Bryan, Garnier & Co leads a € 24,3 m capital increase for Innate Pharma
Paris, January 12th 2010 - Bryan, Garnier & Co, the independent pan-European investment bank focused on growth companies, announces that it has successfully lead a €24.3 m capital increase for Innate Pharma. Bryan, Garnier & Co acted as Global Coordinator and Sole Bookrunner on the transaction.
The 10,724,535 new shares were issued at an offering price of €2.27 in a PIPE transaction reserved to financial and industrial qualified investors. The transaction represented more than 40 % of the company's equity and voting rights.
The "Fonds Stratégique d'Investissement" (France's sovereign fund - "FSI") invested €11 m in the PIPE. Novo Nordisk A/S and Alta Partners, historical shareholders of the Company, also participated in the transaction.
Following the transaction, Novo Nordisk, the FSI and Alta Partners are the main shareholders of the Company with respectively 15.2%, 13.2% and 7.4% of the share capital.
Innate Pharma is an immunology biopharmaceutical company developing first-in-class drugs, primarily for cancer indications using two categories of immunotherapies : immuno-modulators modulating the activity of specific immune cell populations which in return directly kill tumoral or infected cells and triggering a global immune reaction and cytotoxic antibodies directly targeting receptors expressed on tumoral cells thus triggering their destruction.
Seven proprietary programs are currently being developed by Innate Pharma, of which two are tested in clinics. Two other are out-licensed to the Danish company Novo Nordisk (world leader in diabetes care and leading position within areas such as haemostasis management, growth hormone therapy and hormone replacement therapy).
The therapeutic approaches currently being developed by Innate Pharma could have an application in several therapeutic areas such as cancer, inflammation or infectious diseases.
Hervé Brailly, Chairman of the Executive Board of the Company, said: "It was very important to us to realize this capital increase with long-term strategic partners as well as with new shareholders. We now have the financial capacity to realize our development plan for the next three years, and notably the plan for the IPH 2101 drug-candidate, a monoclonal antibody currently in Phase II clinical trials". He added: "We also plan to complete the IPH 1101 program with the aim of forming a potential partnership as well as to move forward our other monoclonal antibodies - now at the core of our strategy - to clinical trial".
Olivier Garnier de Falletans, Managing Partner at Bryan, Garnier & Co commented: "This operation clearly demonstrates our commitment to support and nurture our clients in all their financing and strategic developments in order to develop tomorrow's success stories. We had lead the IPO of Innate Pharma in October 2006 and had intense interactions since the IPO with the management to guide and advise them on further developing the company."
Christian Finan, Equity Capital Markets Director at Bryan, Garnier & Co stated: "Another example of our strategy to focus on key growth sectors and fund companies backed by tier 1 industrials and venture funds. It also underlines our commitment towards the Biotech industry by gathering interest from the most active institutional investors on a pan-European basis on this sector. It also demonstrates our ability to react rapidly to market conditions and seize the opportunity of reinforcing the company's financial structure for future growth."
For more information, please contact:
Olivier Garnier / Managing Partner / +33 1 56 68 75 71 | ogarnier@bryangarnier.com
Christian Finan / Director - Equity Capital Markets / +33 1 56 68 75 30 | cfinan@bryangarnier.com
Catherine Trividic / Director - Healthcare Corporate Finance / +33 1 56 68 75 05 | ctrividic@bryangarnier.com
Fabien Blondel / Associate - Corporate Finance / +33 1 56 68 75 38 | fblondel@bryangarnier.com
About Innate Pharma
Innate Pharma is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing first-in-class immunotherapy drugs for cancer and other severe diseases. The Company was incorporated in 1999 and listed on NYSE-Euronext in Paris in 2006. The Company has two drug candidates currently in Phase II clinical trials. Two of its preclinical programs are out-licensed to Novo Nordisk A/S. Founded in 1999, the Company was first listed on NYSE-Euronext Paris in 2006. It is based in Marseille, France, and had 84 employees as at September 30, 2009.
About Bryan, Garnier & Co
Bryan, Garnier & Co is an independent investment bank specialising in European TMT, Healthcare and Renewable Energies growth companies. Bryan, Garnier & Co is positioned in three activities: Equity Research & Brokerage, Asset Management and Corporate Finance. With more than 100 professionals based in London, Paris, New York and Geneva, Bryan, Garnier & Co combines the range of services and the expertise of top-tier investment banks with the level of attention to clients of a boutique. Through its corporate finance practice, Bryan, Garnier & Co has became a leader in advising European growth companies on strategic finance transactions such as mergers & acquisitions, equity capital market, LBOs and private placement over the last three years. Bryan, Garnier & Co is authorized and regulated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) in the United Kingdom, and is member of London Stock Exchange and Euronext, Alternext Listing Sponsor, and is active on all European capital markets.