TIDMUBG

RNS Number : 4692T

Unbound Group PLC

22 July 2022

NEITHER THIS ANNOUNCEMENT, NOR ANY COPY OF IT, NOR THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN IT, IS FOR PUBLICATION, RELEASE, TRANSMISSION, DISTRIBUTION OR FORWARDING, 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 PUBLICATION, RELEASE OR DISTRIBUTION WOULD BE UNLAWFUL (OR TO ANY PERSONS IN ANY OF THOSE JURISDICTIONS). PLEASE SEE THE IMPORTANT NOTICES AT THE OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT.

22 July 2022

Unbound Group plc

Result of Placing and Subscription

Unbound Group plc (AIM:UBG) ("Unbound Group", the "Company" or, together with its subsidiary undertakings, the "Group"), is pleased to announce that, further to the announcement made on 21 July 2022 regarding the Fundraising (the "Launch Announcement"), an aggregate of 20,783,334 Placing Shares have been successfully placed by Singer Capital Markets Securities Limited at an Issue Price of 15 pence per Placing Share to raise gross proceeds for the Company of approximately GBP3.3 million. This includes participation in the Placing by certain of the Company's Directors, who have subscribed for approximately 583,334 Placing Shares.

In addition to the Placing, certain of the Company's Directors and members of its senior management team have subscribed for 1,221,281 Subscription Shares at the Issue Price to raise further gross proceeds for the Company of GBP183,192.

The Placing Shares and the Subscription Shares together represent approximately 52.1 per cent. of the existing issued share capital of the Company.

The net proceeds receivable by the Company from the Placing and the Subscription, together with the net proceeds from the Open Offer once closed, will be used to accelerate the Company's growth strategy as set out in the Launch Announcement.

The Placing and the Subscription are conditional upon, amongst other things, the passing of the Resolutions to be proposed at a general meeting of Shareholders to be held at 10 a.m. on 10 August 2022 at the offices of Singer Capital Markets, 1 Bartholomew Lane, London, EC2N 2AX (the "General Meeting"). The Placing is also conditional on the Placing Agreement not being terminated in accordance with its terms.

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

Certain Directors of the Company (the "Participating Directors") have participated in the Fundraising. The number of Placing or Subscription Shares conditionally subscribed for by each of the Participating Directors pursuant to the Placing and Subscription, and their resulting shareholdings on Admission, are set out below:

 
 Participating     Number of            Number of       Number of     Percentage 
  Director(*)       Existing           Placing or        Ordinary    of Ordinary 
                    Ordinary         Subscription     Shares held      Shares on 
                      Shares    Shares subscribed    on Admission    Admission** 
                                              for 
 Neil Johnson        279,057              333,334         612,391          0.86% 
                  ----------  -------------------  --------------  ------------- 
 Ian Watson        2,246,833              328,290       2,575,123          3.63% 
                  ----------  -------------------  --------------  ------------- 
 Daniel Lampard       50,000              247,791         297,791          0.42% 
                  ----------  -------------------  --------------  ------------- 
 Paul Goodson         19,939              166,667         186,606          0.26% 
                  ----------  -------------------  --------------  ------------- 
 Gavin Manson        551,296              416,667         967,963          1.36% 
                  ----------  -------------------  --------------  ------------- 
 Suzanne (Suki) 
  Thompson                 -               66,667          66,667          0.09% 
                  ----------  -------------------  --------------  ------------- 
 

(*) none of the Participating Directors intends to take up their respective Open Offer Entitlements under the Open Offer (**) assuming all of the Open Offer Shares are taken up in full under the Open Offer

Related Party Transaction

Witan Investment Trust ("Witan"), a substantial shareholder of the Company (as defined in the AIM Rules), has conditionally acquired 4,753,857 Placing Shares at the Issue Price.

The participation of Witan in the Fundraising constitutes a related party transaction under rule 13 of the AIM Rules.

Accordingly, the Directors consider, having consulted with Singer Capital Markets Advisory LLP, acting in its capacity as the Company's nominated adviser, that the terms of the participation of Witan in the Fundraising are fair and reasonable insofar as the Company's Shareholders are concerned.

General Meeting

The Fundraising and the issue of the New Ordinary Shares are conditional upon, among other things, the Resolutions being duly passed by Shareholders at the General Meeting.

The Circular is expected to be despatched to Shareholders on or around 22 July 2022 and the Circular, once published, will be available on the Company's website at https://unboundgroupplc.com/.

Admission, settlement and dealings

Application will be made for Admission of up to 28,680,464 New Ordinary Shares (comprising 20,783,334 Placing Shares, 1,221,281 Subscription Shares and up to 6,675,849 Open Offer Shares). Subject to, amongst other things, the passing of the Resolutions, settlement for the New Ordinary Shares and Admission are expected to take place at 8.00 a.m. on or around 11 August 2022. In addition to the passing of the Resolutions, the Fundraising is conditional upon, among other things, Admission becoming effective and the Placing Agreement not being terminated in accordance with its terms.

The New Ordinary Shares, when issued, will be fully paid and will rank pari passu in all respects with the Existing Ordinary Shares, including the right to receive all dividends and other distributions declared, made or paid after the date of issue.

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.

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

Enquiries:

Unbound Group plc

Ian Watson, Chief Executive Officer

Dan Lampard, Chief Financial Officer

020 3874 8300

Singer Capital Markets (Nominated Adviser, Sole Broker and Sole Bookrunner)

Peter Steel / Tom Salvesen / Alaina Wong / Kailey Aliyar

020 7496 3000

Vico Partners (Financial PR Adviser)

Sofia Newitt

020 3957 5045

IMPORTANT NOTICES

Neither this Announcement, nor any copy of it, nor the information contained in it, is for publication, release, transmission, distribution or forwarding, in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States, Australia, Canada, Japan or the Republic of South Africa or any other jurisdiction in which publication, release or distribution would be unlawful (or to any persons in any of those jurisdictions). This Announcement is for information purposes only and does not constitute or contain an offer to sell or issue, or the solicitation of an offer to buy, acquire or subscribe for shares in the capital of the Company in the United States, Australia, Canada, Japan or the Republic of South Africa or any other jurisdiction (or to any persons in any of those jurisdictions) in which the same would be unlawful. This Announcement has not been approved by the London Stock Exchange. Any failure to comply with these restrictions may constitute a violation of the securities laws of such jurisdictions.

The Placing Shares have not been, and will not be, registered under the US Securities Act or with any securities regulatory authority or under any securities laws of any state or other jurisdiction of the United States and may not be offered, sold, resold, pledged, transferred or delivered, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States except pursuant to an applicable exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the US Securities Act and in compliance with the securities laws of any state or other jurisdiction of the United States. No public offering of securities is being made in the United States. The Placing Shares have not been approved, disapproved or recommended by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, any state securities commission in the United States or any other U.S. regulatory authority, nor have any of the foregoing authorities passed upon or endorsed the merits or demerits of the offering of the Placing Shares. Subject to certain exceptions, the securities referred to in this Announcement may not be offered or sold in the United States, Australia, Canada, Japan or the Republic of South Africa or to, or for the account or benefit of, any national, resident or citizen of the United States, Australia, Canada, Japan or the Republic of South Africa.

No public offering of the Placing Shares is being made in the United States, United Kingdom or elsewhere. All offers of the Placing Shares will be made pursuant to an exemption from the requirement to produce a prospectus under the EU Prospectus Regulation or the UK Prospectus Regulation.

This Announcement is not being distributed by, nor has it been approved for the purposes of section 21 of FSMA by, a person authorised under FSMA. 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 apply.

No prospectus has been or will be made available in connection with the matters contained in this Announcement and no such prospectus is required (in accordance with the EU Prospectus Regulation or UK Prospectus Regulation) to be published. Members of the public are not eligible to take part in the Placing. This Announcement (including the terms and conditions contained in this Announcement) is for information purposes only and (unless otherwise agreed by Singer Capital Markets) is directed at and is only distributed to: (a) persons in member states of the EEA who are qualified investors within the meaning of Article 2(e) of the EU Prospectus Regulation; (b) persons in the United Kingdom, who are qualified investors, being persons falling within the meaning of Article 2(e) of the UK Prospectus Regulation, and who: (i) have professional experience in matters relating to investments falling within the definition of "investment professionals" in article 19(5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005, as amended (the "Order"); or (ii) are persons falling within article 49(2)(a) to (d) ("high net worth companies, unincorporated associations, etc") of the Order; or (c) persons to whom it may otherwise lawfully be communicated, (each such persons in (a), (b) and (c) together being referred to as "Relevant Persons"). This Announcement (including the terms and conditions set out in this Announcement) 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 (including the terms and conditions set out in this Announcement) relates is available only to, and will be engaged in only with, Relevant Persons.

This Announcement has been issued by, and is the sole responsibility of, the Company. No responsibility or liability is or will be accepted by, and no undertaking, representation or warranty or other assurance, express or implied, is or will be made or given by Singer Capital Markets, or by any of their respective partners, directors, officers, employees, agents, advisers, consultants or affiliates as to, or in relation to, the accuracy, fairness or completeness 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 person or its advisers, and any liability therefore is expressly disclaimed. The information in this Announcement is subject to change.

Singer Capital Markets, which is authorised and regulated in the United Kingdom by the FCA is acting solely for the Company and no-one else in connection with the Placing and the transactions and arrangements described 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 or the transactions and arrangements described in this Announcement. Singer Capital Markets is not responsible to anyone other than the Company for providing the protections afforded to clients of Singer Capital Markets or for providing advice in connection with the contents of this Announcement, the Placing or the transactions and arrangements described in this Announcement.

Singer Capital Markets Advisory LLP ("SCM Advisory"), which is authorised and regulated in the United Kingdom by the FCA, is acting as nominated adviser to the Company for the purposes of the AIM Rules and no-one else in connection with the Placing and the transactions and arrangements described in this Announcement and will not be responsible to any other person (whether or not a recipient of this Announcement) as a client in relation to the Placing or the transactions and arrangements described in this Announcement. SCM Advisory is not responsible to anyone other than the Company for providing the protections afforded to clients of SCM Advisory or for providing advice in connection with the contents of this Announcement, the Placing or the transactions and arrangements described in this Announcement. SCM Advisory's responsibilities as the Company's nominated adviser under the AIM Rules for Nominated Advisers are owed solely to the London Stock Exchange and are not owed to the Company or to any Director or to any other person.

None of the information in this Announcement has been independently verified or approved by Singer Capital Markets or any of their respective partners, directors, officers, employees, agents, advisers, consultants or affiliates. Save for any responsibilities or liabilities, if any, imposed on Singer Capital Markets by FSMA or by the regulatory regime established under it, no responsibility or liability whatsoever whether arising in tort, contract or otherwise, is accepted by Singer Capital Markets or any of its partners, directors, officers, employees, agents, advisers, consultants or affiliates whatsoever for the contents of this Announcement (including, but not limited to, any errors, omissions or inaccuracies in the information or any opinions) or for any other statement made or purported to be made by or on behalf of Singer Capital Markets or any of its partners, directors, officers, employees, agents, advisers, consultants or affiliates in connection with the Company, the Placing Shares or the Placing or for any loss, cost or damage suffered or incurred howsoever arising, directly or indirectly, from any use of this Announcement or its contents or otherwise in connection with this Announcement or from any acts or omissions of the Company in relation to the Placing. Singer Capital Markets and its partners, directors, officers, employees, advisers, consultants and affiliates accordingly disclaim all and any responsibility and liability whatsoever, whether arising in tort, contract or otherwise in respect of any statements or other information contained in this Announcement and no undertaking, representation or warranty, express or implied, is made by Singer Capital Markets or any of its partners, directors, officers, employees, agents, advisers, consultants or affiliates as to the accuracy, completeness or sufficiency of the information contained in this Announcement.

The distribution of this Announcement and the offering of the Placing Shares in certain jurisdictions may be restricted by law. No action has been taken by the Company, Singer Capital Markets or any of their respective affiliates that would permit an offering of the Placing Shares or possession or distribution of this Announcement or any other offering or publicity material relating to the 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 Singer Capital Markets to inform themselves about, and to observe, such restrictions.

Persons distributing this Announcement must satisfy themselves that it is lawful to do so. Persons (including, without limitation, nominees and trustees) who have a contractual right or other legal obligations to forward a copy of this Announcement (or any part of it) should seek appropriate advice before taking any action.

In connection with the Placing, Singer Capital Markets and any of its affiliates, acting as investors for their own account, may take up a portion of the shares in the Placing as a principal position and in that capacity may retain, purchase, sell, offer to sell for their own accounts or otherwise deal for their own account in such shares and other securities of the Company or related investments in connection with the Placing or otherwise. Accordingly, references to Placing Shares being offered, acquired, placed or otherwise dealt in should be read as including any issue or offer to, or acquisition, placing or dealing by, Singer Capital Markets and any of its affiliates acting in such capacity. In addition, Singer Capital Markets and any of its affiliates may enter into financing arrangements (including swaps) with investors in connection with which Singer Capital Markets and any of its affiliates may from time to time acquire, hold or dispose of shares. Singer Capital Markets does not intend to disclose the extent of any such investment or transactions otherwise than in accordance with any legal or regulatory obligations to do so.

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. There are a number of factors that could cause actual results or developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements and forecasts. 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. No representation or warranty is made as to the achievement or reasonableness of, and no reliance should be placed on, such 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. These forward-looking statements reflect the Company's judgment at the date of this Announcement and are not intended to give any assurance as to future results and the Company cautions that its actual results of operations and financial condition, and the development of the industry in which it operates, may differ materially from those made in or suggested by the forward-looking statements contained in

this Announcement and/or information incorporated by reference into this Announcement (if any). The information contained in this Announcement is subject to change without notice and except as required by applicable law or regulation, the Company, its directors, Singer Capital Markets, their respective affiliates and any person acting on its or their behalf each expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to publish any updates, supplements 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 statements are based, except where required to do so under applicable law.

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. Any investment decision to subscribe for, purchase, otherwise acquire Placing Shares in the Placing must be made solely on the basis of publicly available information, which has not been independently verified by Singer Capital Markets. This Announcement does not constitute a prospectus or offering memorandum or an offer in respect of any securities and is not intended to provide the basis for any decision in respect of the Company or other evaluation of any securities of the Company or any other entity and should not be considered as a recommendation that any investor should subscribe for, purchase, otherwise acquire, sell or otherwise dispose of any such securities. Recipients of this Announcement who are considering acquiring Placing Shares pursuant to the Placing are reminded that they should conduct their own investigation, evaluation and analysis of the business, data and property described in this Announcement. The price and value of securities can go down as well as up and past performance is not a guide to future performance, and investors may not get back the full amount invested upon the disposal of such securities. The contents of this Announcement are not to be construed as legal, business, financial or tax advice. Each investor or prospective investor should consult with his or her or its own legal adviser, business adviser, financial adviser or tax adviser for legal, financial, business or tax advice.

No statement in this Announcement is intended to be a profit forecast or estimate or be relied upon as a guide to future performance, and no statement in this Announcement should be interpreted to mean that earnings per share or income, cash flow from operations or free cash flow for the Company for the current or future financial years would necessarily match or exceed the historical published earnings, earnings per share or income, cash flow from operations or free cash flow for the Company.

References in this Announcement to other reports or materials, such as a website address, have been provided to direct the reader to other sources of information on the Company which may be of interest. Neither the content of the Company's website (or any other website) nor the content of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Company's website (or any other website) is incorporated into or forms part of this Announcement.

The Placing Shares to be issued or sold pursuant to the Placing will not be admitted to trading on any stock exchange other than AIM.

Information to distributors

The distribution of this Announcement and the offering of the Placing Shares in certain jurisdictions may be restricted by law. No action has been taken by the Company, Singer Capital Markets or any of its affiliates that would permit an offering of the Placing Shares or possession or distribution of this Announcement or any other offering or publicity material relating to the 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 Singer Capital Markets to inform themselves about, and to observe, such restrictions.

UK Product Governance Requirements

Solely for the purposes of the product governance requirements contained within Chapter 3 of the FCA Handbook Product Intervention and Product Governance Sourcebook (the "UK Product Governance Rules"), and disclaiming all and any liability, whether arising in tort, contract or otherwise, which any 'manufacturer' (for the purposes of the UK Product Governance Rules) may otherwise have with respect thereto, the Placing Shares have been subject to a product approval process, which has determined that such Placing Shares 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 paragraphs 3.5 and 3.6 of COBS; and (ii) eligible for distribution through all permitted distribution channels (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 Placing. Furthermore, it is noted that, notwithstanding the UK Target Market Assessment, Singer Capital Markets 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: (a) an assessment of suitability or appropriateness for the purposes of COBS 9A and COBS 10A, respectively; 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 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"); (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 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 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 "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 Placing. Furthermore, it is noted that, notwithstanding the EU Target Market Assessment, Singer Capital Markets 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: (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 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.

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END

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July 22, 2022 06:03 ET (10:03 GMT)

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