24 May 2017 18:35
24 May 2017
REDX PHARMA PLC
("Redx" or "the Company")
LIVERPOOL CITY COUNCIL CALL IN LOAN
Suspension of Trading
Appointment of Administrators
Redx, the drug discovery and development company, announces that the Company has requested a suspension of its shares from trading on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange with immediate effect having been informed that administrators have been appointed to the Company.
By way of background, the Company received a formal demand for repayment of a loan that was made to a subsidiary of the Company, RedX Oncology Limited, by Liverpool City Council ("LCC") in June 2012 (the "Loan"). The terms of the Loan were amended in March 2015 such that the maturity date of the Loan was extended to 31 March 2017 ("Maturity Date"). The Loan amount is £2 million, together with interest at 12 per cent. per annum, which has been accrued and also fell due for repayment on the Maturity Date.
The Company has been in discussions with LCC regarding the repayment and/or restructuring of the terms of the Loan (involving an initial payment and ongoing monthly payments), in order to reach an amicable settlement, but these discussions, despite considerable effort on the part of the board, have not been successfully concluded.
The Company has been actively seeking to negotiate directly with LCC and also to secure alternative sources of finance in order to facilitate repayment of the Loan at the earliest practicable opportunity. The Company offered LCC an immediate payment of £1 million in return for a short grace period in which to repay the outstanding amount. This offer was rejected.
The Company understands that FRP Advisory LLP was appointed administrators to the Company and RedX Oncology Limited earlier this afternoon.
Iain Ross, recently appointed Chairman of the Company commented:
"The timing of this action by LCC and its advisers FRP is extremely unfortunate and quite baffling considering our efforts to have face to face discussions, including earlier today, the immediate offer of a payment plan and our latest proposal to make an immediate £1million payment in return for a short grace period. The Board and its advisers felt consistently confident that we could have found the appropriate solution within a short period and can't quite fathom why a creditor with whom we have had a good relationship for over 5 years is taking such an aggressive stance when they know, and have been provided with the evidence, that the Company is making excellent progress on all fronts.
The Company, which now comprises 84 employees, has two incredibly important state of the art cancer programs, which will shortly commence clinical development in seriously ill patients and both these assets are attracting significant partnering interest from a number of large pharmaceutical companies. Despite this and our assurances to resolve the matter quickly, LCC has refused to meet with me or to have any direct discussion."
Further announcements will be made in due course.
For further information, please contact:
Redx Pharma Plc |
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Neil Murray, Chief Executive Officer | T: +44 1625 469 900 |
Karl Hård, Head of Investor Relations & Corporate Communications | T: +44 7491 651 406 |
Cantor Fitzgerald Europe (Nomad & Broker) |
T: +44 20 7894 7000 |
Phil Davies/ Michael Reynolds |
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WG Partners LLP (Joint Broker) | T: +44 20 3705 9330 |
Claes Spång/ Chris Lee/ David Wilson |
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Consilium Strategic Communications | T: +44 20 3709 5700 |
Amber Fennell/ Matthew Neal/ Melissa Gardiner |
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About Redx Pharma Plc
Company website: redxpharma.com
Redx is focused on the discovery and development of proprietary, small molecule therapeutics to address areas of high, unmet medical need, principally in cancer, infection and immunology, providing a pipeline of assets to larger and emerging companies. By improving the characteristics of existing drug classes to create highly differentiated, novel, best-in-class drugs, Redx has already established a broad portfolio of proprietary drug programs.