Sareum Regulatory News (SAR)

19 Jun 2008 07:00



SAREUM HOLDINGS PLC

("Sareum" or "the Company")

Corporate Update

Sareum Holdings plc (AIM: SAR), the specialist structure-based drug discovery business, announced on 2 May 2008, that the Board was undertaking a strategic review to consider how best to take the business forward and create value for shareholders. 

On 14 May, the Company announced that as part of the strategic review, the board had implemented a staff restructuring process to reduce its cost base by approximately one third and prepare itself for any potential acquisition or re-financing whilst the future business strategy is under consideration. The restructuring programme has been successfully completed and the Sareum board will continue to review the Company's cost base diligently. In addition, the Company is making progress on a number of fronts and these are described below.

Following announcement of the review on 2 May, Sareum has received expressions of interest in parts or all of its business, particularly its valuable drug discovery programmes, and has received interest in and possible offers to partner, fund, acquire or invest in certain of its programmes or assets. Any transaction resulting from these discussions would lead to an injection of cash into the Company. Initial due diligence is currently being undertaken in respect of several of these discussions. These discussions are at various stages and there is no certainty that any one of them will lead to an offer being made for the Company or any of its assets. The Sareum board continues to actively progress discussions and further announcements will be made as appropriate. 

The Board has concluded, as a result of this review, that the Company should undertake a strategic transaction and it will need to effect a fundraising to enable it to complete such a transaction. In order to facilitate this, the Company will shortly be sending a notice to shareholders convening a general meeting at which shareholders will be asked to give the directors authority to issue further shares for cash. Should the Board decide within a short timescale that a strategic transaction is not achievable, the Board will take a decision as to the future of the Company in its present form, as the Company would not be able to continue operations without a significant fundraising.

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