Result of Placing

RNS Number : 3922J

essensys PLC

09 April 2020

 

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, THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA OR JAPAN OR ANY OTHER JURISDICTION IN WHICH SUCH RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION WOULD BE UNLAWFUL.  PLEASE SEE THE IMPORTANT NOTICES AT THE END OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT.

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION FOR THE PURPOSES OF ARTICLE 7 OF THE MARKET ABUSE REGULATION (EU) NO. 596/2014. UPON THE PUBLICATION OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT, THIS INSIDE INFORMATION IS NOW CONSIDERED TO BE IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN.

9 April 2020

essensys plc

Result of Placing

Introduction

essensys plc (AIM:ESYS) ("essensys", the "Company" or, together with its subsidiary undertakings, the "Group"), the leading global provider of mission critical software-as-a-service ("SaaS") platforms and on-demand cloud services to the flexible workspace industry, is pleased to announce that, further to the announcement made earlier today (the "Placing Announcement"), an aggregate of 4,635,762 new ordinary shares of 0.25 pence each ("Ordinary Shares") in the capital of the Company (the "Placing Shares") have been successfully placed by Nplus1 Singer Advisory LLP ("N+1 Singer") at a price of 151 pence per Placing Share (the "Placing Price") to raise gross proceeds of approximately £7 million (the "Placing").

Capitalised terms used in this announcement (this "Announcement") have the meanings given to them in the Placing Announcement, unless the context provides otherwise.

The Placing and settlement

The Placing Shares, when issued, will represent approximately 9.64 per cent. of the Company's existing issued share capital.  The Placing Price of 151 pence per share represents a discount of approximately 4.1 per cent. to the closing middle market price of 157.5 pence per Ordinary Share on 8 April 2020 being the latest practicable date prior to the publication of the Placing Announcement.

The Placing Shares, when issued, will be fully paid and will rank pari passu in all respects with the existing ordinary shares of 0.25 pence each in the capital of the Company, including the right to receive all dividends and other distributions declared, made or paid after the date of issue.

Application has been made for the Placing Shares to be admitted to trading on AIM ("Admission").

Settlement for the Placing Shares and Admission is expected to take place at 8.00 a.m. on or around 16 April 2020.  The Placing is conditional upon, among other things, Admission becoming effective and the Placing Agreement not being terminated in accordance with its terms.

Total voting rights

Following Admission, the Company will have a total of 52,743,329 Ordinary Shares in issue, with no Ordinary Shares held in treasury.  With effect from Admission, this figure may be used by shareholders as the denominator for the calculations by which they will determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest in the Company, under the Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules of the Financial Conduct Authority.

Directors' participation in the Placing

The following directors of the Company ("Directors"), all of whom are related parties for the purposes of the AIM Rules for Companies (the "AIM Rules"), have agreed to participate in the Placing as follows:

Director	Number of Placing Shares to be subscribed	Holding of ordinary Shares on Admission	Percentage of enlarged issued share capital on Admission (%)
Mark Furness	663,000	21,548,629	40.86
Alan Pepper	33,112	529,566	1.00
Jon Lee	33,112	66,225	0.13
Charles Butler	13,245	46,358	0.09
Elizabeth Sandler	9,933	9,933	0.02

The above participations in the Placing are each related party transactions for the purposes of Rule 13 of the AIM Rules ("Related Party Transactions").

Alex Notay, being the only Director not participating in the Placing, considers, having consulted with the Company's Nominated Adviser, N+1 Singer, that the terms of the Related Party Transactions are fair and reasonable insofar as the Company's shareholders are concerned.

Loan Facility

As set out in the Placing Announcement, on the basis that Mr Furness has now agreed to subscribe for 663,000 Placing Shares at the Placing Price, the Company does not intend to draw down under the Loan Facility prior to Admission and the Loan Facility will, therefore, terminate upon Admission becoming effective.

The person responsible for arranging the release of this Announcement on behalf of the Company is Alan Pepper, Chief Financial Officer of the Company.

Enquiries:

essensys plc	[phone]
Mark Furness (Chief Executive Officer) Alan Pepper (Chief Financial Officer)
N+1 Singer (Nominated Adviser, Sole Broker and Sole Bookrunner)	[phone]
Peter Steel / Harry Gooden / George Tzimas / Harry Mills
FTI Consulting (Public Relations Adviser)	[phone]
Jamie Ricketts / Ellie Sweeney / Debbie Oluwaseyi Sonaike / Talia Jessener

About essensys plc

essensys is the leading global provider of mission-critical SaaS platforms and on-demand cloud services to the high growth flexible workspace industry. essensys' software is specifically designed and developed to help solve the complex operational challenges faced by multi-site flexible workspace operators as they grow and scale their operations. The Group's technology allows operators to deliver a range of differentiated, flexible and customer-specific services to a broad base of tenants across multiple locations and helps operators to manage the cost, operational and technological challenges they typically encounter.

essensys' two SaaS platforms, Connect and Operate, address these complex operational challenges, and reduce costs by simplifying the day-to-day management of flexible workspaces and the provision of on-demand IT, technology and infrastructure services to tenants.  essensys' platforms automate key tasks and processes and help flexible workspace providers deliver highly efficient, customer-centric workspace solutions and member experiences with enterprise class services.

This Announcement should be read in its entirety.  In particular, you should read and understand the information provided in the "Important Notices" section of this Announcement.

IMPORTANT NOTICES

MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC ARE NOT ELIGIBLE TO TAKE PART IN THE PLACING.  THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS 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 OR A MEMBER STATE OF THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AREA ("EEA"), QUALIFIED INVESTORS AS DEFINED IN ARTICLE 2(e) OF REGULATION (EU) 2017/1129 (THE "PROSPECTUS REGULATION"); (2) IF IN THE UNITED KINGDOM, QUALIFIED INVESTORS WHO (A) FALL WITHIN ARTICLE 19(5) OF THE FINANCIAL SERVICES AND MARKETS ACT 2000 (FINANCIAL PROMOTION) ORDER 2005, AS AMENDED (THE "ORDER") (INVESTMENT PROFESSIONALS) OR (B) FALL WITHIN ARTICLE 49(2)(a) TO (d) (HIGH NET WORTH COMPANIES, UNINCORPORATED ASSOCIATIONS, ETC.) OF THE ORDER (ALL SUCH PERSONS TOGETHER BEING REFERRED TO AS "RELEVANT PERSONS").

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT AND THE INFORMATION IN IT MUST NOT BE ACTED ON OR RELIED ON BY PERSONS WHO ARE NOT RELEVANT PERSONS.  PERSONS DISTRIBUTING THIS ANNOUNCEMENT MUST SATISFY THEMSELVES THAT IT IS LAWFUL TO DO SO.  ANY INVESTMENT OR INVESTMENT ACTIVITY TO WHICH THIS ANNOUNCEMENT RELATES IS AVAILABLE ONLY TO RELEVANT PERSONS AND WILL BE ENGAGED IN ONLY WITH RELEVANT PERSONS.  THIS ANNOUNCEMENT DOES NOT ITSELF CONSTITUTE AN OFFER FOR SALE OR SUBSCRIPTION OF ANY SECURITIES IN ESSENSYS PLC.

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 WITH ANY SECURITIES REGULATORY AUTHORITY OF ANY STATE OR JURISDICTION OF THE UNITED STATES, AND MAY NOT BE OFFERED, SOLD OR TRANSFERRED, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN THE UNITED STATES (AS DEFINED BELOW) 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 OF 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.

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, AUSTRALIA, CANADA, THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA OR JAPAN OR ANY OTHER JURISDICTION IN WHICH SUCH RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION WOULD BE UNLAWFUL.

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS NOT FOR PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN OR INTO THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS NOT AN OFFER OF SECURITIES FOR SALE INTO THE UNITED STATES. THE SECURITIES REFERRED TO HEREIN HAVE NOT BEEN AND WILL NOT BE REGISTERED UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT AND MAY NOT BE OFFERED OR SOLD IN THE UNITED STATES, EXCEPT PURSUANT TO AN APPLICABLE EXEMPTION FROM REGISTRATION. NO PUBLIC OFFERING IS BEING MADE IN THE UNITED STATES.

The distribution of this Announcement and/or the Placing and/or issue of, or subscription for, the Placing Shares in certain jurisdictions may be restricted by law.  No action has been taken by the Company, N+1 Singer or any of their respective affiliates, agents, directors, officers or employees that would permit an offer of the Placing Shares or possession or distribution of this Announcement or any other offering or publicity material relating to such Placing Shares in any jurisdiction where action for that purpose is required.  Persons into whose possession this Announcement comes are required by the Company and N+1 Singer to inform themselves about and to observe any such restrictions.

This Announcement or any part of it is for information purposes only and does not constitute or form part of any offer to issue or sell, or the solicitation of an offer to acquire, purchase or subscribe for, any securities in the United States (including its territories and possessions, any state of the United States and the District of Columbia (the "United States" or the "US")), 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.

All offers of the Placing Shares in the United Kingdom and the EEA will be made pursuant to an exemption under the Prospectus Regulation from the requirement to produce a prospectus.  In the United Kingdom, this Announcement is being directed solely at persons in circumstances in which section 21(1) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (as amended) does not require the approval of the relevant communication by an authorised person.

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 this Announcement.  Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offence in the United States. 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; relevant clearances have not been, and will not be, obtained from 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 the United States, 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 the United States, Australia, Canada, the Republic of South Africa or Japan or any other jurisdiction outside the United Kingdom.

Persons (including, without limitation, nominees and trustees) who have a contractual right or other legal obligations to forward a copy of this Announcement should seek appropriate advice before taking any action.

This Announcement may contain and the Company may make verbal statements containing "forward-looking statements" with respect to certain of the Company's plans and its current goals and expectations relating to its future financial condition, performance, strategic initiatives, objectives and results.  Forward-looking statements sometimes use words such as "aim", "anticipate", "target", "expect", "estimate", "intend", "plan", "goal", "believe", "seek", "may", "could", "outlook" or other words of similar meaning.  By their nature, all forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to future events and circumstances which are beyond the control of the Company, including amongst other things, United Kingdom domestic and global economic business conditions, market-related risks such as fluctuations in interest rates and exchange rates, the policies and actions of governmental and regulatory authorities, the effect of competition, inflation, deflation, the timing effect and other uncertainties of future acquisitions or combinations within relevant industries, the effect of tax and other legislation and other regulations in the jurisdictions in which the Company and its affiliates operate, the effect of volatility in the equity, capital and credit markets on the Company's profitability and ability to access capital and credit, a decline in the Company's credit ratings; the effect of operational risks; and the loss of key personnel.  As a result, the actual future financial condition, performance and results of the Company may differ materially from the plans, goals and expectations set forth in any forward-looking statements.  Any forward-looking statements made in this Announcement by or on behalf of the Company speak only as of the date they are made.  Except as required by applicable law or regulation, the Company expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to publish any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained in this Announcement to reflect any changes in the Company's expectations with regard thereto or any changes in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based.

Nplus1 Singer Advisory LLP ("N+1 Singer") is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (the "FCA") in the United Kingdom and is acting exclusively for the Company and no one else in connection with the Bookbuilding Process and the Placing, and N+1 Singer 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 Bookbuilding Process or the Placing or any other matters referred to in this Announcement.

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 N+1 Singer or by any of its affiliates or agents as to, or in relation to, the accuracy or completeness of this Announcement or any other written or oral information made available to or publicly available to any interested party or its advisers, and any liability therefor is expressly disclaimed.

No statement in this Announcement is intended to be a profit forecast or estimate, and no statement in this 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 the AIM Market of the London Stock Exchange.

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, this Announcement.

Notification and public disclosure of transactions by persons discharging managerial responsibilities and persons closely associated with them.

1	Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities / person closely associated
a)	Name	Mark Furness
2	Reason for the notification
a)	Position/status	Chief Executive Officer
b)	Initial notification /Amendment	Initial notification
3	Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor
a)	Name	essensys plc
b)	LEI	2138002MSI4WKYNOBS73
4	Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted
a)	Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument	Ordinary shares of 0.25 pence each
	Identification code	GB00BJL1ZF49
b)	Nature of the transaction	Purchase of Ordinary Shares
c)	Price(s) and volume(s)
			Price(s)	Volume(s)
			151 pence	663,000
d)	Aggregated information	n/a - single transaction
	- Aggregated volume
	- Price
e)	Date of the transaction	9 April 2020
f)	Place of the transaction	Outside a trading venue - subscription of new Ordinary Shares

1	Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities / person closely associated
a)	Name	Alan Pepper
2	Reason for the notification
a)	Position/status	Chief Financial Officer
b)	Initial notification /Amendment	Initial notification
3	Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor
a)	Name	essensys plc
b)	LEI	2138002MSI4WKYNOBS73
4	Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted
a)	Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument	Ordinary shares of 0.25 pence each
	Identification code	GB00BJL1ZF49
b)	Nature of the transaction	Purchase of Ordinary Shares
c)	Price(s) and volume(s)
			Price(s)	Volume(s)
			151 pence	33,112
d)	Aggregated information	n/a - single transaction
	- Aggregated volume
	- Price
e)	Date of the transaction	9 April 2020
f)	Place of the transaction	Outside a trading venue - subscription of new Ordinary Shares

1	Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities / person closely associated
a)	Name	Jon Lee
2	Reason for the notification
a)	Position/status	Non-Executive Chairman
b)	Initial notification /Amendment	Initial notification
3	Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor
a)	Name	essensys plc
b)	LEI	2138002MSI4WKYNOBS73
4	Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted
a)	Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument	Ordinary shares of 0.25 pence each
	Identification code	GB00BJL1ZF49
b)	Nature of the transaction	Purchase of Ordinary Shares
c)	Price(s) and volume(s)
			Price(s)	Volume(s)
			151 pence	33,112
d)	Aggregated information	n/a - single transaction
	- Aggregated volume
	- Price
e)	Date of the transaction	9 April 2020
f)	Place of the transaction	Outside a trading venue - subscription of new Ordinary Shares

1	Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities / person closely associated
a)	Name	Charles Butler
2	Reason for the notification
a)	Position/status	Non-Executive Director
b)	Initial notification /Amendment	Initial notification
3	Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor
a)	Name	essensys plc
b)	LEI	2138002MSI4WKYNOBS73
4	Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted
a)	Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument	Ordinary shares of 0.25 pence each
	Identification code	GB00BJL1ZF49
b)	Nature of the transaction	Purchase of Ordinary Shares
c)	Price(s) and volume(s)
			Price(s)	Volume(s)
			151 pence	13,245
d)	Aggregated information	n/a - single transaction
	- Aggregated volume
	- Price
e)	Date of the transaction	9 April 2020
f)	Place of the transaction	Outside a trading venue - subscription of new Ordinary Shares

1	Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities / person closely associated
a)	Name	Elizabeth Sandler
2	Reason for the notification
a)	Position/status	Non-Executive Director
b)	Initial notification /Amendment	Initial notification
3	Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor
a)	Name	essensys plc
b)	LEI	2138002MSI4WKYNOBS73
4	Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted
a)	Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument	Ordinary shares of 0.25 pence each
	Identification code	GB00BJL1ZF49
b)	Nature of the transaction	Purchase of Ordinary Shares
c)	Price(s) and volume(s)
			Price(s)	Volume(s)
			151 pence	9,933
d)	Aggregated information	n/a - single transaction
	- Aggregated volume
	- Price
e)	Date of the transaction	9 April 2020
f)	Place of the transaction	Outside a trading venue - subscription of new Ordinary Shares

1	Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities / person closely associated
a)	Name	Barry John Clark
2	Reason for the notification
a)	Position/status	PDMR
b)	Initial notification /Amendment	Initial notification
3	Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor
a)	Name	essensys plc
b)	LEI	2138002MSI4WKYNOBS73
4	Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted
a)	Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument	Ordinary shares of 0.25 pence each
	Identification code	GB00BJL1ZF49
b)	Nature of the transaction	Purchase of Ordinary Shares
c)	Price(s) and volume(s)
			Price(s)	Volume(s)
			151 pence	99,337
d)	Aggregated information	n/a - single transaction
	- Aggregated volume
	- Price
e)	Date of the transaction	9 April 2020
f)	Place of the transaction	Outside a trading venue - subscription of new Ordinary Shares

1	Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities / person closely associated
a)	Name	Ian Bryn Sadler
2	Reason for the notification
a)	Position/status	PDMR
b)	Initial notification /Amendment	Initial notification
3	Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor
a)	Name	essensys plc
b)	LEI	2138002MSI4WKYNOBS73
4	Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted
a)	Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument	Ordinary shares of 0.25 pence each
	Identification code	GB00BJL1ZF49
b)	Nature of the transaction	Purchase of Ordinary Shares
c)	Price(s) and volume(s)
			Price(s)	Volume(s)
			151 pence	13,245
d)	Aggregated information	n/a - single transaction
	- Aggregated volume
	- Price
e)	Date of the transaction	9 April 2020
f)	Place of the transaction	Outside a trading venue - subscription of new Ordinary Shares

1	Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities / person closely associated
a)	Name	Michael Guest
2	Reason for the notification
a)	Position/status	PDMR
b)	Initial notification /Amendment	Initial notification
3	Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor
a)	Name	essensys plc
b)	LEI	2138002MSI4WKYNOBS73
4	Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted
a)	Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument	Ordinary shares of 0.25 pence each
	Identification code	GB00BJL1ZF49
b)	Nature of the transaction	Purchase of Ordinary Shares
c)	Price(s) and volume(s)
			Price(s)	Volume(s)
			151 pence	6,622
d)	Aggregated information	n/a - single transaction
	- Aggregated volume
	- Price
e)	Date of the transaction	9 April 2020
f)	Place of the transaction	Outside a trading venue - subscription of new Ordinary Shares

 

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