- Raised gross proceeds of $59 million through the issuance and sale of 5,000,000 of its ordinary shares to Icelandic institutional and existing investors
- Becomes second company dual-listed on NASDAQ U.S. and NASDAQ Iceland Main Market, trading under the symbol “OCS” beginning April 23, 2024
- Oculis will ring the Nasdaq Iceland opening bell on April 23, 2024, at 9:30 GMT
- Phase 2b RELIEF trial of OCS-02 (Licaminlimab) in Dry Eye Disease (DED) remains on track to readout in Q2 2024
ZUG, Switzerland, April 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Oculis Holding AG (Nasdaq Global Market: OCS) (“Oculis” or the “Company”) today announced that it closed its registered direct offering, successfully raising gross proceeds of $59 million through the issuance and sale of 5,000,000 of its ordinary shares, nominal value CHF 0.01 per share (the “Shares”) at a purchase price of $11.75 per Share to investors (the “Financing”). The Company also announced that trading in its ordinary shares on the Nasdaq Iceland Main Market (“Main Market”) under the ticker symbol “OCS” will begin on April 23, 2024. Oculis’ ordinary shares are currently listed on the Nasdaq Global Market in the U.S. under the ticker symbol “OCS” and began trading in the U.S. on March 3, 2023. The Company’s listing on the Main Market will make it the second company to dual-list its shares in the U.S. and in Iceland. To celebrate the listing on Main Market, Oculis will ring the opening bell at 9:30 GMT on April 23, 2024.
Riad Sherif, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Oculis: “We are honored to ring the opening bell in celebration of the listing and excited to have our shares listed on the Nasdaq Iceland Main Market in addition to the U.S. Global Market. Being dually-listed will allow a broader range of investors to join us on our journey of solving significant medical needs in ophthalmology with breakthrough innovations, such as the OPTIREACH® technology that was invented in Iceland. We remain committed to our mission and look forward to providing an update on our upcoming Phase 2b RELIEF trial readout in this quarter.”
Arctica Finance ehf. provided process oversight for the listing of Oculis’ shares on the Main Market and served as Oculis’ financial advisor with regard to the Financing. BBA//Fjeldco, Cooley LLP and Vischer AG served as legal advisors to Oculis in connection with the Main Market listing and the Financing.
Oculis has also entered into market making agreements with Landsbankinn hf. and Íslandsbanki hf., who will place bids and offers for certain amounts with a fixed spread. The market making agreements will only apply to trading on the Main Market and go into effect on April 23, 2024.
Terms of Market Making Agreement with Landsbanki
Landsbankinn will submit bids and offers amounting to at least ISK 5 million at market value at any given time. Net value of trades is capped at ISK 10 million per day, i.e., the difference between the aggregate value of all accepted offers and the aggregate value of all accepted bids within the day. The maximum weighted average spread between bid and ask market making orders is based on the rolling 10 days’ price volatility of the shares: 2.5% when the 10 days’ volatility is under 35% or less 4.0% when the volatility is 35% or higher. The market making agreement is for an indefinite term, but each of the two parties may choose to terminate after giving a 7-day prior notice.
Terms of Market Making Agreement with Íslandsbanki
Íslandsbanki will, at any given time, have bids and offers for a minimum of ISK 5 million at a price per share decided by Íslandsbanki, that may not deviate from the last trading price by more than 3%. The spread between the bid and offer price shall be decided based on the price table of Nasdaq Iceland at any given time, whereas the spread shall be close to 1.5%, and in any event no less than 1.4%. If trades made by Íslandsbanki in auto match exceed ISK 50 million within a trading day through Íslandsbanki’s proprietary trading, Íslandsbanki is no longer bound by the market making agreement within the same trading day. If price changes of the Issuer’s shares exceed 5% within a trading day, Íslandsbanki has the right to increase the bid/ask spread, temporarily within the trading day, to 3%. The market making agreement is for an indefinite term, but each of the two parties may choose to terminate after giving a 14-day prior notice.
This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to the registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction. There was no public offering of Shares in the United States.
About Oculis
Oculis is a global biopharmaceutical company (Nasdaq: OCS) purposefully driven to save sight and improve eye care. Oculis’ highly differentiated pipeline comprises multiple innovative product candidates in development. It includes OCS-01, a topical eye drop candidate for diabetic macular edema (DME) and for the treatment of inflammation and pain following cataract surgery; OCS-02 (licaminlimab), a topical biologic anti-TNFα eye drop candidate for dry eye disease (DED) and for non-infectious anterior uveitis; and OCS-05, a disease modifying candidate for acute optic neuritis (AON) and other neuro-ophthalmic disorders such as glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, geographic atrophy, and neurotrophic keratitis. Headquartered in Switzerland and with operations in the U.S. and Iceland, Oculis’ goal is to deliver life-changing treatments to patients worldwide. The Company is led by an experienced management team with a successful track record and is supported by leading international healthcare investors.
For more information, please visit: www.oculis.com
Oculis Contacts
Ms. Sylvia Cheung, CFO
sylvia.cheung@oculis.com
Investor & Media Relations
LifeSci Advisors
Corey Davis, Ph.D.
cdavis@lifesciadvisors.com
1-212-915-2577
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including with respect to the commencement of trading of Oculis’ ordinary shares on the Main Market. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including those that are described in the Risk Factors sections of the prospectus supplement for the Financing to be filed with the SEC and Oculis’ other SEC filings, any of which could cause the events and circumstances discussed in such forward-looking statements to not occur on the terms described or at all. Prospective investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. Oculis undertakes no obligation to update any such forward-looking statements after the date hereof, except as required by law.
