NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN, INTO OR FROM ANY JURISDICTION WHERE TO DO SO WOULD CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF THE RELEVANT LAWS OR REGULATIONS OF SUCH JURISDICTION
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
15 August 2019
RECOMMENDED CASH OFFER
for
BTG PLC
(BTG)
by
BRAVO BIDCO LIMITED
(Bidco)
a newly incorporated indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Boston Scientific Corporation (Boston Scientific)
intended to be effected by means of a scheme of arrangement under Part 26 of the Companies Act
Court sanction of the Scheme
On 20 November 2018, the Boards of Boston Scientific, Bidco and BTG announced that they had reached agreement on the terms of a recommended cash offer by Bidco for the acquisition of the entire issued and to be issued ordinary share capital of BTG (the Acquisition). As outlined in that announcement, the Acquisition is to be effected by means of a scheme of arrangement under part 26 of the Companies Act (the Scheme). On 28 February 2019, the Scheme was approved by the Scheme Shareholders at the Court Meeting.
Boston Scientific, Bidco and BTG are pleased to announce that the High Court of Justice in
Except as otherwise defined herein, capitalised terms used but not defined in this announcement have the same meanings as given to them in the scheme document dated 24 January 2019 (the Scheme Document).
Next steps
BTG confirms that the Scheme Record Time for the Scheme will be 6.00 p.m. (
A request has been made for the suspension of the listing of BTG Shares on the premium listing segment of the Official List and the admission to trading of BTG Shares on the London Stock Exchange's Main Market, with effect from 7.30 a.m. (
It is expected that the Scheme will become Effective on 19 August 2019 and that the listing of the BTG Shares on the premium listing segment of the Official List and the trading of BTG Shares on the London Stock Exchange's Main Market will each be cancelled with effect from 8.00 a.m. (
A further announcement will be made when the Scheme has become Effective and when the admission to listing and admission to trading of BTG Shares have been cancelled.
If any of the expected times and/or dates above change, the revised times and/or dates will be notified to BTG Shareholders by announcement through a Regulatory Information Service. Such announcement will, subject to certain restrictions relating to persons in Restricted Jurisdictions, also be available on BTG's website at www.btgplc.com.
Enquiries: |
|
BTG Andy Burrows (Vice President, Corporate & Investor Relations) |
+44 20 7575 1741
|
Goldman Sachs International (joint financial adviser to BTG) Anthony Gutman Nimesh Khiroya Søren Moller-Rasmussen |
+44 20 7774 1000 |
J.P. Morgan Cazenove (joint financial adviser and joint corporate broker to BTG) James Mitford Dwayne Lysaght Alex Bruce |
+44 20 7742 4000 |
Rothschild & Co (joint financial adviser to BTG) Richard Murley Dominic Hollamby Julian Hudson |
+44 20 7280 5000 |
Deutsche Bank AG (joint corporate broker to BTG) Neil Collingridge Anna Mills |
+44 20 7545 8000 |
FTI Consulting (PR adviser to BTG) Ben Atwell |
+44 20 3727 1000 |
Bidco / Boston Scientific Susie Lisa (Investor Relations) |
+1 (508) 683-5565 |
Barclays (financial adviser to Bidco and Boston Scientific) Doug Solomon Jed Brody Derek Shakespeare |
+44 20 7623 2323 |
Important notices relating to Financial Advisers
Goldman Sachs International, which is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority in the
J.P. Morgan Securities plc, which conducts its
N M Rothschild & Sons Limited (Rothschild & Co), which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority in the
Deutsche Bank AG is authorised under German Banking Law (competent authority: European Central Bank) and, in the
Barclays Bank PLC, acting through its investment bank (Barclays), which is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority in the
Further Information
This Announcement is for information purposes only and is not intended to, and does not, constitute or form part of any offer, invitation, inducement or the solicitation of an offer to purchase, otherwise acquire, subscribe for, sell or otherwise dispose of or exercise rights in respect of any securities, or the solicitation of any vote or approval of an offer to buy securities in any jurisdiction, pursuant to the Acquisition or otherwise nor shall there be any sale, issuance or transfer of any securities pursuant to the Acquisition in any jurisdiction in contravention of any applicable laws.
The Acquisition is being made solely through the Scheme Document (unless Boston Scientific elects, with the consent of the Panel, to implement the Acquisition by way of a Takeover Offer), which contains the full terms and conditions of the Acquisition, including details of how to vote at the Meetings in respect of the Scheme. Any decision to vote or other response in respect of the Acquisition should be made only on the basis of the information contained in the Scheme Document. BTG Shareholders are advised to read the Scheme Document carefully.
This Announcement does not constitute a prospectus or prospectus-equivalent document.
This Announcement has been prepared for the purpose of complying with English law and the Code and the information disclosed may not be the same as that which would have been disclosed if this Announcement had been prepared in accordance with the laws of jurisdictions outside the
In accordance with the Code, normal
Overseas jurisdictions
The release, publication or distribution of this Announcement in, and the availability of the Acquisition to persons who are residents, citizens or nationals of jurisdictions other than the
The Acquisition will not be made, directly or indirectly, in, into or from a Restricted Jurisdiction where to do so would violate the laws of that jurisdiction and no person may vote in favour of the Acquisition by any use, means, instrumentality or form within a Restricted Jurisdiction or any other jurisdiction if to do so would constitute a violation of the laws of that jurisdiction. Accordingly, copies of this Announcement and any formal documentation relating to the Acquisition are not being, and must not be, directly or indirectly, mailed or otherwise forwarded, distributed or sent in or into or from any Restricted Jurisdiction and persons receiving such documents (including custodians, nominees and trustees) must not mail or otherwise forward, distribute or send them in or into or from any Restricted Jurisdiction.
The receipt of cash pursuant to the Acquisition by BTG Shareholders may be a taxable transaction under applicable national, state and local, as well as foreign and other tax laws. Each BTG Shareholder is urged to consult their independent professional adviser regarding the tax consequences of the Acquisition applicable to him.
If the Acquisition is implemented by way of a Takeover Offer (unless otherwise permitted by applicable law and regulation), the Takeover Offer may not be made, directly or indirectly, in, into or by use of the mails or any other means of instrumentality (including, without limitation, facsimile, e-mail or other electronic transmission, telex or telephone) of interstate or foreign commerce of, or any facility of a national, state or other securities exchange of any Restricted Jurisdiction and the Takeover Offer will not be capable of acceptance by any such use, means, instrumentality or facilities or from within any Restricted Jurisdiction where to do so would violate the laws of that jurisdiction and shall not be capable of acceptance by any such use, means, instrumentality or facility or from within such Restricted Jurisdiction.
This Announcement has been prepared for the purpose of complying with English law, the rules of the London Stock Exchange and the Code and the information disclosed may not be the same as that which would have been disclosed if this Announcement has been prepared in accordance with the laws of jurisdictions outside
Further details in relation to BTG Shareholders in overseas jurisdictions are contained in the Scheme Document.
Notice to US Investors in BTG
The Acquisition relates to the shares of a company organised under the laws of
If the Acquisition is implemented by way of a Takeover Offer, pursuant to Rule 14e-5(b) under the US Exchange Act, Bidco, certain affiliated companies or their nominees or brokers (acting as agents) may from time to time make certain purchases of, or arrangements to purchase, shares in BTG outside such a Takeover Offer during the period in which such a Takeover Offer would remain open for acceptance. If such purchases or arrangements to purchase were to be made, they would be made outside the US and would apply in accordance with applicable law, including the US Exchange Act and the Code. Such purchases may occur either in the open market at prevailing prices or in private transactions at negotiated prices. Any information about such purchases will be disclosed as required in the
BTG's financial statements, and all financial information that is included in this Announcement or included in the Scheme Document, or any other documents relating to the Acquisition, have been or will be prepared in accordance with non-US accounting standards that may not be comparable to financial information of companies in
Neither the United States Securities and Exchange Commission nor any US state securities commission has approved or disapproved the Acquisition, passed upon the merits or fairness of the Acquisition or passed any opinion upon the accuracy, adequacy or completeness of this Announcement or the Scheme Document. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offence in
BTG is incorporated under the laws of
The receipt of cash pursuant to the Acquisition by US holders of BTG Shares as consideration for the transfer of its Scheme Shares pursuant to the Scheme may be a taxable transaction for US federal income tax purposes and under applicable US state and local, as well as foreign and other, tax laws. Each US holder of BTG Shares is urged to consult his or her independent professional adviser immediately regarding the tax consequences of the Acquisition applicable to him or her.
Publication on website and availability of hard copies
This Announcement and the display documents required to be published pursuant to Rule 26.1 of the Code will be made available, free of charge and subject to certain restrictions relating to persons in Restricted Jurisdictions, on BTG's website at www.btgplc.com and Boston Scientific's website at http://investors.bostonscientific.com by no later than 12 noon (
In accordance with Rule 30.3 of the Code, a person so entitled may request a copy of this Announcement (and any information incorporated into it by reference to another source) in hard copy form by writing to Link Asset Services, The Registry, 34 Beckenham Road, Beckenham, Kent BR3 4TU or by calling the Shareholder Helpline at Link Asset Services on +44 (0) 371 664 0321. Calls are charged at the standard geographic rate and will vary by provider. Calls from outside the
General
If you are in any doubt about the contents of this Announcement or the action you should take, you are recommended to seek your own independent financial advice immediately from your stockbroker, bank manager, solicitor or independent financial adviser duly authorised under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (as amended) if you are resident in the
This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the