Aferian PLC has announced the conversion of 535,000 shares awarded under the Aferian Long Term Incentive Plan 2019 to nil-cost share options over ordinary shares of 1 pence each in the capital of the Company for two of its directors. The Awards, originally granted on 15 July 2019, were assessed by the Remuneration Committee and found to have been met in full. However, due to a close period, vesting of the Awards could not occur in 2022 until 24 October 2022.
The Remuneration Committee considered the Awards in light of the significant change in trading circumstances outlined in the trading update of 24 October 2022 and agreed that vesting after the trading update would not be in the interest of shareholders. Consequently, the Committee reached an agreement with the two Award holders to defer vesting, subject only to the individuals' continued employment in the Company.
The conversion of the Awards to nil-cost share options is valid for ten years from the date of the original grant, subject only to continued employment of the recipient or for a period of six months following cessation of that employment. The Remuneration Committee also considered the effect of this vesting on the maintenance of orderly trading in the Company's shares, given the vesting of the Awards would trigger a significant director share trade due to the crystallization of personal tax liabilities.
Aferian PLC, a B2B video streaming solutions company, focuses on innovating technologies that enable its customers to stay ahead of evolving viewer demand by providing smarter, more cost-effective ways of delivering end-to-end modern TV and video experiences to consumers. The company has two operating companies: 24i, which focuses on streaming video experiences, and Amino, which connects Pay TV to streaming services. Their solutions deliver modern TV and video experiences every day to millions of viewers globally, via a growing global customer base of over 500 service providers.