Artificial Solutions carries out a directed new share issue of 4,300,000 shares, thereby raising proceeds of approximately SEK 26.9 million
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The board of directors of Artificial Solutions International AB (”Artificial Solutions” or the ”Company”) has, in accordance with the Company’s press release earlier today, with support of the authorization granted by the extraordinary general meeting held on 8 January 2020, resolved on and carried out a new share issue of 4,300,000 shares (the ”Directed New Share Issue”). The Directed New Share Issue was heavily oversubscribed, and the subscription price amounted to SEK 6.25 per share. Through the Directed New Share Issue Artificial Solutions will receive proceeds amounting to approximately SEK 26.9 million before deduction of transaction costs.
The subscription price in the Directed New Share Issue amounted to SEK 6.25 and has been determined through a so called accelerated bookbuilding procedure carried out by the Company’s financial advisor Pareto Securities AB (“Pareto Securities”), why it is the board of directors’ assessment that the subscription price is in accordance with market conditions. The subscription price in the Directed New Share Issue constitutes a discount of approximately 7.5 per cent compared to the closing price on Nasdaq First North Growth Market on 16 June 2020. Through the Directed New Share Issue, the Company will receive approximately SEK 26.9 million before deduction of transaction costs.
The reasons for the deviation from the shareholders’ preferential rights are mainly to diversify the shareholder base in the Company and at the same time take advantage of the opportunity to raise capital in a time- and cost-efficient manner. The net proceeds from the Directed New Share Issue will primarily be used to support the Company’s continued strategy of investment for significant growth and to provide an increased liquidity margin given the uncertainties stemming from the impact of Covid-19 on the general business environment.
The Directed New Share Issue entails a dilution of approximately 9.0 per cent of the number of shares and votes in the Company. Through the Directed New Share Issue, the number of outstanding shares and votes will increase by 4,300,000 from 43,243,663 to 47,543,663. The share capital will increase by SEK 7,740,000.14, from SEK 77,838,594.73 to SEK 85,578,594.87.
“We are very pleased to have secured the funding to support our growth strategy and provide additional resilience for the company in uncertain times for the global economy.”, said Artificial Solutions’ CEO Lawrence Flynn.
In connection with the Directed New Share Issue, the Company has undertaken, with customary exceptions, not to issue additional shares for a period of twelve months starting from today. Scope Growth III L.P. (holding approximately 24.8 per cent of the shares in the Company), board members and persons of the management holding shares and/or warrants have undertaken, with customary exceptions, not to sell any shares in Artificial Solutions for a period of 90 calendar days starting from today.
Advisers
Pareto Securities is acting as financial adviser and Cirio Advokatbyrå is legal adviser to the Company in connection with the Directed New Share Issue.
For further information, please contact:
Lawrence Flynn, CEO, Artificial Solutions International AB
Phone: +44 (0)1635 523267
E-mail: lawrence.flynn@artificial-solutions.com
This information is information that Artificial Solutions International AB is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact person above, at 00:30 CEST on 17 June 2020.
About Artificial Solutions
Artificial Solutions® is the leading specialist in enterprise-strength conversational AI, a form of Artificial Intelligence that allows people to communicate with applications, websites and devices in everyday, humanlike natural language via voice, text, touch or gesture input.
Designed for the global enterprise, Artificial Solutions' advanced conversational AI platform, Teneo®, allows business users and developers to collaborate on creating sophisticated, highly intelligent applications that run across over 35 languages, multiple platforms and channels in record time. The ability to analyze and make use of the enormous quantities of conversational data is fully integrated within Teneo, delivering unprecedented levels of insight that reveal what customers are truly thinking.
Artificial Solutions' conversational AI technology makes it easy to implement a wide range of natural language applications such as virtual assistants, chatbots, speech-based conversational UIs for smart devices and more. It is already used daily by millions of people across hundreds of private and public sector deployments worldwide.
Artificial Solutions International is listed on Nasdaq First North Growth Market in Stockholm with short name ASAI. Erik Penser Bank is the Company’s Certified Adviser (www.penser.se, phone: +46 (0) 8-463 83 00, e-mail: certifiedadviser@penser.se).
For more information, please visit www.artificial-solutions.com.
Important information
Publication, announcement or distribution of this press release may, in certain jurisdictions, be subject to restrictions. The recipients of this press release in jurisdictions where this press release has been published or distributed shall inform themselves of and follow such restrictions. This press release does not constitute an offer, or a solicitation of any offer, to buy or subscribe for any securities in the Company in any jurisdiction, neither from Artificial Solutions nor from anyone else.
This press release does not identify or suggest, or purport to identify or suggest, the risks (direct or indirect) that may be associated with an investment in the new shares. Any investment decision in connection with the Directed New Share Issue must be made on the basis of all publicly available information relating to the Company and the Company’s shares. Such information has not been independently verified by Pareto Securities. The information contained in this announcement is for background purposes only and does not purport to be complete. Thus, an investor should not place undue reliance on the information contained in this press release or its accuracy or completeness. Pareto Securities is acting for the Company in connection with the transaction and no one else. Pareto Securities will not be responsible to anyone other than the Company for providing the protections afforded to its clients nor for giving advice in relation to the transaction or any other matter referred to herein.
This press release does not constitute a recommendation concerning any investor’s decision with respect to the Directed New Share Issue. Each investor or prospective investor should conduct his, her or its own investigation, analysis and evaluation of the business and information described in this press release and in all publicly available information. The price and value of the securities can go decrease as well as increase. Past performance is not a guide to future performance.
This press release does not constitute or form part of an offer or solicitation to purchase or subscribe for securities in the United States. The securities referred to herein may not be sold in the United States absent registration or an exemption from registration under the US Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and may not be offered or sold within the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act. There is no intention to register any securities referred to herein in the United States or to make a public offering of the securities in the United States. The information in this press release may not be announced, published, copied or distributed, directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, within or into the United States, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea or in any other jurisdiction where the announcement, publication or distribution of the information would not comply with applicable laws and regulations or would require prospectuses, registration or any other measures than those required by Swedish law. Actions taken in violation of this instruction may constitute a crime against applicable securities laws and regulations.
This press release is not a prospectus for the purposes of Regulation (EG) 2017/1129 (the “Prospectus Regulation”) and has not been approved by any regulatory authority in any jurisdiction. Artificial Solutions has not authorized any offer to the public of shares or rights in any member state of the EEA and no prospectus has been or will be prepared in connection with the Directed New Share Issue. In any EEA member state, this press release is only addressed to and is only directed at "qualified investors" in that member state within the meaning of the Prospectus Regulation.
In the United Kingdom, this document and any other materials in relation to the securities described herein is only being distributed and directed to, and any investment or investment activity to which this document relates is available only to, and can only be used by, “qualified investors” who are (i) persons having professional experience in matters relating to investments and who fall within the definition of “investment professionals” in Article 19(5) of the British Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005 (the “Order”); or (ii) high net worth individuals falling within Article 49(2)(a) to (d) of the Order (all such persons together being referred to as “Relevant Persons”). In the United Kingdom, any investment or investments to which this press release relates is available only to, and will be engaged in only with, Relevant Persons. Persons who are not Relevant Persons should not take any action based on this press release nor act or rely on it.
Forward-looking statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements that reflect the Company’s intentions, assessments, or current expectations about and targets for the Company’s future results of operations, financial condition, development, liquidity, performance, prospects, anticipated growth, strategies and opportunities and the markets in which the Company operates. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and may be identified by the fact that they contain words such as “believe”, “expect”, “anticipate”, “intend”, “may”, “plan”, “estimate”, “will”, “should”, “could”, “aim” or “might”, or, in each case, their negative, or similar expressions. The forward-looking statements in this press release are based upon various assumptions, many of which are based, in turn, upon further assumptions. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurances that they will materialize or prove to be correct. Because these statements are based on assumptions or estimates and are subject to risks and uncertainties, the actual results or outcome could differ materially from those set out in the forward-looking statements, which are a result of many factors. Such risks, uncertainties, contingencies and other important factors could cause actual events to differ materially from the expectations expressed or implied in this release by such forward-looking statements. The Company does not guarantee that the assumptions underlying the forward-looking statements in this press release are free from errors nor does it accept any responsibility for the future accuracy of the opinions expressed in this press release or any obligation to update or revise the statements in this press release to reflect subsequent events. Readers of this press release should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements in this press release. The information, opinions and forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of its date and are subject to change without notice. Neither the Company nor anyone else does undertake any obligation to review, update, confirm or to release publicly any revisions to any forward-looking statements to reflect events that occur or circumstances that arise in relation to the content of this press release.
Information to distributors
Solely for the purposes of the product governance requirements contained within: (a) Directive 2014/65/EU of the European Parliament and the Council on markets in financial instruments, as amended (“MiFID II”); (b) Articles 9 and 10 of Commission Delegated Directive (EU) 2017/593 supplementing MiFID II; and (c) local implementing measures (together, the “MiFID II Product Governance Requirements”), and disclaiming all and any liability, whether arising in tort, contract or otherwise, which any “manufacturer” (for the purposes of the MiFID II Product Governance Requirements) may otherwise have with respect thereto, the shares in Artificial Solutions have been subject to a product approval process, which has determined that such shares are: (i) compatible with an end target market of retail investors and investors who meet the criteria of professional clients and eligible counterparties, each as defined in MiFID II; and (ii) eligible for distribution through all distribution channels as are permitted by MiFID II (the “Target Market Assessment”). Notwithstanding the Target Market Assessment, distributors should note that: the price of the shares in Artificial Solutions may decline and investors could lose all or part of their investment; the shares in Artificial Solutions offer no guaranteed income and no capital protection; and an investment in the shares in Artificial Solutions is compatible only with investors who do not need a guaranteed income or capital protection, who (either alone or in conjunction with an appropriate financial or other adviser) are capable of evaluating the merits and risks of such an investment and who have sufficient resources to be able to bear any losses that may result therefrom. The Target Market Assessment is without prejudice to the requirements of any contractual, legal or regulatory selling restrictions in relation to the Directed New Share Issue.
For the avoidance of doubt, the Target Market Assessment does not constitute: (a) an assessment of suitability or appropriateness for the purposes of MiFID II; or (b) a recommendation to any investor or group of investors to invest in, or purchase, or take any other action whatsoever with respect to the shares in Artificial Solutions.
Each distributor is responsible for undertaking its own target market assessment in respect of the shares in Artificial Solutions and determining appropriate distribution channels.