NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION INTO OR IN THE UNITED STATES, CANADA, AUSTRALIA, JAPAN OR INTO ANY OTHER JURISDICTION IN WHICH OFFERS OR SALES WOULD BE PROHIBITED BY APPLICABLE LAW
The sales proceeds amount to EUR 176 million corresponding to EUR 3.33 per Sponda share
Solidium has today sold 53,000,000 shares in Sponda Plc, corresponding to approximately 19 per cent of the outstanding shares, in an accelerated bookbuilt offering at a price of EUR 3.33 per share. A significant portion of the shares placed in the offering were purchased by Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Company and Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Company, with the remainder being placed with institutional investors in Finland and internationally.
Gross sales proceeds of the offering amount to approximately EUR 176 million representing a pre-tax exit gain for Solidium of approximately EUR 79 million. As a consequence of the sale, Solidium’s holding in Sponda decreases from 34.3 per cent to 15.2 per cent of the outstanding shares. Solidium has undertaken not to dispose of any further shares in Sponda on the market for a period of 180 days following the offering, subject to certain exceptions.
“We have reduced our ownership level in Sponda in line with our strategy and I am very satisfied with the successful execution”, says Solidium’s Managing Director Kari Järvinen. “We supported Sponda by investing EUR 71 million in the rights issue in June 2009 and we have now monetized some of the recent positive share price development. Since the rights issue, the Sponda share price has increased from EUR 2.0 to the current price of EUR 3.4 and the discount to its net asset value has decreased significantly. Even after the disposal of shares in this offering, Solidium remains the largest shareholder in Sponda with a holding of approximately 15 per cent.”
Morgan Stanley acted as sole bookrunner and ABG Sundal Collier as selling agent in the placing.
Sponda Plc is a real estate investment company that specialises in commercial properties. The company operates in the Helsinki metropolitan area and other large Finnish cities, as well as in Moscow and St. Petersburg, Russia. The leasable area of Sponda’s investment properties is around 1.5 million square metres, consisting of office and retail premises and logistics properties. The fair value of the properties is approximately EUR 2.8 billion. Sponda’s share is quoted on the Nasdaq OMX Helsinki.
Important notice
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS FOR INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND SHALL NOT CONSTITUTE AN OFFER TO BUY, SELL, ISSUE, OR SUBSCRIBE FOR, OR THE SOLICITATION OF AN OFFER TO BUY, SELL, ISSUE, OR SUBSCRIBE FOR ANY SECURITIES, NOR SHALL THERE BE ANY SALE OF SECURITIES IN ANY JURISDICTION IN WHICH SUCH OFFER, SOLICITATION OR SALE WOULD BE UNLAWFUL PRIOR TO REGISTRATION OR QUALIFICATION UNDER THE SECURITIES LAWS OF ANY SUCH JURISDICTION.
MEMBERS OF THE GENERAL PUBLIC ARE NOT ELIGIBLE TO TAKE PART IN THE PLACING. THIS ANNOUNCEMENT AND ANY OFFER OF SECURITIES TO WHICH IT RELATES ARE ONLY ADDRESSED TO AND DIRECTED AT PERSONS WHO ARE (1) QUALIFIED INVESTORS WITHIN THE MEANING OF DIRECTIVE 2003/71/EC AND ANY RELEVANT IMPLEMENTING MEASURES (THE “PROSPECTUS DIRECTIVE”) AND (2) WHO HAVE PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE IN MATTERS RELATING TO INVESTMENTS WHO FALL WITHIN ARTICLE 19(1) OF THE FINANCIAL SERVICES AND MARKETS ACT 2000 (FINANCIAL PROMOTION) ORDER 2005 (THE “ORDER”) OR ARE PERSONS FALLING WITHIN ARTICLE 49(2)(A) TO (D) (“HIGH NET WORTH COMPANIES, UNINCORPORATED ASSOCIATIONS, ETC”) OF THE ORDER OR ARE PERSONS TO WHOM AN OFFER OF THE PLACING SHARES MAY OTHERWISE LAWFULLY BE MADE (ALL SUCH PERSONS TOGETHER BEING REFERRED TO AS “RELEVANT PERSONS”). THE INFORMATION REGARDING THE PLACING SET OUT IN THIS ANNOUNCEMENT MUST NOT BE ACTED ON OR RELIED ON BY PERSONS WHO ARE NOT RELEVANT PERSONS. ANY INVESTMENT OR INVESTMENT ACTIVITY TO WHICH THIS ANNOUNCEMENT RELATES IS AVAILABLE ONLY TO RELEVANT PERSONS AND WILL BE ENGAGED IN ONLY WITH RELEVANT PERSONS.
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS NOT FOR PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN OR INTO THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (INCLUDING ITS TERRITORIES AND POSSESSIONS, ANY STATE OF THE UNITED STATES AND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA). THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS NOT AN OFFER OF SECURITIES FOR SALE INTO THE UNITED STATES. THE SECURITIES REFERRED TO HEREIN HAVE NOT BEEN AND WILL NOT BE REGISTERED UNDER THE U.S. SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED, AND MAY NOT BE OFFERED OR SOLD IN THE UNITED STATES, EXCEPT PURSUANT TO AN APPLICABLE EXEMPTION FROM REGISTRATION. NO PUBLIC OFFERING OF SECURITIES IS BEING MADE IN THE UNITED STATES.
ANY INVESTMENT DECISION TO BUY SECURITIES IN THE PLACING MUST BE MADE SOLELY ON THE BASIS OF PUBLICLY AVAILABLE INFORMATION WHICH HAS NOT BEEN INDEPENDENTLY VERIFIED BY MORGAN STANLEY (THE “MANAGER”) OR THE SELLER. NEITHER THIS ANNOUNCEMENT NOR ANY COPY OF IT MAY BE TAKEN, TRANSMITTED OR DISTRIBUTED, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY IN OR INTO THE UNITED STATES, CANADA, AUSTRALIA, JAPAN OR INTO ANY OTHER JURISDICTION IN WHICH OFFERS OR SALES WOULD BE PROHIBITED BY APPLICABLE LAW. ANY FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH THIS RESTRICTION MAY CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF UNITED STATES, CANADIAN, AUSTRALIAN, JAPANESE OR OTHER APPLICABLE SECURITIES LAWS.
THE DISTRIBUTION OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT AND THE OFFERING OR SALE OF THE PLACING SHARES IN CERTAIN JURISDICTIONS MAY BE RESTRICTED BY LAW. NO ACTION HAS BEEN TAKEN BY THE MANAGER, OR ANY OF ITS RESPECTIVE AFFILIATES, OR ANY OTHER PERSON THAT WOULD PERMIT AN OFFER OF THE PLACING SHARES OR POSSESSION OR DISTRIBUTION OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT OR ANY OTHER OFFERING OR PUBLICITY MATERIAL RELATING TO THE PLACING SHARES IN ANY JURISDICTION WHERE ACTION FOR THAT PURPOSE IS REQUIRED. PERSONS INTO WHOSE POSSESSION THIS ANNOUNCEMENT COMES ARE REQUIRED BY THE MANAGER TO INFORM THEMSELVES ABOUT AND TO OBSERVE ANY SUCH RESTRICTIONS.
THE MANAGER IS ACTING EXCLUSIVELY FOR THE SELLER AND NO ONE ELSE IN CONNECTION WITH THE PLACING. THE MANAGER WILL NOT REGARD ANY OTHER PERSON (WHETHER OR NOT A RECIPIENT OF THIS DOCUMENT) AS ITS CLIENT IN RELATION TO THE PLACING AND WILL NOT BE RESPONSIBLE TO ANYONE OTHER THAN THE SELLER FOR PROVIDING THE PROTECTIONS AFFORDED TO ITS CLIENTS NOR FOR GIVING ADVICE IN RELATION TO THE PLACING OR ANY TRANSACTION, ARRANGEMENT OR OTHER MATTER REFERRED TO IN THIS ANNOUNCEMENT. THE MANAGER MAY PARTICIPATE IN THE PLACING ON A PROPRIETARY BASIS.
