Pharming Technologies B.V. declares unconditional and completes the
recommended cash offer to the shareholders of Abliva AB (publ) and
extends the acceptance period
This press release is not an offer, whether
directly or indirectly, in Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, New
Zealand or South Africa or in any other jurisdiction where such
offer pursuant to legislation and regulations in such relevant
jurisdiction would be prohibited by applicable law. Shareholders
not resident in Sweden who wish to accept the Offer (as defined
below) must make inquiries concerning applicable legislation and
possible tax consequences. Shareholders should refer to the offer
restrictions included in the section titled “Important information”
at the end of this press release and in the offer document
published on the transaction website
(www.raredisease-offer.com). Shareholders in the
United States should also refer to the section titled “Special
notice to shareholders in the United States” at the end of this
press release.
Leiden, the Netherlands, February 7, 2025: On
December 15, 2024, Pharming Technologies B.V. (“Pharming”), a
wholly-owned subsidiary of Pharming Group N.V., announced a
recommended cash offer to the shareholders of Abliva AB (publ)
(“Abliva”) to tender all their shares in Abliva to Pharming at a
price of SEK 0.45 in cash per share (the “Offer”). An offer
document relating to the Offer was published on January 15,
2025.
At the end of the acceptance period of the Offer
on February 7, 2025, the Offer had been accepted by shareholders
representing a total of 1,413,841,472 shares and votes in Abliva,
corresponding to approximately 87.7 percent of the total number of
shares and votes in Abliva.1 As a result, Pharming
controls in total 1,413,841,472 shares and votes in Abliva,
corresponding to approximately 87.7 percent of the total number of
shares and votes in Abliva.2
As set out in the offer announcement press
release and the offer document regarding the Offer which was made
public on January 15, 2025, completion of the Offer is conditional
upon, inter alia, the Offer being accepted to such extent
that Pharming becomes the owner of shares in Abliva representing
more than 90 percent of the total number of shares in Abliva (on a
fully diluted basis). As further set out, Pharming has reserved the
right to waive, in whole or in part, one, several, or all of the
conditions for completion of the Offer, including, with respect to
the acceptance level condition, to complete the Offer at a lower
level of acceptance.
Pharming has now decided to waive the acceptance
level condition. Accordingly, as all other conditions for
completion of the Offer have been satisfied, the Offer is declared
unconditional and Pharming will thus complete the acquisition of
all shares in Abliva that have been tendered in the Offer.
Settlement for shares tendered in the Offer up to and including
February 7, 2025, is expected to be initiated on or around February
14, 2025.
To enable the remaining shareholders of Abliva
who have not tendered their shares to accept the Offer, Pharming
has decided to extend the acceptance period until February 20, 2025
at 15:00 CET. Settlement for shares tendered in the Offer during
the extended acceptance period is expected to commence on or around
February 27, 2025.
Since the Offer is now unconditional,
shareholders who have accepted the Offer, or will accept the Offer,
have no right to withdraw their acceptances.
As set out in the offer document, the Offer does
not include warrants issued by Abliva to employees and members of
Abliva’s Board of Directors as part of incentive programs (the
“Warrants”). Pharming has entered into agreements
with all such warrant holders to acquire the Warrants, in aggregate
68,131,850 Warrants, at a price which entails a reasonable
treatment. The offered price is based on a Black&Scholes
valuation of the Warrants. The offered price per Warrant ranges
between SEK 0.03–SEK 0.054 depending on the terms and conditions
for each different series. This means that Pharming, excluding
warrants held by Abliva and its subsidiaries, controls all warrants
in Abliva.
Except as set out above, neither Pharming nor
any party closely related to Pharming has acquired or agreed to
acquire any Abliva shares or any financial instruments that give a
financial exposure to Abliva shares outside of the Offer.
If Pharming, whether in connection with the
Offer or otherwise, acquires shares representing more than 90
percent of the total number of shares in Abliva, Pharming intends
to initiate a compulsory acquisition procedure in respect of the
remaining shares in Abliva under the Swedish Companies Act (Sw.
aktiebolagslagen (2005:551)). In connection therewith,
Pharming will act in furtherance of a delisting of the Abliva
shares from Nasdaq Stockholm.
For further information, please
contact:
Pharming Group, Leiden, the Netherlands
Michael Levitan, VP Investor Relations & Corporate
Communications
T: +1 (908) 705 1696
E: investor@pharming.com
FTI Consulting, London, UK
Victoria Foster Mitchell/Alex Shaw/Amy Byrne
T: +44 203 727 1000
LifeSpring Life Sciences Communication,
Amsterdam, the Netherlands
Leon Melens
T: +31 6 53 81 64 27
E: pharming@lifespring.nl
Abliva investors
Leo Wei
T: +46 (0)709 910 081
E: pharming@fogelpartners.se
Information about the Offer is available
at:
www.raredisease-offer.com
The information was submitted for
publication on February 7, 2025, 22:00 CET.
This press release relates to the disclosure
of information that qualifies, or may have qualified, as inside
information within the meaning of Article 7(1) of the EU Market
Abuse Regulation.
About Pharming Group
N.V.
Pharming Group N.V. (EURONEXT Amsterdam: PHARM/Nasdaq: PHAR) is a
global biopharmaceutical company dedicated to transforming the
lives of patients with rare, debilitating, and life-threatening
diseases. Pharming is commercializing and developing an innovative
portfolio of protein replacement therapies and precision medicines,
including small molecules and biologics. Pharming is headquartered
in Leiden, the Netherlands, and has employees around the globe who
serve patients in over 30 markets in North America, Europe, the
Middle East, Africa, and Asia-Pacific.
For more information, visit www.pharming.com and
find us on LinkedIn.
Important information
This press release has been published in Swedish and English.
In the event of any discrepancy in content between the two language
versions, the Swedish version shall prevail.
The Offer is not being made, directly or
indirectly, in or into Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, New
Zealand or South Africa by use of mail or any other communication
means or instrumentality (including, without limitation, facsimile
transmission, electronic mail, telex, telephone and the Internet)
of interstate or foreign commerce, or of any facility of national
securities exchange or other trading venue, of Australia, Canada,
Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand or South Africa, and the Offer cannot
be accepted by any such use or by such means, instrumentality or
facility of, in or from, Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, New
Zealand or South Africa. Accordingly, this press release or any
documentation relating to the Offer are not being and should not be
sent, mailed or otherwise distributed or forwarded in or into
Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand or South
Africa.
This press release is not being, and must
not be, sent to shareholders with registered addresses in
Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand or South Africa.
Banks, brokers, dealers and other nominees holding shares for
persons in Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand or
South Africa must not forward this press release or any other
document received in connection with the Offer to such
persons.
The Offer, the information and documents
contained in this press release are not being made and have not
been approved by an authorized person for the purposes of section
21 of the UK Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (the
“FSMA”). Accordingly, the
information and documents contained in this press release are not
being distributed to, and must not be passed on to, the general
public in the United Kingdom. The communication of the information
and documents contained in this press release is exempt from the
restriction on financial promotions under section 21 of the FSMA on
the basis that it is a communication by or on behalf of a body
corporate which relates to a transaction to acquire day to day
control of the affairs of a body corporate; or to acquire 50
percent or more of the voting shares in a body corporate, within
article 62 of the UK Financial Services and Markets Act 2000
(Financial Promotion) Order 2005.
Statements in this press release relating to
future status or circumstances, including statements regarding
future performance, growth and other trend projections and other
benefits of the Offer, are forward-looking statements. These
statements may generally, but not always, be identified by the use
of words such as “anticipates”, “intends”, “expects”, “believes”,
or similar expressions. By their nature, forward-looking statements
involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to events and
depend on circumstances that will occur in the future. There can be
no assurance that actual results will not differ materially from
those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements due
to many factors, many of which are outside the control of Pharming.
Any such forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on
which they are made and Pharming has no obligation (and undertakes
no such obligation) to update or revise any of them, whether as a
result of new information, future events or otherwise, except for
in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.
Special notice to shareholders in the
United States
The Offer described in this press release is
made for the issued and outstanding shares of Abliva, a company
incorporated under Swedish law, and is subject to Swedish
disclosure and procedural requirements, which may be different from
those of the United States. The Offer is made in the United States
pursuant to Section 14(e) of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of
1934, as amended (the “U.S. Exchange
Act”) and Regulation 14E thereunder, to the
extent applicable, and otherwise in compliance with the disclosure
and procedural requirements of Swedish law, including with respect
to withdrawal rights, the Offer timetable, notices of extensions,
announcements of results, settlement procedures (including as
regards to the time when payment of the consideration is rendered)
and waivers of conditions, which may be different from requirements
or customary practices in relation to U.S. domestic tender offers.
Holders of the shares of Abliva domiciled in the United States (the
“U.S. Holders”) are encouraged
to consult with their own advisors regarding the Offer.
Abliva’s financial statements and all
financial information included herein, or any other documents
relating to the Offer, have been or will be prepared in accordance
with IFRS and may not be comparable to the financial statements or
financial information of companies in the United States or other
companies whose financial statements are prepared in accordance
with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles. The Offer is
made to the U.S. Holders on the same terms and conditions as those
made to all other shareholders of Abliva to whom an offer is made.
Any information documents, including the offer document, are being
disseminated to U.S. Holders on a basis comparable to the method
pursuant to which such documents are provided to Abliva’s other
shareholders.
The Offer, which is subject to Swedish law,
is being made to the U.S. Holders in accordance with the applicable
U.S. securities laws and applicable exemptions thereunder. To the
extent the Offer is subject to U.S. securities laws, those laws
only apply to U.S. Holders and thus will not give rise to claims on
the part of any other person. The U.S. Holders should consider that
the price for the Offer is being paid in SEK and that no adjustment
will be made based on any changes in the exchange rate.
It may be difficult for Abliva’s
shareholders to enforce their rights and any claims they may have
arising under the U.S. federal or state securities laws in
connection with the Offer, since Abliva and Pharming are
headquartered in countries other than the United States, and some
or all of their officers and directors may be residents of
countries other than the United States. Abliva’s shareholders may
not be able to sue Abliva or Pharming or their respective officers
or directors in a non-U.S. court for violations of U.S. securities
laws. Further, it may be difficult to compel Abliva and/or its or
Pharming’s respective affiliates to subject themselves to the
jurisdiction or judgment of a U.S. court.
To the extent permissible under applicable
law, rules or regulations, Pharming and its affiliates or its
brokers and its brokers’ affiliates (acting as agents for Pharming
or its affiliates, as applicable) may from time to time and during
the pendency of the Offer, and other than pursuant to the Offer,
directly or indirectly purchase or arrange to purchase shares of
Abliva outside the United States, or any securities that are
convertible into, exchangeable for or exercisable for such shares.
These purchases may occur either in the open market at prevailing
prices or in private transactions at negotiated prices, and
information about such purchases will be disclosed by means of a
press release or other means reasonably calculated to inform U.S.
Holders of such information, to the extent required by applicable
law, rules or regulations. In addition, the financial advisors to
Pharming may also engage in ordinary course trading activities in
securities of Abliva, which may include purchases or arrangements
to purchase such securities as long as such purchases or
arrangements are in compliance with the applicable law. Any
information about such purchases will be announced in Swedish and
in a non-binding English translation available to the U.S. Holders
through relevant electronic media if, and to the extent, such
announcement is required under applicable Swedish or
U.S. law, rules or regulations.
The receipt of cash pursuant to the Offer by
a U.S. Holder may be a taxable transaction for U.S. federal income
tax purposes and under applicable U.S. state and local, as well as
foreign and other, tax laws. Each shareholder is urged to consult
an independent professional adviser regarding the tax consequences
of accepting the Offer. Neither Pharming nor any of its affiliates
and their respective directors, officers, employees or agents or
any other person acting on their behalf in connection with the
Offer shall be responsible for any tax effects or liabilities
resulting from acceptance of this Offer.
1 Based on 1,611,884,536 issued shares
in Abliva.
2 Based on 1,611,884,536 issued shares in Abliva.
- Pharming Abliva PR_EN_07FEB25
Pharming Group NV (EU:PHARM)
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