3rd Apr 2007 07:01
Stem Cell Sciences plc03 April 2007 3 April, 2007 Stem Cell Sciences Closes Share Offer Over Subscribed Stem Cell Sciences plc (LSE:STEM), the global biotechnology company focused onthe commercialisation of stem cells and stem cell technologies in research andcell-based therapies, is pleased to announce that it has closed its share offerahead of plans following strong demand from investors. The offer has beenheavily oversubscribed. Stem Cell Sciences has raised AU$12 million (£4.94 million*) through the issueof 11.2 million shares in the form of CHESS Depositary Interests (CDIs)** at$1.07 (£0.44). The Company is expected to list on the Australian Stock Exchangeon 12 April, using the code STC, with a post-listing market capitalisation ofAU$49.6 million (£20.41 million), based on SCS's closing price in the UK onApril 2. Stem Cell Sciences' shares will continue to be traded on theAlternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange. "We are delighted with the response to the share offering and welcome thesupport from both existing and new shareholders in the company, includingseveral notable institutional investment groups,"said Dr Peter Mountford, CEO of Stem Cell Sciences. "As the listing on the ASX is completed, we look forward to continuing to buildour revenue generating business units and expand our activities in the USA whileconducting early stage testing on our stem cell therapy pipeline. We are wellpositioned to take advantage of the expanding markets in the stem cell field inline with the objectives set out in the Prospectus," he continued. - Ends - * Exchange rate used is £1 = AU$2.43 ** CHESS Depositary Interests - The main difference between holding CDIs andShares is that the holder of CDIs has beneficial ownership of the underlyingShares instead of legal title. CHESS Depositary Nominees Pty Ltd, a wholly ownedsubsidiary of ASX, holds the legal title to the underlying Shares. Holders ofCDIs will have the same economic benefits of holding the underlying Shares. Inparticular, holders of CDIs will be able to transfer and settle transactionselectronically on the ASX. Except for historical information, this news release may contain forward-lookingstatements that reflect the Company's current expectation regarding futureevents. These forward looking statements involve risk and uncertainties, whichmay cause but are not limited to, changing market conditions, the successful andtimely completion of clinical studies, the establishment of corporate alliances,the impact of competitive products and pricing, new product development,uncertainties related to the regulatory approval process, and other risksdetailed from time to time in the Company's ongoing reporting. For further information, please contact: Stem Cell SciencesPeter Mountford, President and CEO 0131 662 9829Hugh Ilyine, Vice President and Chief Operating OfficerSue Furber, Director of Finance & Company Secretary Weber Shandwick FinancialLouise Robson 020 7067 0700James White Notes to EditorsStem Cell Sciences plc (SCS, AIM: STEM) is a global biotechnology company,established in Melbourne, Australia in 1994, providing products in theburgeoning stem cell research and drug discovery markets, in addition to thetargeted development of cell-based therapies for neurodegenerative disease andinjury. The Company has established a leading intellectual property (IP) and technologyportfolio that enables the commercial application of stem cells in drugdiscovery, providing the Company with early-stage revenue streams and technologydevelopment for at scale cell production of SCS cell-based therapeutics. SCSprincipal focus is in neurological disease. Revenues in the neurotech market,including pharmaceuticals, devices and diagnostics, grew 10% in 2005 to US$110billion (Neurotech Insights, Volume 2/3 April 30 2006). SCS operates as a group of independent operations with offices and laboratoriesin Edinburgh and Cambridge, UK, Kobe, Japan, Melbourne, Australia and SanFrancisco, USA (office only). Each SCS facility is affiliated with an academiccentre of excellence. These include the Institute of Stem Cell Research (ISCR),Edinburgh, UK, RIKEN Centre for Development Biology, Kobe, Japan and theAustralian Stem Cell Centre, Melbourne, Australia. SCS has four business units, each dedicated to different aspects of the stemcell business opportunity. SC Proven(R) provides cell culture media (liquid formulations) and reagents thatenable the growth and differentiation of stem cells. The first SC Proven(R)product, "ESGRO CompleteTM", a cell culture medium capable of consistent growthof mouse embryonic stem cells without serum or feeder cell support was launchedin February 2006. This was followed by "HEScGROTM", the first animal-componentfree cell culture medium to enable improved growth of human embryonic stemcells, in January 2007. These products are manufactured and distributed byChemicon International, now part of Millipore Corporation. SC Licensing licenses SCS proprietary technologies, such as Internal RibosomeEntry Site (IRES), Stem Cell Selection, hMADS (human adipose derived stem cells)and Neural Stem Cell Technology for application in laboratory-based research anddiscovery. SCS has licensed technology to major pharmaceutical and biotechnologycompanies including Merck & Co, Pfizer, Sanofi Aventis, GSK, Deltagen Inc andLexicon Genetics Inc and others. SC Services provides specialised stem cell production for basic research anddrug discovery, including high-throughput applications through an automated cellproduction facility in Cambridge UK. The services offered include the creationof specific cell lines for a customer, the modification of existing cell linesso that they can be grown in serum free SC Proven(R) media, and the supply ofcells for drug screening in multi-well plate format. SC Therapies' goal is to develop safe and effective cell-based therapies forcurrently incurable diseases. Initial research is being directed to developingand characterising cell lines of potential therapeutic value in the treatment ofspinal injury, Parkinson's disease, eye disease, epilepsy and Duchenne MuscularDystrophy (DMD). Programmes to test SCS' proprietary stem cells in animal modelsof spinal cord injury have been initiated in a number of disease models andpreclinical studies for the treatment of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy areanticipated in 2007-8. For further information on the company please visit:www.stemcellsciences.com This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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