Grant of Share Options

VERONA PHARMA PLC - Grant of Share Options

PR Newswire

London, February 10

Verona Pharma plc

("Verona Pharma" or the "Company")

Grant of Share Options

10 February 2016, Cardiff – Verona Pharma plc (AIM: VRP) announces that the Board has on 9 February 2016 granted options over 14,900,000 ordinary shares (“Options”) in the Company to one of its Directors and certain employees in accordance with the terms of the Company’s share option plans. Half of the Options will vest on 9 February 2018 and the other half on 9 February 2019. The Options have a ten-year exercise window from the date of grant.

Of the Options granted, 10,000,000 options have been granted to Dr. Jan-Anders Karlsson, half of which have an exercise price of 4 pence per option and the other half have an exercise price of 6.6 pence per option.

Dr. Karlsson’s total beneficial interest in the Company remains 2,870,000 ordinary shares, representing 0.28% of the Company’s issued share capital. Following this grant, Dr. Karlsson holds options over 38,000,000 ordinary shares, representing 3.76% of the Company’s issued share capital, with a range of exercise prices between 2.5 and 15 pence per option.

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Notes to Editors

About Verona Pharma plc

Verona Pharma plc is a UK-based clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of innovative prescription medicines to treat respiratory diseases with significant unmet medical needs, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma and cystic fibrosis.

Verona Pharma's lead drug, RPL554, is a first-in-class drug currently in Phase II trials as a nebulised treatment for acute exacerbations of COPD in the hospital setting. The drug is a dual phosphodiesterase (PDE) 3/4 inhibitor and therefore has both bronchodilator and anti-inflammatory effects, which are essential to the improvement of patients with COPD and asthma.

Verona Pharma is also building a broader portfolio of RPL554-containing products to maximise its benefit to patients and its value. This includes the very significant markets for COPD and asthma maintenance therapy. The Company is also exploring the potential of the drug in different diseases, such as cystic fibrosis, where it is in pre-clinical testing and has received a Venture and Innovation Award from the Cystic Fibrosis Trust.