e-Therapeutics plc
("e-Therapeutics" or the "Company")
Searchbolt Offer becomes wholly unconditional
On 11 May 2016 e-Therapeutics plc (the "Company" or "e-Therapeutics") made an offer for the issued and to be issued share capital of Searchbolt Limited ("Searchbolt") and posted to Searchbolt Shareholders an offer document containing the full terms and conditions of its offer (the "Offer") for the entire issued share capital of Searchbolt (the "Offer Document").
Level of acceptances
As at 5.00pm (London time) on 31 May 2016 e-Therapeutics had received valid acceptances of the Offer in respect of 60,041,149 Searchbolt Shares, representing approximately 85.6 per cent of the existing issued share capital of Searchbolt.
Before posting of the Offer Document, e-Therapeutics had received irrevocable undertakings to accept or procure the acceptance of the Offer for a total of 25,754,869 Searchbolt Shares. These Shares would be issued upon the Offer being declared wholly unconditional.
The Company has received valid acceptances of the Offer in respect of 25,094,100 of such Searchbolt Shares. When the acceptances set out above are taken together, e-Therapeutics has received acceptances in respect of 85,135,249 Searchbolt Shares representing approximately 93.5 per cent of the to be issued share capital of Searchbolt.
As a result, e-Therapeutics announces that the acceptance condition set out in the Offer Document has now been satisfied. Valid acceptances have been received in respect of Searchbolt Shares which carry in aggregate more than 90 per cent in nominal value of Searchbolt Shares to which the Offer relates.
All conditions relating to the Offer have now been satisfied and the Offer has become wholly unconditional.
Continuation of the Offer
The Offer will remain open for acceptance until further notice. At least 14 days' notice will be given by an announcement before the Offer is closed.
Searchbolt Shareholders who have not yet accepted the Offer are urged to do so as soon as possible by completing and returning the signed acceptance form which accompanied the Offer Document together with any appropriate documents of title in accordance with the procedure set out in the Offer Document.
Compulsory Acquisition
As referred to above, the valid acceptances represent approximately 93.5 per cent of the Searchbolt Shares to which the Offer relates. e-Therapeutics will now commence the procedure pursuant to the Companies Act 2006 to compulsorily acquire the remaining Searchbolt Shares to which the Offer relates.
Notices will be sent by e-Therapeutics to non-accepting Searchbolt Shareholders informing them of the compulsory acquisition of their Searchbolt Shares in due course.
Terms and expressions used in this announcement shall, unless the context otherwise requires, have the same meaning as given to them in the announcement issued on 11 May 2016.
-Ends-
For more information, please contact:
e-Therapeutics plc
Iain Ross, Chairman
Steve Medlicott, Finance Director
Tel: +44 (0)1993 883 125
www.etherapeutics.co.uk
Numis Securities Limited
Michael Meade / Freddie Barnfield (Corporate Finance)
James Black (Corporate Broking)
Tel: +44 (0) 207 260 1000
www.numis.com
Instinctif Partners
Melanie Toyne-Sewell / Jayne Crook / Emma Barlow
Tel: +44 (0) 207 457 2020
Email: e-therapeutics@instinctif.com
About e-Therapeutics plc
e-Therapeutics (AIM: ETX) is a drug discovery company with a proprietary discovery platform based on advances in network pharmacology and chemical biology.
The Company is applying its platform to the discovery of new drug candidates. The therapeutic focus of the Company's activity is in immuno-oncology, addressing drug resistance in targeted cancer therapies and anti-infectives. The platform is highly productive, yielding multiple potent and selective molecules at a much higher rate and more quickly than is reported for conventional drug discovery.
e-Therapeutics has a variety of preclinical stage assets, including ETX1153c, a functionally resistance-less antibiotic; ETS2300, telomerase inhibition in anti-cancer; ETS3100, small molecule anti-TNFα; ETS2400, Hedgehog pathway inhibition and ETS5200, broad spectrum antivirals. The Company has recently completed a phase IIb clinical trial for ETS6103, a drug to treat major depressive disorder.
The Company is fully funded to advance its drug discovery programmes. It is based in Oxford and Newcastle, UK. For more information visit www.etherapeutics.co.uk