Result of Placing

RNS Number : 5190S

Frontier IP Group plc

06 November 2019

 

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, CANADA, JAPAN, THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA, AUSTRALIA, NEW ZEALAND OR ANY OTHER JURISDICTION WHERE TO DO SO WOULD CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF THE RELEVANT LAWS OR REGULATIONS OF THAT JURISDICTION.

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 FRONTIER IP GROUP 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 FRONTIER IP GROUP PLC.

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION FOR THE PURPOSES OF ARTICLE 7 OF EU REGULATION 596/2014.  UPON THE PUBLICATION OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT THIS INSIDE INFORMATION IS NOW CONSIDERED TO BE WITHIN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN.

6 November 2019

Frontier IP Group plc

("Frontier" or the "Company")

Result of Placing

Frontier IP Group plc (AIM: FIPP), a specialist in commercialising university intellectual property, is pleased to confirm, further to the announcement made earlier today, that it has raised net proceeds of approximately £3.8 million through a Placing of 8,000,000 Placing Shares with certain existing and new institutional investors at a Placing Price of 50 pence per share. The Placing has now closed. The Placing Price represents a 9.9 per cent. discount to the Closing Price of 55.5 pence on 5 November 2019, the Business Day before the announcement of the Placing. N+1 Singer acted as sole bookrunner in connection with the Placing.

The Placing Shares will, when issued, be credited as fully paid and will rank pari passu in all respects with the existing Ordinary Shares of the Company, including the right to receive all dividends or other distributions made, paid or declared in respect of such shares after the date of issue of the new Placing Shares.

Annual General Meeting

In accordance with the Company's articles of association, shareholder approval is required for the Directors to issue the Placing Shares. The Annual General Meeting will be held for the purpose of, inter alia, passing the Placing Resolutions to authorise the proposed Placing. The Company will publish a Circular, which contains a notice of AGM, to convene the AGM to propose the Placing Resolutions to enable completion of the Placing. The AGM will be held at 93 George Street, Edinburgh, EH2 3ES at 11.00 a.m. on 4 December 2019. The Circular containing the notice of AGM is expected to be published and sent to shareholders tomorrow and will be available shortly thereafter on the Company's website, www.frontierip.co.uk.

Neil Crabb, CEO of Frontier IP, commented

"The success of this oversubscribed placing is a reflection of the continued progress of Frontier IP and our portfolio companies over the past year - as demonstrated by our excellent full-year results. The strength of our business model and the greater traction we are gaining with industry and academic partners is reflected in the support we have received from existing and new investors. We are now in a strong financial position and well placed to withstand any future market volatility."

Participation by Substantial Shareholders and Directors in the Placing

Certain of the Company's substantial shareholders and Directors have agreed to subscribe for Placing Shares at the Placing Price.

2,000,000 Placing Shares have been conditionally subscribed for by Canaccord Genuity Group Inc. ("Canaccord") and 873,076 Placing Shares have been conditionally subscribed for by Quilter Cheviot Limited ("Quilter"). The number of Placing Shares subscribed for by each of the substantial shareholders and Directors pursuant to the Placing, and their resulting shareholdings on Admission, as far as the Company is aware in respect of the substantial shareholders, are set out below: 

Shareholder	Number of Existing Ordinary Shares	Number of Placing Shares subscribed for in the Placing	Number of Ordinary Shares held on Admission	Percentage of Enlarged Share Capital on Admission*
Canaccord Genuity Group Inc.	7,810,067	2,000,000	9,810,067	19.5%
Quilter Cheviot Limited	5,991,842	873,076	6,864,918	13.6%
Neil Crabb, Chief Executive Officer	2,834,168	100,000	2,934,168	5.8%
Mike Bourne, Non-Executive Director	303,170	100,000	403,170	0.8%

Related Party Transactions

The participations by Canaccord, Quilter, Neil Crabb and Mike Bourne in the Placing are deemed to be related party transactions pursuant to rule 13 of the AIM Rules for Companies. Accordingly, the directors of the Company (excluding Neil Crabb and Mike Bourne) consider, having consulted with the Company's nominated adviser, Allenby Capital, that the terms of these transactions are fair and reasonable insofar as Shareholders are concerned.

Admission and dealings

Application will be made to the London Stock Exchange for the 8,000,000 Placing Shares to be admitted to trading on AIM. It is expected that, conditional on the requisite shareholder approvals being obtained at the AGM, Admission will occur and dealings will commence in on 5 December 2019 at 8.00 a.m. (or such later date as N+1 Singer and the Company may agree, being not later than 8.00 a.m. on 12 December 2019). The Placing is conditional upon, amongst other things, Admission becoming effective. The Placing is also conditional on the placing agreement between the Company and N+1 Singer not being terminated in accordance with its terms prior to Admission.

Total Voting Rights

Following Admission, the Company will have 50,431,372 Ordinary Shares in issue. The Company does not hold any Ordinary Shares in treasury. Therefore, the total number of ordinary shares and voting rights in the Company will be 50,431,372. 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 FCA's Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules.

For further information please contact:
Frontier IP Group Plc	T: 020 7332 2338
Neil Crabb, Chief Executive
Andrew Johnson, Communications & Investor Relations	M: 07464 546 025
www.frontierip.co.uk
Allenby Capital Limited (Nominated Adviser)	T: 0203 328 5656
Nick Athanas / Nicholas Chambers
N+1 Singer (Broker)	T: 0207 496 3000
Harry Gooden / George Tzimas

Definitions

Capitalised terms used in this announcement shall, unless defined in this announcement or unless the context provides otherwise, bear the same meaning ascribed to such terms in the announcement made by the Company on 6 November 2019 to announce the launch of the Placing.

 Important Notice

MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC ARE NOT ELIGIBLE TO TAKE PART IN THE PLACING.  THIS ANNOUNCEMENT (INCLUDING THE APPENDIX) AND THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS SET OUT HEREIN (TOGETHER, THIS "ANNOUNCEMENT") 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 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 FRONTIER IP GROUP 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 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.  NO PUBLIC OFFERING OF THE PLACING SHARES IS BEING MADE IN THE UNITED STATES OR ELSEWHERE.

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT (INCLUDING THE APPENDIX) 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 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 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 apply.

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.  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 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 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 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.

By participating in the Placing, each person who is invited to and who chooses to participate in the Placing (a "Placee") by making an oral and legally binding offer to acquire Placing Shares will be deemed to have read and understood this Announcement in its entirety, to be participating, making an offer and acquiring Placing Shares on the terms and conditions contained herein and to be providing the representations, warranties, indemnities, acknowledgements and undertakings contained in the Appendix.

Allenby Capital is acting as nominated adviser to the Company in connection with the Placing and the proposed admission of the Placing Shares to trading on AIM and the proposals described in the Circular. Allenby Capital is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (the "FCA") in the United Kingdom. Allenby Capital is acting exclusively for the Company and no one else in connection with the Placing and Allenby Capital 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 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 Allenby Capital 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.

N+1 Singer is acting as broker and as agent for and on behalf of the Company for the Placing. N+1 Singer is authorised and regulated by the FCA in the United Kingdom. N+1 Singer is acting exclusively for the Company and no one else in connection with 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 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. No statement in this Announcement is intended to be a profit forecast 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 Placing Shares to be issued pursuant to the Placing will not be admitted to trading on any stock exchange other than on 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. 

This Announcement includes statements, estimates, opinions and projections with respect to anticipated future performance of the Company ("forward-looking statements") which reflect various assumptions concerning anticipated results taken from the Company's current business plan or from public sources which may or may not prove to be correct. These forward looking statements can be identified by the use of forward looking terminology, including the terms "anticipates", "target", "believes", "estimates", "expects", "intends", "may", "plans", "projects", "should" or "will", or, in each case, their negative or other variations or comparable terminology or by discussions of strategy, plans, objectives, goals, future events or intentions. Such forward-looking statements reflect current expectations based on the current business plan and various other assumptions and involve significant risks and uncertainties and should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results and will not necessarily be accurate indications of whether or not such results will be achieved. As a result, prospective investors should not rely on such forward-looking statements due to the inherent uncertainty therein. No representation or warranty is given as to the completeness or accuracy of the forward-looking statements contained in this Announcement. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of such statements and, except as required by the FCA, the London Stock Exchange or applicable law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. No statement in this Announcement is intended to be a profit forecast 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.

Notice to distributors

Solely for the purposes of the product governance requirements contained within: (a) EU Directive 2014/65/EU on markets in financial instruments, as amended ("MiFID II"); (b) Articles 9 and 10 of Commission Delegated Directive (EU) 2017/593 supplementing MiFID II; and (c) local implementing measures (together, the "MiFID II Product Governance Requirements"), and disclaiming all and any liability, whether arising in tort, contract or otherwise, which "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 such securities are: (i) compatible with an end target market of retail investors and investors who meet the criteria of professional clients and eligible counterparties, each as defined in MiFID II; and (ii) eligible for distribution through all distribution channels as are permitted by MiFID II (the "Target Market Assessment").

Notwithstanding the 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; 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.

For the avoidance of doubt, the Target Market Assessment does not constitute: (a) an assessment of suitability or appropriateness for the purposes of MiFID II; or (b) a recommendation to any investor or group of investors to invest in, or purchase, or take any other action whatsoever with respect to Placing Shares. Each distributor is responsible for undertaking its own target market assessment in respect of the Placing Shares and determining appropriate distribution channels.

Basis on which information is presented

In this document, references to "£", "pence" and "p" are to the lawful currency of the United Kingdom. All times referred to in this document are, unless otherwise stated, references to London time.

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
a)	Name	Neil Crabb
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	Frontier IP Group plc
b)	LEI	213800BRYUKQPJWKJ312
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 Identification code	Ordinary shares of 10p each in Frontier IP Group plc Identification code (ISIN) for Frontier IP Group plc ordinary shares: GB00B63PS212
b)	Nature of the transaction	Purchase of Ordinary Shares
c)	Price(s) and volume(s)	Price(s) Volume(s) 50p 100,000
d)	Aggregated information - Aggregated volume - Price	n/a
e)	Date of the transaction	6 November 2019
f)	Place of the transaction	Outside a Trading Venue - subscription of new ordinary shares

1	Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities
a)	Name	Mike Bourne
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	Frontier IP Group plc
b)	LEI	213800BRYUKQPJWKJ312
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 Identification code	Ordinary shares of 10p each in Frontier IP Group plc Identification code (ISIN) for Frontier IP Group plc ordinary shares: GB00B63PS212
b)	Nature of the transaction	Purchase of Ordinary Shares
c)	Price(s) and volume(s)	Price(s) Volume(s) 50p 100,000
d)	Aggregated information - Aggregated volume - Price	n/a
e)	Date of the transaction	6 November 2019
f)	Place of the transaction	Outside a Trading Venue - subscription of new ordinary shares

 

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