Ashmore Regulatory News (ASHM)

12 Oct 2006 07:00

Ashmore Group PLC 12 October 2006 These written materials are not for distribution (directly or indirectly) in or to the United States, Canada, Australia or Japan. They are not an offer of securities for sale in or into the United States, Canada, Australia or Japan. The Shares of the Company are not being registered under the US Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the 'Securities Act') and may not be offered or sold in the United States unless registered under the Securities Act or pursuant to an exemption from such registration. No money, securities or other consideration is being solicited and, if sent in response to the information contained herein, will not be accepted. 12th October 2006 Ashmore Group plc ('Ashmore' or the 'Company') Announcement of Placing Price of 170 pence per ordinary share Ashmore, the specialist emerging markets asset management company, today announces the successful pricing of its initial public offering of ordinary shares (the 'IPO'). • The placing price has been set at 170 pence per ordinary share (the 'Placing Price'). • Based upon the Placing Price, the market capitalisation of Ashmore at the commencement of conditional dealings will be approximately £1,205m. • The IPO consists of 177.3m Ashmore ordinary shares (prior to the utilisation of the over-allotment option), in total representing 25% of the 708.9m Ashmore ordinary shares in issue and implies an offer value of approximately £301m. • As stabilising manager, UBS Limited ('UBS') has been granted an over-allotment option of up to 17.7m ordinary shares, representing 10% of the ordinary shares in the IPO exercisable for a period of 30 days from today. • Conditional dealings are expected to commence on the London Stock Exchange at 8:00am today (12 October) under the ticker symbol ASHM. Admission to the Official List of the Financial Services Authority and commencement of unconditional dealings on the main market for listed securities of the London Stock Exchange plc (together, 'Admission') is expected to take place at 8:00am on 17 October 2006. • Directors, employees and their related interests will continue to hold approximately 75% of the Company's ordinary shares following the Placing (prior to the utilisation of the over-allotment option). The Company, employees and existing shareholders are subject to lock-ups of various periods following Admission. Goldman Sachs International ('Goldman Sachs') and UBS are acting as joint global co-ordinators, joint bookrunners and joint sponsors to Ashmore in relation to the IPO. Mark Coombs, Chief Executive, commented: 'The IPO demonstrates investors' confidence in our business and represents the logical next step in the development of Ashmore. The business is well-positioned to deliver further growth. We are all looking forward to finding more investment themes and diversified sources of returns for investors in our funds, and working for all shareholders to take the business to the next stage.' For further information, please contact: Penrose Financial Gay Collins +44 (0)20 7786 4882/07798 626282 Ben Curson +44 (0)20 7786 4870 Ashmore Group plc Jim Pettigrew +44 (0)20 7557 4175 Goldman Sachs International +44 (0)20 7774 1000 Joshua Critchley (ECM) Andrea Ponti Jonathan Sorrell UBS Investment Bank +44 (0)20 7567 8000 Adrian Lewis (ECM) John Humphrey Tom Shippey IMPORTANT INFORMATION This announcement has been issued by Ashmore Group plc ('Ashmore') of 20 Bedfordbury, London WC2N 4BL and is the sole responsibility of Ashmore and has been approved solely for the purposes of Section 21 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 by UBS Limited ('UBS' or 'UBS Investment Bank') of 1 Finsbury Avenue, London EC2M 2PP and Goldman Sachs International ('Goldman Sachs') of Peterborough Court, 133 Fleet Street, London EC4A 2BB. Goldman Sachs and UBS are each acting exclusively for Ashmore and no-one else in connection with the IPO and will not be responsible to anyone other than Ashmore for providing the protections afforded to respective clients of Goldman Sachs and UBS or for providing advice in connection with the IPO. This announcement constitutes an advertisement within the meaning of the Prospectus Rules of the Financial Services Authority (the 'FSA') and is not a prospectus. The announcement does not constitute or form part of any offer of securities, or constitute a solicitation of any offer to purchase or subscribe for securities. Investors should not subscribe for shares in Ashmore except on the basis of information to be contained in a prospectus which it is intended will be approved by the FSA in accordance with the Prospectus Rules made under section 73A of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, in connection with the IPO, and any supplement to that Prospectus. The prospectus will contain certain detailed information about Ashmore and its management, as well as financial statements and other financial data. Copies of the prospectus will be available after its approval by the FSA and publication, from the offices of Ashmore at 20 Bedfordbury, London WC2N 4BL. No representation or warranty, express or implied, is made or given by or on behalf of Ashmore, Goldman Sachs or UBS or any of their respective affiliates or any of such person's directors, officers or employees or any other person as to the accuracy, completeness or fairness of the information or opinions contained in this announcement and no responsibility or liability is accepted for any such information or opinions. Certain statements in this announcement may be 'forward-looking statements'. The forward-looking statements can be identified by use of forward-looking terminology, including the terms 'believes', 'estimates', anticipates', 'projects', 'expects', 'intends', 'may', 'will', 'seeks' or 'should'or, in each case, their negative or other variations or comparable terminology, or by discussions of strategy, plans, aims, objectives, goals, future events or intentions. Subject to any obligations under the listing rules of the UK Listing Authority following the IPO, Ashmore undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise forward-looking statements, except as required by law. Such statements are based on current expectations and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. This announcement does not constitute a recommendation concerning the IPO. The value of shares can go down as well as up. Past performance is not a guide to future performance. Potential investors should consult a professional adviser as to the suitability of any offering for the individual concerned. FSA/Stabilisation