Netscientific Plc: General Counsel Strategic Hire and Grant of Options
19th May 2022
NetScientific plc (AIM: NSCI), the international life sciences and sustainability technology investment and commercialisation group, is delighted to announce the appointment of its first General Counsel, Ed Hooper, with immediate effect. Ed also joins as Group Company Secretary and as Executive Director to the Company’s corporate finance specialist subsidiary, EMV Capital Limited.
Ed joins from his position as a Partner at international law firm, Trowers & Hamlins LLP, where he led and developed the firm’s Corporate Finance team in London. Ed has 20 years’ experience as a lawyer in the City, specialising in advising on a broad range of corporate transactions, including fundraisings, M&A, IPOs, joint ventures and restructurings, many on an international scale.
Ed will work alongside and support the CEO and Executive Chairman, with a focus on implementation of the Company’s growth strategy. He will deploy his legal, commercial and transaction management skills to lead on projects to expand and grow the Company’s portfolio companies, and to prepare and deliver exit and liquidity events for them, as part of the Company’s planned strategy to realise shareholder value and returns.
Ilian Iliev, CEO of NetScientific commented: “We have worked closely with Ed for many years and highly value his legal, commercial and strategic insight. We are delighted to welcome him to our Company as we continue to drive and scale our growing portfolio towards key value inflection points, support in key transactions, and drive towards exits and liquidity events. Ed brings to the Company a wealth of high-calibre transactional expertise, providing us with further critical mass as we continue our ambitious growth plans, and will overlay additional governance measures for the Company and its Group.”
Ed Hooper commented: “Having advised NetScientific, and before that, EMV Capital, for a number of years, I am thrilled to join the Company at a key point in its continued growth cycle. I look forward to working with this excellent team and to driving its ambitious plans for the Company and its exciting portfolio of life sciences and technology companies.”
In-line with the Company’s remuneration policy, it has granted to Ed 105,000 new options over Ordinary Shares in the capital of the Company (“New Options”). The New Options have an exercise price of 78.1 pence per share, which is equal to the average of the closing market quotations for Ordinary Shares over the five dealing days prior to the date on which the New Options were granted. The New Options will vest as to one third on the date of grant, as to a further third on the first anniversary of the date of grant and as to the final third on the second anniversary of the date of grant. The New Options may not be exercised earlier than the third anniversary of the date of grant. The New Options lapse 10 years after the date of grant (if not sooner in accordance with the terms of the NetScientific Share Option Scheme rules).
The New Options were granted under the NetScientific Share Option Scheme, pursuant to which options over a total of 1,865,545 Ordinary Shares have now been granted, representing 8.8 per cent. of the current issued share capital of the Company. The maximum potential dilution arising from options awarded under the NetScientific Share Option Scheme remains below the upper limit of 10 per cent. under the rules of the plan.
This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of the UK version of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 which is part of UK law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, as amended (“MAR”). Upon the publication of this announcement via a Regulatory Information Service, this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain.