BY
Zwipe
Zwipe AS
NOT FOR RELEASE, DISTRIBUTION OR PUBLICATION, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN OR INTO RUSSIA, BELARUS, AUSTRALIA, HONG KONG, JAPAN, CANADA, NEW ZEALAND, SWITZERLAND, SINGAPORE, SOUTH AFRICA, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA OR ANY OTHER JURISDICTION WHERE SUCH ACTION IS IN WHOLE OR IN PART WOULD BE UNLAWFUL. THIS PRESS RELEASE DOES NOT CONSTITUTE AN OFFER TO ACQUIRE SECURITIES IN ZWIPE AS. SEE THE "IMPORTANT INFORMATION" SECTION BELOW.
OSLO NORWAY – 22 NOVEMBER 2022 - The Board of Directors of Zwipe AS (the "Company" or "Zwipe") has today resolved to propose a preferential rights issue of 20,862,047 new shares (the "Offer Shares"), for a subscription price of NOK 4.80 per Offer Share, raising gross proceeds of approximately NOK 100 million with preferential rights for existing shareholders (the "Rights Issue"). The Rights Issue is fully guaranteed through a combination of subscription commitments and underwriting commitments. The Rights Issue requires the approval by the extraordinary general meeting of the Company expected to be held on 2 December 2022 (the "EGM") to be implemented. The notice of the extraordinary general meeting will be published in a separate press release.
Background and reason for the Rights Issue
Zwipe is a Norwegian biometric technology company established in 2009, focused on developing and commercializing secure, fast, and easy-to-use biometric authentication solutions with broad applications across key verticals such as payments and access control. Since 2019, card manufacturers have started the process of launching biometric payment card specific manufacturing lines, semiconductor providers have begun the development of dedicated offerings for this market, and the entire value chain supporting these processes has started moving more consistently. At the same time, Zwipe has made significant progress and added numerous smart card manufacturing customers across the world, significantly broadening their customer base. In addition, Zwipe has entered multiple important partnerships to enhance their go-to-market strategy and accelerate the adoption of biometric payment cards. Pilots have started and give the Company insights in its progress towards commercial adoption of its offerings.
In 2022, Zwipe has achieved a number of important milestones. The Company received its single largest commercial order for Zwipe Pay in a single quarter totalling $225,000. The Zwipe Pay Biometric Payment Card Platform received certification from both Visa and Mastercard, and the Fraport biometric access control project at Frankfurt Airport was successfully completed. Catering to the strong demand for access control solutions in the market, Zwipe is now engaging with a number of system integrators and distributors to accelerate the deployment of biometric access cards in key verticals and markets.
The Rights Issue is carried out in order to strengthen the Company’s financial position and enable the transition from start-up to scale-up.
Robert Puskaric, CEO of Zwipe comments:
“I am extremely pleased by the continued confidence demonstrated by our largest existing shareholders. Zwipe is experiencing significant positive commercial momentum and the proceeds from this fully secured rights issue will enable us to build upon our already strong position within biometric payments and biometric access control. The proceeds will be used to continue ramping up to meet growing global market demand for biometric security.”
Key terms of the Rights Issue
Underwriting obligations and guarantee commitments
The Rights Issue is fully guaranteed through a combination of subscription- and underwriting commitments. The subscription commitments are entered into with the Company’s largest shareholders, including Chairman of the Board Jörgen Lantto, and amount to approximately NOK 34.5 million, corresponding to approximately 34.5 percent of the Rights Issue. The underwriting commitments amount to approximately NOK 65.6 million, corresponding to approximately 65.5 percent of the Rights Issue. The underwriting commitments are entered into with three of the Company’s largest owners, Vasastaden Holding AB, Erik Selin Fastigheter AB and Arcanum Eiendom AS (controlled by Lars Windfeldt) pursuant to underwriting agreements entered into with each of them on 22 November 2022. The commitments and underwriting commitments are not secured by bank guarantee, escrow funds, pledging or similar arrangements. Pursuant to, and subject to, the terms and conditions set out in the underwriting agreements and the subscription commitments, the underwriters and pre-committing subscribing shareholders have undertaken to vote their shares held at the time of the EGM in favour of the Rights Issue and all underwriters have undertaken to guarantee on a several basis (not jointly) to subscribe for the Offer Shares, for a total underwritten amount of NOK 100,137,825.6 million, less any subscriptions covered by the subscription commitments. The Offer Shares which are not subscribed upon expiration of the subscription period (if any), will thus be subscribed by and allocated to the underwriters.
Other information pertaining to the Rights Issue
In connection with the Right Issue, a prospectus will be prepared, which is subject to the approval by the Norwegian Financial Supervisory Authority and which will be passported to Sweden. The prospectus will be published prior to the commencement of the subscription period and will form the basis for subscriptions in the Right Issue. Provided that the prospectus is approved by the Norwegian Financial Supervisory Authority and passported to Sweden in time, the subscription period for the Rights Issue will commence on 6 March 2023 and expire 20 March 2023 at 16:30 hours (CET). In the event that the prospectus is not approved in time to uphold this subscription period, the subscription period will commence on the second trading day on the Oslo Stock Exchange following the approval of the prospectus and expire at 16:30 hours (CET) two weeks thereafter.
The shareholders of the Company on 27 February 2023 (and being registered as such in the Norwegian Central Securities Depository, Euronext Securities Oslo, (the "VPS") as at the expiry of 1 March 2023 (the "record date")) will be granted one (1) preferential subscription right for each share registered as held by the shareholder as of the record date. Nine (9) preferential rights will give the right to subscribe for and be allocated five (5) Offer Shares in the Rights Issue (i.e. the holding of less than nine (9) preferential rights will not give the right to subscribe for any Offer Shares in the Rights Issue). Provided that a purchase of shares is made with ordinary T+2 settlement, shares purchased up to and including 27 February 2023 will give the right to receive subscription rights, whereas shares purchased from and including 28 February 2023 will not give the right to receive subscription rights. The subscription rights are expected to be tradable and listed on Euronext Growth Oslo and Nasdaq First North from and including the first day of the subscription period and until 16:30 (Oslo time) four trading days prior to the expiry of the subscription period. Over-subscription and subscription without subscription rights will be permitted.
A further description of the Rights Issue and of other circumstances that must be considered upon subscription of shares in the Rights Issue will be included in the prospectus for the Rights Issue, which will be published no later than the first trading of the subscription period and that will constitute the subscription material for the Rights Issue.
Indicative timeline for the Rights Issue
Change in share capital and number of shares and dilution
Upon completion of the Rights Issue, the share capital in the Company will be increased by NOK 2,086,204.7, from NOK 3,755,168.50 to NOK 5,841,373.20, through the issuance of 20,862,047 new shares. The number of shares thus increases from 37,551,685 to 58,413,732 shares. For existing shareholders who do not participate in the Rights Issue, this means, in the case of full subscription, a dilution effect of 35.7 percent of capital and votes in the Company.
Advisor
Zwipe has engaged Erik Penser Bank AB and Advokatfirmaet Simonsen Vogt Wiig AS as financial and legal advisors respectively in connection with the Rights Issue.
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For further information contact:
Danielle Glenn, CFO and Head of IR, Zwipe
E-mail: ir@zwipe.com
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This information is subject to the disclosure requirements in the Market Abuse Regulation (EU 596/2014) and the Norwegian Securities Trading Act section 5-12, and is information that Zwipe AS is obligated to make public pursuant to the continuing obligations of companies admitted to trading on Euronext Growth Oslo (Euronext Growth Oslo Rule Book – Part II) and on Nasdaq First North Growth Market. Certified Adviser on Nasdaq First North is FNCA Sweden AB, info@fnca.se. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact person set out below, at 19:30 on 22 November 2022.
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About Zwipe
Zwipe believes the inherent uniqueness of every person is the key to a safer future. We work with great passion across networks of international organizations, industries and cultures to make convenience safe and secure. We are pioneering next-generation biometric card and wearables technology for payment and physical & logical access control and identification solutions. We promise our customers and partners deep insight and frictionless solutions, ensuring a seamless user experience with our innovative biometric products and services. Zwipe is headquartered in Oslo, Norway, with a global presence.
To learn more, visit http://www.zwipe.com.
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Important information
The information in this press release neither contains nor constitutes an offer to acquire, subscribe or otherwise trade in shares, warrants or other securities in Zwipe. No action has been taken and no action will be taken to permit an offer to the public in any jurisdictions other than Norway and Sweden. The invitation to interested persons to subscribe for shares in Zwipe will only take place through the prospectus that Zwipe expects to be able to publish around 3 March 2023. This announcement is an advertisement and is not a prospectus for the purposes of the Prospectus Regulation. Investors should not subscribe for any securities referred to in this announcement except on the basis of information contained in the aforementioned prospectus.
The information contained in this press release may not be disclosed, published or distributed, directly or indirectly, within or to the United States, Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, Canada, New Zealand, Switzerland, Singapore, South Africa, Russia, Belarus or any other jurisdiction where such action would be illegal, subject to legal restrictions or require measures other than those that follow from Norwegian and Swedish law. Actions contrary to this instruction may constitute a violation of applicable securities legislation. No shares or other securities of Zwipe have been registered, and no shares or other securities will be registered, under the United States Securities Act of 1933 from time to time ("Securities Act") or the securities laws of any state or other jurisdiction of the United States and may not be offered, sold or otherwise transferred, directly or indirectly, in or to the United States, except pursuant to an applicable exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act and pursuant to the securities laws of the relevant state or other jurisdiction in the United States. This communication is distributed to and directed solely to persons in the United Kingdom who are (i) professional investors falling within the scope of Article 19(5) of the U.K. from time to time in force; Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005 ("the Order") or (ii) high net worth subjects and other persons to whom this notice may lawfully be addressed, who are subject to Article 49(2)(a)-(d) ) in the Order (all such persons are collectively referred to as "Relevant Persons"). Persons who are not Relevant Persons may not act on or rely on the information in this communication. An investment or investment measure referred to in this communication is only possible for Relevant Persons and will only be completed with Relevant Persons. Persons who disseminate this communication must themselves ensure that such dissemination is permitted.
Forward-looking statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements that refer to the Company's intentions, assessments or expectations regarding the Company's future results, financial position, liquidity, development, prospects, expected growth, strategies and opportunities as well as the markets in which the Company operates. Forward-looking statements are statements that do not relate to historical facts and can be identified by the inclusion of expressions such as "believes", "expects", "anticipates", "intends", "estimates", "will", "may", "assumes", "should" "could" and, in each case, negations thereof, or similar expressions. The forward-looking statements in this press release are based on various assumptions, which in several cases are based on additional assumptions. Although the Company believes that the assumptions reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that they will occur or that they are accurate. As these assumptions are based on assumptions or estimates and are subject to risks and uncertainties, the actual result or outcome may, for many different reasons, differ materially from what appears in the forward-looking statements.
Such risks, uncertainties, contingencies, and other material factors may cause actual events to differ materially from the expectations expressed or implied in this press release through the forward-looking statements. The Company does not warrant that the assumptions underlying the forward-looking statements in this press release are correct and any reader of the press release should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements in this press release. The information, opinions and forward-looking statements expressed or implied herein are provided only as of the date of this press release and are subject to change. Neither the Company nor anyone else undertakes to revise, update, confirm or publicly announce any revision of any forward-looking statement to reflect events occurring or circumstances occurring with respect to the contents of this press release, except as required by law or Nasdaq First North Growth Markets' regulations for issuers.
