Avacta Group PLC has announced the issuance and allotment of 3,425,373 new ordinary shares of 10 pence each in the Company. These shares are being issued in settlement of the quarterly principal and interest repayment of the Company's unsecured convertible bond. After the settlement, the principal remaining under the convertible bond will be reduced by £2.55 million to £38.25 million. The new ordinary shares resulting from the conversion are expected to be admitted to trading on AIM.
Following the admission, the Company's enlarged issued share capital will be 288,286,207. This figure may be used by shareholders in the Company as the denominator for the calculations by which they will determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest in, the share capital of the Company under the Financial Conduct Authority's Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules.
Avacta Group is a UK-based company focused on improving healthcare outcomes through targeted cancer treatments and diagnostics. The company has two divisions: an oncology biotech division harnessing proprietary therapeutic platforms to develop novel, highly targeted cancer drugs, and a diagnostics division executing an M&A led growth strategy to create a full-spectrum diagnostics business focused on supporting healthcare professionals and broadening access to testing. Avacta's two proprietary platforms, Affimer® and pre|CISION™, underpin its cancer therapeutics, while the diagnostics division leverages the Affimer® platform to drive competitive advantage in its markets.
The pre|CISION™ platform modifies chemotherapy to be activated only in the tumor tissue, reducing systemic exposure and toxicity. The lead pre|CISION™ program, AVA6000, a tumor-activated form of doxorubicin, is in Phase 1 studies and has shown dramatic improvement in safety compared with standard doxorubicin, and early signs of clinical activity. Affimer® is a novel biologic platform used to develop advanced immunotherapies and to improve the performance of immunodiagnostics.
This announcement provides insight into Avacta Group's financial activities and its focus on developing innovative, targeted oncology drugs and powerful diagnostics to improve healthcare outcomes.