“We have followed Biotage’s development with great interest for several years, and more recently as the company’s largest shareholder through Gamma Biosciences. Since becoming active owners, we have worked closely with Biotage and are impressed by the company’s management and employees, as well as its leading position in several attractive segments. However, we see a need for a strategic repositioning of Biotage to ensure future growth and value creation. We believe that this strategic development is best carried out in a private environment while the company expands into new product areas to build a broader platform, either organically or through M&A. KKR has a deep knowledge of the industry, markets, the company and its products, and can provide the support, resources and long-term perspective required for Biotage and its management to begin the next phase of their journey,” says Kugan Sathiyanandarajah, partner at KKR and board member of Biotage.

The ordinary shares of Biotage are listed on Nasdaq Stockholm, Large Cap.

KKR has followed Biotage’s development with great interest and admiration for several years, particularly through Gamma Biosciences, which is controlled by KKR Funds and is Biotage’s largest shareholder, they state in a press release. KKR is convinced that Biotage’s full potential can best be realized in a private environment and that the offering represents the primary opportunity for shareholders to realize value and release liquidity, for several important reasons. They state in their press release:

“KKR believes that the company needs to reorient its go-to-market strategy and execute a disciplined M&A strategy to strengthen its presence in certain client workflows. Such a repositioning is best achieved in a private environment, where Biotage and its employees have the flexibility and support to take a long-term strategic perspective. Biotage also needs to make significant investments to ensure future growth, particularly in product development, commercial infrastructure and business development. Many of these investments will negatively impact the company’s performance in the short term and are therefore difficult to implement as a listed company, even if they can maximize long-term value. And finally, Biotage’s revenues are inherently volatile, impacted by exposure to binary clinical trials—particularly in the Large Molecules segment—as well as research and development (R&D) budgets. These factors are further amplified by an increasingly uncertain macroeconomic and geopolitical environment. As a listed company, the need to manage short-term market expectations in a volatile environment risks reducing management’s focus on long-term strategic work and value creation,” states KKR.

Effect on employment and the places where Biotage conducts its business

Under the Takeover Rules the Board is required, on the basis of RWK BidCo’s statements in the announcement of the offer, to make public its opinion of the effects the implementation of the offer may have on Biotage, specifically employment, and its views on RWK BidCo’s strategic plans for Biotage and the effect these may be expected to have on employment and the places where Biotage conducts its business, they state. RWK BidCo has in this respect communicated:

“RWK BidCo’s plans for the future business and general strategy of Biotage do not currently include any material changes with regard to Biotage’s operational sites or its management and employees, including their terms of employment.”

The Board has decided to recommend that Biotage shareholders accept the offer

The Board of Directors of Biotage has evaluated the offer and informed RWK BidCo that the Board has decided to recommend that Biotage shareholders accept the offer. Furthermore, the Board of Directors of Biotage has informed RWK BidCo that the Board has received a fairness opinion from Grant Thornton according to which the offer is fair to Biotage shareholders from a financial perspective.

Carnegie Fonder, SEB Asset Management and Coeli, together representing 15,235,630 ordinary shares in Biotage, representing approximately 19.0 percent of the outstanding shares and votes in Biotage, have expressed their support for the offer and their intention to accept the offer. Together with the ordinary shares in Biotage already owned by Gamma Biosciences, this amounts to 28,826,278 ordinary shares in Biotage, representing approximately 36.0 percent of the outstanding shares and votes in Biotage.