TIDMVAL
RNS Number : 7525P
ValiRx PLC
31 March 2009
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ValiRx plc
(the "Company")
Issue of Equity and Directors' Shareholdings
The Company announces that it has conditionally raised GBP580,000, before
expenses, via a placing of 58,000,000 new ordinary shares of 1p each in the
Company ("Ordinary Shares") at 1p per share (the "Placing").
The net proceeds from the Placing will be used by the Company to accelerate the
regulatory approval process for the launch of its Human Papilloma Virus ("HPV")
diagnostic test kit for cervical cancer and to progress its therapeutic products
through to first in man clinical trials.
HPV is responsible for over 90 per cent. of all cervical cancer; early detection
of the virus is crucial for effective treatment, thereby improving the prognosis
of HPV-infected women. The directors believe that the development of the
Company's HPV diagnostic kit could make a significant contribution to the health
of many women, both young and old.
Since 2003, under-25s have been excluded from such checks in England due to
relatively few cancers being detected and concerns about unnecessary and
invasive treatments. However, in 2008 UK researchers found the incidence of
high-grade pre-cancerous lesions was increasing in younger women, prompting them
to call for screening to be offered from the age of 20.
The Directors believe that there is a huge market demand for diagnostics systems
that rapidly and reliably detect the disease in their early stages. The
Company's HPV diagnostics is a new generation screening test, which can be
adapted as a point of care high throughput test. The market for HPV is forecast
to grow to exceed US$1 billion with HPV testing increasingly replacing the
traditional smear test to detect cervical cancer.
The Company has a distribution agreement in place for its HPV test kit and
anticipates sales of the product later this year.
Application has been made for the admission of 58,000,000 Ordinary Shares to be
admitted to trading on AIM and dealings are expected to commence on 3 April,
2009. On admission, the Company will have 116,378,365 Ordinary Shares in issue.
Directors' Shareholdings
The following directors of the Company acquired Ordinary Shares in the Placing:
+------------------+------------------+------------------+------------------+
| Director | Ordinary Shares |New Shareholding | Percentage |
| | acquired | | |
+------------------+------------------+------------------+------------------+
| Satu Vainikka | 1,000,000 | 5,358,507 | 4.60% |
+------------------+------------------+------------------+------------------+
| Jake Micallef | 1,000,000 | 5,104,340 | 4.39% |
+------------------+------------------+------------------+------------------+
| George Morris | 1,000,000 | 3,124,230 | 2.68% |
+------------------+------------------+------------------+------------------+
| Nick Thorniley | 850,000 | 1,498,750 | 1.29% |
+------------------+------------------+------------------+------------------+
| Kevin Alexander | 750,000 | 1,438,750 | 1.24% |
+------------------+------------------+------------------+------------------+
| Gerry Desler | 1,000,000 | 1,083,333 | 0.93% |
+------------------+------------------+------------------+------------------+
Enquiries:
+------------------------------------------+---------------------------+
| ValiRx plc | Tel: +44 (0) 20 3008 4416 |
+------------------------------------------+---------------------------+
| Dr. Satu Vainikka | |
+------------------------------------------+---------------------------+
| WH Ireland Limited - NOMAD & Broker | Tel: +44 (0) 161 832 2174 |
+------------------------------------------+---------------------------+
| David Youngman / Adrian Kirk | |
+------------------------------------------+---------------------------+
| College Hill | Tel: +44 (0) 20 7457 2020 |
+------------------------------------------+---------------------------+
| Sue Charles / Adrian Duffield / Justine | valirx@collegehill.com |
| Lamond | |
+------------------------------------------+---------------------------+
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
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