31 Jul 2012 07:00
This announcement and the information contained herein is restricted and not for release, publication or distribution, directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, in or into the United States, Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, or the Republic of South Africa or any other jurisdiction in which the same would be unlawful. This announcement is not an offer of securities for sale in the United States. The securities discussed herein have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, (the "Securities Act") and may not be offered or sold within the United States absent registration or an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act. No public offering of the securities discussed herein is being made in the United States and the information contained herein does not constitute an offering of securities for sale in the United States, Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand or the Republic of South Africa.
Silence Therapeutics plc ("Silence Therapeutics" or the "Company") Results of Open Offer
On 12 July 2012, the Board of Silence announced details of a share issue to raise gross proceeds of up to £5.7 million through the Subscription, Open Offer and issue of a Convertible Loan Note at 0.5 pence per New Ordinary Share.
The Open Offer closed for acceptances at 11.00 a.m. on 27 July 2012. The Company is pleased to announce that it has received valid acceptances in respect of 49,088,220 Open Offer Shares from Qualifying Shareholders. This represents approximately 49.1 per cent. of the Open Offer Shares offered. As a consequence, the Company has conditionally raised £5.45 million through the Subscription, Open Offer and issue of a Convertible Loan Note.
The Subscription, Open Offer and issue of a Convertible Loan Note remain conditional, amongst other things, upon the approval of Shareholders at the General Meeting, to be held today at 10.00 a.m. and Admission occurring by no later than 8.00 a.m. on 2 August 2012 or such later date agreed by the Company.
Application has been made to AIM, a market of the London Stock Exchange plc, for the admission of the 889,088,220 New Ordinary Shares. It is expected that Admission will become effective on 2 August 2012. Following Admission, the Company will have 1,466,202,737 Ordinary Shares in issue.
The New Ordinary Shares, when issued and fully paid will rank equally in all respects with the Existing Ordinary Shares, including the right to receive all dividends or other distributions made, paid or declared after the date of announcement of the capital raising.
For further information, please contact:
Silence Therapeutics Singer Capital Markets Jerry Randall Shaun Dobson / Claes Sp¥ng +44 20 7491 6520 +44 20 3205 7500
j.randall@silence-therapeutics.com shaun.dobson@singercm.com
claes.spang@singercm.com M:Communications
Mary-Jane Elliott / Sarah Macleod/Claire Dickinson +44 20 7920 2330 silencetherapeutics@mcomgroup.com
Notes for editors
About Silence Therapeutics plc (www.silence-therapeutics.com)
Silence Therapeutics plc (AIM: SLN) is a leading biotechnology company dedicated to the discovery, development and delivery of targeted, systemic RNA interference (RNAi) therapeutics for the treatment of serious diseases. Silence offers one of the most comprehensive short interfering RNA (siRNA) therapeutic platforms available today based on a strong intellectual property portfolio and large clinical safety database. Silence's clinical siRNA product pipeline is one of the broadest in the industry. The Company possesses multiple proprietary siRNA delivery technology platforms including AtuPLEXâ„¢, DACC and DBTC. AtuPLEX enables the broad functional delivery of siRNA molecules to targeted diseased tissues and cells, while increasing their bioavailability and intracellular uptake. The DACC delivery system allows functional delivery of siRNA molecules selectively to the lung endothelium with a long duration of target mRNA and protein knock-down. The DBTC delivery system enables functional delivery of siRNA molecules selectively to liver cells including hepatocytes. Additionally, the Company has a platform of novel siRNA molecules based around its AtuRNAi chemical modification technology, which provides a number of advantages over conventional siRNA molecules. Silence's unique RNAi assets also include structural features for RNAi molecules and specific design rules for increased potency and reduced off-target effects of siRNA sequences.
The Company's lead internal drug candidate is Atu027, a liposomal formulation in clinical development for systemic cancer indications and one of the most clinically advanced RNAi therapeutic candidates in the area of oncology. Atu027 incorporates two of the Company's technologies, AtuRNAi and AtuPLEXâ„¢. Silence is currently conducting an open-label, single-centre, dose-escalation Phase I study with Atu027 in patients with advanced solid tumors involving single, as well as repeated, intravenous administration. Encouraging interim safety and pharmacokinetic data were presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting in June 2012. The study was completed in July 2012 and results are due shortly.
The Company's RNAi therapeutic platform has received key validation through multiple partnerships with pharmaceutical companies including AstraZeneca, Dainippon Sumitomo, Pfizer/Quark, and Novartis/Quark. Silence is actively pursuing the establishment of additional partnerships. Silence Therapeutics has operations in both Berlin and London.
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