Shares or the agreement by them to acquire any
Placing Shares and each Placee, or the Placee's nominee, in respect
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
non-United Kingdom stamp, registration, documentary, transfer or
similar taxes or duties undertakes to pay such taxes and duties,
including any interest and penalties (if applicable), forthwith and
to indemnify on an after-tax basis and to hold harmless the Company
and Zeus in the event that either of the Company and/or Zeus have
incurred any such liability to such taxes or duties.
The representations, warranties,
acknowledgements and undertakings contained in these Terms and
Conditions are given to Zeus and the Company and are
irrevocable.
Zeus is authorised and regulated by
the FCA and is acting exclusively for the Company and no one else
in connection with the Placing or any other matter referred to in
the Announcement, and Zeus 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 in
relation to the Placing or any other matters referred to in the
Announcement.
Each Placee and any person acting on
behalf of the Placee acknowledges that Zeus does not owe any
fiduciary or other duties to any Placee in respect of any
representations, warranties, undertakings, acknowledgements,
agreements or indemnities in the Placing Agreement.
The provisions of these Terms and
Conditions may be varied, waived or modified as regards specific
Placees or on a general basis by Zeus provided always that such
variation, waiver or modification is not materially prejudicial to
the interests of the Company.
In the case of a joint agreement to
acquire Placing Shares, references to a "Placee" in these Terms and
Conditions are to each of such Placees and such joint Placees'
liability is joint and several.
Each Placee and any person acting on
behalf of the Placee acknowledges and agrees that Zeus may (at its
absolute discretion) satisfy its obligations to procure Placees by
itself agreeing to become a Placee in respect of some or all of the
Placing Shares or by nominating any connected or associated person
to do so.
When a Placee or any person acting
on behalf of the Placee is dealing with Zeus, any money held in an
account with Zeus 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 relevant rules and regulations of the FCA made
under the FSMA. Each 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 the
Zeus' money in accordance with the client money rules and will be
held by it under a banking relationship and not as
trustee.
In these Terms and Conditions any
words following the terms "including", "include", "in particular", "for example" or any similar expression
shall be construed as illustrative and shall not limit the sense of
the words, description, definition, phrase or term preceding those
terms.
References to time in this
Announcement are to London time, unless otherwise
stated.
All times and dates and certain
other information in the Announcement may be subject to amendment
and/or updating. Placees will be notified of any material
changes.
No statement in the Announcement is
intended to be a profit forecast or estimate, and no statement in
the Announcement 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.
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,
and persons needing advice should consult an independent financial
adviser.
The Placing Shares to be issued
pursuant to the Placing will not be admitted to trading on any
stock exchange other than AIM.
Neither the content of the Company's
website nor any website accessible by hyperlinks on the Company's
website is incorporated in, or forms part of, the
Announcement.
DEFINITIONS
The following definitions apply throughout this
Announcement and the Terms and Conditions unless the context
otherwise requires:
"2023 AGM"
|
the annual general
meeting of the Company held on 22 September 2023;
|
"ABB"
|
the accelerated
bookbuild launched as a result of this Announcement;
|
"Act"
|
the Companies Act 2006 (as amended);
|
"Admission"
|
admission of the New Ordinary Shares to trading
on AIM becoming effective in accordance with Rule 6 of the AIM
Rules;
|
"AIM"
|
a market operated by the London
Stock Exchange;
|
"AIM Rules"
|
the AIM Rules for Companies
published by the London Stock Exchange;
|
"Announcement"
|
this announcement;
|
"BookBuild Platform"
|
the online platform through which
the Retail Offer is being conducted;
|
"certificated"
or "in
certificated form"
|
the description of an Ordinary Share
or other security which is not in uncertificated form (that is not
in CREST);
|
"Circular"
|
the Company's circular to
Shareholders to be published on or about 7 June 2024
relating, inter
alia, to the Placing and incorporating the Notice of General
Meeting;
|
"Closing Price"
|
the closing middle market price of
an Existing Ordinary Share as derived from the AIM Appendix to the
Daily Official List of the London Stock Exchange;
|
"Company"
|
SysGroup plc registered in England
and Wales under number 06172239 whose registered office is at 55
Spring Gardens, Manchester M2 2BY;
|
"CREST"
|
the relevant system (as defined in
the CREST Regulations) to facilitate transfer of the title to an
interest in securities in uncertificated form operated by
Euroclear;
|
"CREST Regulations"
|
the Uncertificated Securities Regulations 2001
(S.I. 2001 No. 3755) (as amended from time to time);
|
"Directors" or "Board"
|
the directors of the Company or any duly
authorised committee thereof;
|
"Enlarged Share
Capital"
|
the issued share capital of the Company
immediately following Admission (comprising the Existing Ordinary
Shares and the New Ordinary Shares, assuming full take-up under the
Retail Offer);
|
"Euroclear"
|
Euroclear UK & International
Limited;
|
"Existing Ordinary
Shares"
|
the 51,496,084 Ordinary Shares in issue at the
date of the Launch Announcement, all of which are admitted to
trading on AIM and being the entire issued ordinary share capital
of the Company prior to the Fundraising;
|
"FCA"
|
the Financial Conduct Authority of the United
Kingdom;
|
"Form of Proxy"
|
the form of proxy for use in connection with
the General Meeting, which accompanies the Circular;
|
"FSMA"
|
the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, as
amended;
|
"Fundraise" or
"Fundraising"
|
together the Placing, the Subscription and the
Retail Offer;
|
"Fundraising
Resolutions"
|
the resolutions in relation to the Fundraising
to be proposed at the General Meeting in the Notice of General
Meeting, being those resolutions numbered 1 and 2;
|
"General Meeting"
|
the general meeting of the Company
convened for 1.00 p.m. on 24 June 2024 at the offices of Hill
Dickinson LLP at 50 Fountain Street, Manchester, M2 2AS to approve
the Resolutions, or any adjournment thereof, notice of which is set
out at the end of the Circular;
|
"Group"
|
the Company and its subsidiaries as at the date
of this Announcement;
|
"Intermediaries"
|
any financial intermediaries that are appointed
by Zeus as the "Retail Offer Coordinator" in connection with the
Retail Offer;
|
"Issue
Price"
|
33 pence per New Ordinary
Share
|
"London Stock
Exchange"
|
London Stock Exchange plc;
|
"Long Stop
Date"
|
30 July 2024
|
"MIP Resolutions"
|
the resolutions in relation to the VCP and PSP,
to be proposed at the General Meeting in the Notice of General
Meeting, being those resolutions numbered 5 and 6;
|
"New Ordinary
Shares"
|
the new ordinary shares to be issued pursuant
to the Placing, the Subscription and the Retail Offer;
|
"Notice of General
Meeting"
|
the notice convening the General Meeting which
is set out at the end of the Circular;
|
"Ordinary Shares"
|
ordinary shares of £0.01 (1 pence) each in the
capital of the Company;
|
"Performance Share
Plan" or "PSP"
|
Performance Share Plan of the
Company proposed to be approved and adopted by Shareholders at the
General Meeting (as summarised in the appendix to the
Circular);
|
"Placee" or
"Placees"
|
the persons with whom Placing Shares
are placed pursuant to the Placing;
|
"Placing"
|
the proposed conditional placing of
the Placing Shares by Zeus, as agent on behalf of the Company, at
the Issue Price, in accordance with the Placing
Agreement;
|
"Placing
Agreement"
|
the agreement between the Company
and Zeus dated 6 June 2024 in connection with the
Placing;
|
"Placing
Conditions"
|
the conditions to the Placing
contained in the Placing Agreement;
|
"Placing
Shares"
|
the Ordinary Shares to be allotted
by the Company credited fully paid pursuant to the Placing
subject to the passing of the Fundraising
Resolutions at the General Meeting;
|
"Prospectus
Regulation"
|
Regulation (EU) 2017/1129 of the
European Parliament and of the Council of 14 June 2017, as it forms
part of the law of England and Wales by virtue of section 3 of the
European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 and as modified by or under
domestic law;
|
"Recorded
Commitment"
|
either (i) a recorded telephone
conversation or (ii) email correspondence, in either case between
representatives of Zeus and the relevant Placee;
|
"Regulatory Information
Service"
|
a service approved by the FCA for the
distribution to the public of AIM announcements and included within
the list on the website of the FCA;
|
"Regulation
S"
|
Regulation S under the Securities
Act;
|
"Resolutions"
|
the resolutions to be proposed at the General
Meeting, as set out in the Notice of General Meeting at the end of
the Circular, and a reference to "Resolution" followed by a number
is to the resolution so numbered in the Notice of General
Meeting;
|
"Restricted
Territory"
|
the United States, Australia,
Canada, The Republic of South Africa, Japan or any other
jurisdiction in which release, publication or distribution of this
Announcement, the Circular and any accompanying materials would be
unlawful;
|
"Retail
Investors"
|
existing Shareholders of the Company
who are resident in the United Kingdom and who are a customer of an
Intermediary who agree conditionally to subscribe for Retail Offer
Shares in the Retail Offer;
|
"Retail
Offer"
|
means the proposed conditional offer
of New Ordinary Shares to be subscribed for by Retail Investors via
the BookBuild Platform at the Issue Price, to be admitted to
trading as part of Admission subject to and conditional upon the
Fundraising Resolutions being passed at the General Meeting and the
Placing proceeding;
|
"Retail Offer
Shares"
|
up to 1,515,151 New Ordinary Shares to be
issued pursuant to the Retail Offer, subject to, inter alia, the passing of the
Fundraising Resolutions at the General Meeting;
|
"Shareholders"
|
holders of Ordinary Shares from time
to time;
|
"Subscribers"
|
persons procured by the Company to
conditionally subscribe for Subscription Shares at the Issue Price
pursuant to the provisions of the Subscription
Agreements;
|
"Subscription"
|
the proposed conditional
subscription of New Ordinary Shares at the Issue Price by the
Subscribers under the terms of the Subscription Agreements
subject to and conditional upon the Fundraising
Resolutions being passed at the General Meeting and the Placing
proceeding;
|
"Subscription
Agreements"
|
the conditional subscription
agreements entered into between the Company and the Subscribers in
connection with the Subscription;
|
"Subscription
Shares"
|
the New
Ordinary Shares proposed to be allotted and issued pursuant to the
Subscription, subject to, inter
alia, the passing of the Fundraising Resolutions at the
General Meeting and the Placing proceeding;
|
"Terms and Conditions"
|
the terms and conditions to the
Placing contained in the Appendix to the Announcement;
|
"uncertificated" or "in uncertificated form"
|
recorded on a register of securities
maintained by Euroclear in accordance with the CREST Regulations as
being in uncertificated form in CREST and title to which, by virtue
of the CREST Regulations, may be transferred by means of
CREST;
|
"United States" or "US"
|
the United States of America, its
territories and possessions, any state of the United States of
America and the District of Columbia and any other area subject to
its jurisdiction;
|
"US
Securities Act"
|
the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as
amended
|
"Value Creation Plan" or
"VCP"
|
Value Creation Plan of the Company
proposed to be approved and adopted by Shareholders at the General
Meeting (as summarised in the appendix to the
Circular);
|
"Warranties"
|
the warranties and undertakings
contained in the Placing Agreement; and
|
"Zeus"
|
Zeus Capital Limited, the Company's nominated
adviser for the purposes of the AIM Rules.
|
All references in this document to
"£", "pence", "p", or "pounds sterling" are to the lawful
currency of the UK.
Any reference to any provision of any
legislation includes any amendment, modification, re-enactment or
extension of it.
Words importing the singular include
the plural and vice versa and words importing the masculine gender
shall include the feminine or neuter gender.