Acquisition of Calico Biolabs

28 January 2019

ABCAM PLC

("Abcam" or "the Company")

Abcam Expands Custom Services Capabilities with Acquisition of Calico Biolabs

● Expands Abcam's custom rabbit monoclonal production capabilities and deepens customer relationships

● Calico product portfolio increases Abcam's catalogue of high-quality recombinant rabbit monoclonal antibodies

Abcam (LSE: ABC), a global leader in the supply of life science research tools, is pleased to announce that it has acquired Calico Biolabs Inc. ("Calico"), a developer of custom high-quality recombinant rabbit monoclonal antibodies for diagnostic and biopharmaceutical companies.

The transaction strategically expands Abcam's leading position in rabbit monoclonal antibodies, bringing a small catalogue of ready-made CAL antibodies™ for immunohistochemistry (IHC) in addition to custom development services. Calico partners with many of the leaders in diagnostics and biopharmaceuticals to create custom products for companion diagnostics.

Calico's range of ready-made recombinant CAL antibodies™ for critical immuno-oncology targets will be made available at both research and commercial scale, via the Abcam global commercial network.

Financial terms of the transaction have not been disclosed and are expected to have a minimal impact on revenue and earnings for FY2019.

John Baker, SVP of Product Portfolio and Innovation at Abcam, said:

"The acquisition of Calico represents execution of our strategy to provide the best and highest quality products to our diagnostic, biopharmaceutical and research customers. By incorporating Calico's product portfolio and custom services, Abcam expands its offering of rabbit monoclonals for IHC, allowing development of more products for their most important targets, faster. We are excited to welcome the Calico team to the Abcam family, furthering Abcam's mission to provide customers with the highest quality recombinant antibodies for their research."

Jacinto Villanueva, CEO of Calico, commented:

"Abcam is a recognised leader for the supply of high-quality validated antibodies, supported by an innovative approach to production and commercialisation, and we are excited to be joining the team. This move will enable us to more fully support the cancer research and associated diagnostics development being carried out by our industry partners."

For further information, please contact:

Abcam

+ 44 (0) 1223 696 000

James Staveley, VP Investor Relations

FTI Consulting

T: +44 (0) 20 3727 1000

Ben Atwell / Brett Pollard / Natalie Garland-Collins

About Abcam plc

As a global life sciences company, Abcam identifies, develops, and distributes high-quality biological reagents and tools that are crucial to research, drug discovery and diagnostics. Working across the industry, the Company supports life scientists to achieve their mission, faster.

Abcam partners with life science organisations to co-create novel binders for use in drug discovery, in vitro diagnostics and therapeutics, driven by the Company's proprietary discovery platforms and world-leading, antibody expertise.

By constantly innovating its binders and assays, Abcam is helping advance the global understanding of biology and causes of disease, which enables new treatments and improved health. The Company's pioneering data-sharing approach gives scientists increased confidence in their results by providing validation, user comments and peer-reviewed citations for its 110,000 products.

With eleven sites globally, many of Abcam's 1,100 strong team are located in the world's leading life science research hubs, complementing a global network of services and support. Abcam was admitted to AIM in 2005 (AIM: ABC).

To find out more, please visit www.abcam.com and www.abcamplc.com

About Calico Biolabs Inc.

Founded in 2011 by scientists with a primary focus on rabbit monoclonal antibodies as a method to create superior reagents for immunohistochemistry (IHC), Calico develops and manufactures rabbit monoclonal antibodies designed for use in research and diagnostic applications, providing high specificity and consistency. Calico has successfully partnered with many leading biopharmaceutical and diagnostic companies. For further information please visit www.calicobio.com 

Forward looking statements

This announcement, including any information included or incorporated by reference in this announcement, may contain forward-looking statements (including words such as "believe", "expect", "estimate", "intend", "anticipate" and words of similar meaning) which are based upon current expectations and assumptions regarding anticipated developments and other factors affecting the Abcam Group. All statements other than statements of historical facts may be forward-looking statements and should not be treated as guarantees of future performance. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the control of the Abcam Group, and there are important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements speak only as at the date of this announcement and accordingly undue reliance should not be placed on such statements. The Abcam Group does not assume any obligation to, and does not intend to, revise or update these forward-looking statements, except as required pursuant to applicable law.