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Abliva AB (Nasdaq Stockholm: ABLI) (“Abliva” or the “Company”) a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing medicines for the treatment of rare and severe primary mitochondrial diseases, today announced the Company has mandated Erik Penser Bank to investigate the prerequisites to carry out a directed new issue of up to SEK 80 million to Swedish and international qualified investors (the “Directed Issue”) through an accelerated bookbuilding procedure (the “Bookbuilding Procedure”). The purpose of the Directed Issue is to raise capital in a time- and cost-effective manner in order to further advance the Company’s clinical assets, focusing on KL1333. The Directed Issue is intended to partly be resolved by the Board of Directors pursuant to the authorization by the Annual General Meeting held on May 20, 2020, and partly be resolved by the Board of Directors subject to approval by an Extraordinary General Meeting scheduled to be held on April 29, 2021.
The number of shares and the subscription price of the new shares in the Directed Issue will be determined through the Bookbuilding Procedure, that begins immediately after the publication of this press release. The Bookbuilding Procedure will be completed before the trading begins on Nasdaq Stockholm on March 31, 2021. The Company will publish the result of the Directed Issue after the Bookbuilding Procedure is complete. The purpose of the Directed Issue is to raise capital in order to further advance the Company’s clinical assets, focusing on KL1333.
The Directed Issue is subject to (i) that the Board of Directors of Abliva resolves to issue 32 601 360 of the new shares that is part of the Bookbuilding Procedure pursuant to the authorization granted by the Annual General Meeting held on May 20, 2020 (“Tranche 1”) and (ii) that the Board of Directors resolves to issue the remaining new shares subscribed for in the Bookbuilding Procedure subject to approval by the Extraordinary General Meeting on April 29, 2021, and (iii) that the Extraordinary General Meeting on April 29, 2021 approves the Board of Directors resolution on the directed issue of new shares (“Tranche 2”). Notice to attend the Extraordinary General Meeting will be published separately on March 31, 2021.
The shares planned to be issued in Tranche 2 will be subject to a listing prospectus prior to the shares being admitted to trading. The listing prospectus is expected to be approved by the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority on April 30, 2021.
Existing shareholders, that includes Hadean Ventures, together representing 14.2 percent of the votes in the Company, have indicated their intention to vote in favour of Tranche 2 on the Extraordinary General Meeting.
The Board may at any time choose to suspend, extend, or shorten the Bookbuilding Procedure and refrain from resolving to carry out the Directed Issue. By determining the subscription price in the Directed Issue through the Bookbuilding Procedure, it is the Board of Directors’ assessment that the subscription price is determined corresponding to prevailing market terms.
The reasons for the deviation from the shareholders’ preferential rights is to be able to carry out a capital raise in a timely and cost-effective manner as well as to broaden the Company’s ownership.
Advisors
Erik Penser Bank AB is financial advisor and Cirio Advokatbyrå AB is legal advisor to Abliva in connection with the Directed Issue.