Strategic cooperation, followed by a SEK 487m directed share issue of shares to Sartorius
Cooperation in brief:
Comprehensive technology, sales & marketing cooperation.
Sartorius will become a distributor of BICO products in the Asia-Pacific region.
R&D collaboration within 3D cell printing & digital solutions for cell line development workflows.
SEK 487m directed share issue to Sartorius giving Sartorius a total ownership of 10.1 percent in BICO.
”
Gerry Mackay, member of the Executive Board and Head of the Lab Products & Services Division of Sartorius
The cooperation with BICO will enable us to jointly strengthen our activities in very dynamic fields like advanced cell models and digital workflows in drug research and development. We will further enhance the position of both companies in the fast-growing Asian markets with highly differentiating and relevant technologies. We are convinced that the strategic partnership and the investment in BICO will create value for both parties.
Gerry Mackay, member of the Executive Board and Head of the Lab Products & Services Division of Sartorius
The cooperation with BICO will enable us to jointly strengthen our activities in very dynamic fields like advanced cell models and digital workflows in drug research and development. We will further enhance the position of both companies in the fast-growing Asian markets with highly differentiating and relevant technologies. We are convinced that the strategic partnership and the investment in BICO will create value for both parties.
”
Erik Gatenholm, CEO and
co-founder of BICO
The strategic collaboration with Sartorius is expected to significantly expand our presence and accelerate growth in Asia-Pacific, where BICO today has considerable expansion potential. BICO will get access to value adding, complementary technologies and products, which will enhance our current customer offering within bioprinting and lab automation. We consider the Sartorius ownership in BICO as a verification of the BICO growth strategy.
Erik Gatenholm, CEO and co-founder of BICO
The strategic collaboration with Sartorius is expected to significantly expand our presence and accelerate growth in Asia-Pacific, where BICO today has considerable expansion potential. BICO will get access to value adding, complementary technologies and products, which will enhance our current customer offering within bioprinting and lab automation. We consider the Sartorius ownership in BICO as a verification of the BICO growth strategy.
About Sartorius
About Sartorius
Headquartered in Göttingen, Germany, the Sartorius Group is a leading international partner of life science research and the biopharmaceutical industry and listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, with a market capitalization of approximately EUR 23 billion.
The company has been annually growing by double digits on average and has been regularly expanding its portfolio by acquisitions of complementary technologies. In fiscal 2021, Sartorius earned sales revenue of some 3.45 billion euros.
At the end of 2021, nearly 14,000 people were employed at the Group’s approximately 60 manufacturing and sales sites, serving customers around the globe.
With innovative laboratory instruments and consumables, the Group’s Lab Products & Services division concentrates on serving the needs of laboratories performing research and quality control at pharma and biopharma companies and those of academic research institutes. The Bioprocess Solutions division with its broad product portfolio focusing on single-use solutions helps customers to manufacture biotech medications and vaccines safely and efficiently.
The company has been annually growing by double digits on average and has been regularly expanding its portfolio by acquisitions of complementary technologies. In fiscal 2021, Sartorius earned sales revenue of some 3.45 billion euros.
At the end of 2021, nearly 14,000 people were employed at the Group’s approximately 60 manufacturing and sales sites, serving customers around the globe.
With innovative laboratory instruments and consumables, the Group’s Lab Products & Services division concentrates on serving the needs of laboratories performing research and quality control at pharma and biopharma companies and those of academic research institutes. The Bioprocess Solutions division with its broad product portfolio focusing on single-use solutions helps customers to manufacture biotech medications and vaccines safely and efficiently.
Share Issue Rationale
The Share Issue is conducted at a premium, with the Subscription Price equivalent to a 2.7 percent premium compared to the 3-day VWAP.
The technology as well as sales and marketing cooperation with Sartorius in conjunction with the Share Issue entails several commercial and strategic benefits for BICO.
The Share Issue will provide the Company with a significant and reputable long-term shareholder in Sartorius.
The Share Issue can be conducted in a more time efficient way and at a lower cost and with less complexity for the Company than through a rights issue.
A strengthening of the Company’s financial position will enable the Company to more swiftly executing on strategic initiatives.
The overall importance of a strong balance sheet when navigating in the current market environment.
The Share Issue in Brief
The Share Issue consists of a total of 6,408,626 New Shares to Sartorius, resolved by the Board of Directors based on the authorization granted by the Annual General Meeting on 26 April 2022.
The subscription price per New Share amounts to SEK 76.00 and has been determined by the Board of Directors of the Company following arm’s-length negotiations with Sartorius. The subscription price is equivalent to a premium of 2.7 percent compared to the 3-day VWAP of approximately SEK 74.02.
Through the Share Issue, the Company will receive gross proceeds of approx. SEK 487m, before transaction costs.
The Share Issue will result in a dilution of approximately 9.1 percent of the number of shares and approximately 7.6 percent of the number of the voting rights in BICO. Through the Share Issue, the number of shares in the Company will increase by 6,408,626 to 70,494,895 and the number of voting rights will increase by 6,408,626 to 83,994,895 shares in total, divided between 1,500,000 A shares and 68,994,895 B shares following the Share Issue. The share capital will increase by approximately SEK 160,215.65 from approximately SEK 1,602,156.725 to approximately SEK 1,762,372.375.
Upon settlement the transaction will result in an ownership for Sartorius of approximately 9.1 percent of the shares and 7.6 percent of the voting rights in BICO. Added to Sartorius’ already existing holding in BICO, the total ownership amounts to approximately 10.1 percent of the shares and 8.5 percent of the voting rights.
