30 Jan 2020 07:00
LIFE SETTLEMENT ASSETS PLC (the "Company")
LEI: 2138003OL2VBXWG1BZ27
Company update
The Board of the Company (the "Board") wishes to announce that, for the time being, it intends to retain a larger proportion of cash receipts from policy maturities in order to be in a position to fund potential investment opportunities through the acquisition and consolidation of the remaining fractions or participations of certain of the US trusts and conservatorships in which the Company is already indirectly invested. These opportunities are expected to arise over the next few years as a result of the ageing (and therefore reducing size) of the underlying portfolios in which the Company is invested and as a result of the Company's investment manager's proactive steps to protect and maximise the value of the assets. Indeed, the Board believes that it will be important to take advantage of these opportunities if and when they arise to protect the value of the Company's existing investment in the relevant policies. Accordingly, as surplus cash accumulates from policy maturities, the Board will carefully balance the amount that should be distributed to shareholders and that which should be retained to fund potential investment opportunities.
The Board also wishes to announce that it is considering the merger of the four trusts through which it holds its portfolios of life settlement policies, namely the Acheron Portfolio Trust, Lorenzo Tonti 2006 Trust, Avernus Trust and Styx Trust (the "Trusts"). The Board expects that the simplification of this legacy structure will reduce operating costs by up to several hundred thousand dollars per year, as well as reducing operational risks without creating cross liabilities. While such a restructuring is a prerequisite for the orderly merger of the Company share classes that the Board is currently considering (as announced on 18 December 2019), this restructuring does not require the share classes to be merged to achieve at least some of the cost and risk reduction objectives. Each class of shares will continue to participate in the same portfolio of policies, notwithstanding the merger of the Trusts. Details of this merger will be announced when fully implemented.
This announcement contains Inside Information as defined under the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014.
Enquiries:
Michael Baines, Chairman
020 7258 5990
ISCA Administration Services Limited, Company Secretary
01392 487056
30 January 2020