GreenLight Biosciences Holdings, PBC (NASDAQ: GRNA) (“GreenLight”
or the “Company”) today announced that the Company has entered into
a definitive agreement (the “Merger Agreement”) to be acquired by a
group of buyers led by Fall Line Capital, LLC (“Fall Line”) in an
all-cash transaction valuing the Company at approximately $45.5
million.
Pursuant to the terms of the Merger Agreement,
and subject to the conditions set forth therein, Fall Line,
together with its affiliates, agreed that it will commence a tender
offer (the “Offer”) to acquire all of the outstanding shares of
common stock of the Company (the “Company Common Stock”), other
than certain excluded shares, for $0.30 per share (the “Offer
Price”), net to the seller in cash, without interest thereon, and
subject to any required withholding, upon the terms and subject to
the conditions of the Merger Agreement. The Offer Price represents
a 50% premium to the closing price of the Company’s Common Stock as
of May 26, 2023, the last trading day prior to the date of this
announcement.
In connection with the transactions contemplated
by the Merger Agreement, certain existing stockholders of the
Company, together holding approximately 79.5% of the outstanding
shares of the Company Common Stock, entered into contribution and
exchange agreements pursuant to which such stockholders agreed to
contribute their shares of Company Common Stock in exchange for
shares of Series A-2 Preferred Stock of a newly formed holding
company (the “Private Company”) that will own 100% of the Company
upon the consummation of the transactions contemplated by the
Merger Agreement.
In addition, in connection with the transactions
contemplated by the Merger Agreement, Fall Line and certain
investors entered into a Secured Convertible Note Purchase
Agreement (the “Note Purchase Agreement”), to which the Company is
a third-party beneficiary and under which the Private Company shall
issue up to $100 million of Convertible Secured Promissory Notes
(the “Private Company Notes”) to the investors at the closing of
the Merger Agreement, of which $52.075 million is committed as of
the date hereof.
In connection therewith, the Company will
receive $15.0 million of cash and will issue $15.0 million of
unsecured notes (the “Advance Notes”) for the purpose of providing
working capital to the Company on May 30, 2023. At the closing of
the merger, the Advance Notes shall automatically be exchanged for
Private Company Notes issued by Private Company, with the principal
balance of the Advance Notes plus all accrued interest being
credited towards the Private Company Notes principal amount on a
dollar-for-dollar basis.
Approvals and Timing
The transaction was negotiated on behalf of the
Company by a Special Committee of its Board of Directors (the
“Special Committee”) composed entirely of independent directors
with the assistance of independent financial and legal advisors.
Following the Special Committee’s unanimous recommendation, the
Company’s Board of Directors unanimously approved the Merger
Agreement and has recommended that the Company’s stockholders
tender their shares of Company Common Stock in the Offer.
Subject to customary closing conditions, the
Company expects the transaction to close in the third quarter of
2023. The transaction is not subject to a financing condition. Upon
completion of the transaction, the Company will become a
privately-held company and the Company’s shares will no longer
trade on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange.
Under the terms of the Merger Agreement, the
Company may solicit alternative acquisition proposals from third
parties during a 30-day “go-shop” period beginning on the date of
the Merger Agreement. There can be no assurances that the “go-shop”
will result in a superior proposal. The Company does not intend to
disclose developments related to the solicitation process until it
determines whether such disclosure is appropriate or is otherwise
required.
Advisors
Goodwin Procter LLP is serving as legal counsel
to the Company. Roth Capital Partners, LLC is serving as financial
advisor and Foley Hoag LLP is serving as legal counsel to the
Special Committee. O’Melveny & Myers LLP is serving as legal
counsel to Fall Line.
About GreenLight
Biosciences
GreenLight Biosciences aims to address some of
the world’s biggest problems by delivering on the full potential of
RNA for human health and agriculture. Our RNA platform allows us to
research, design, and manufacture for human, animal, and plant
health. In human health, this includes messenger RNA vaccines and
therapeutics. In agriculture, this includes RNA to protect
honeybees and a range of crops. The Company’s platform is protected
by numerous patents. GreenLight’s human health product candidates
are in the pre-clinical stage, and its product candidates for the
agriculture market are in the early stages of development or
regulatory review. GreenLight is a public benefit corporation that
trades under the ticker GRNA on Nasdaq. For more information,
visit www.greenlightbiosciences.com.
About Fall Line Capital
Fall Line Capital is a private equity firm
uniquely focused on investments in U.S. farmland, active management
of farmland, and AgTech startups that are strategic to its land
holdings. Fall Line was co-founded by Clay Mitchell, a
fifth-generation Iowa farmer with degrees in biomedical engineering
and agronomy, and Eric O'Brien, a Silicon Valley venture capital
veteran with financial services and operations experience, who met
and became friends as undergrads at Harvard. Their friendship and
professional paths intersected when the pair began evaluating
AgTech opportunities together, which led to the creation of Fall
Line in 2011. Fall Line seeks to improve the sustainability of food
and agriculture by combining the best of precision farming
techniques with agronomy and the latest in new technologies to
change the fundamental productivity and value of farmland. Fall
Line’s AgTech investments include Guardian Agriculture, Granular
(acquired by DuPont/Pioneer), GreenLight Biosciences, Impossible
Foods, Lithos Carbon, Planet, Sound Agriculture, and Swift
Navigation among others. The firm is headquartered in San Mateo, CA
with regional offices across the United States.
http://fall-line-capital.com.
Important Information And Where To Find
It
The tender offer referenced in this
communication has not yet commenced. This communication is for
informational purposes only and is neither an offer to purchase nor
a solicitation of an offer to sell securities of the Company, nor
is it a substitute for the tender offer materials that the Company
and Fall Line, will file with the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission (the “SEC”). The solicitation and offer to buy the
Company stock will only be made pursuant to an Offer to Purchase
and related tender offer materials that Fall Line intends to file
with the SEC. At the time the tender offer is commenced, Fall Line
will file a Tender Offer Statement on Schedule TO and thereafter
the Company will file a Solicitation/Recommendation Statement on
Schedule 14D-9 with the SEC with respect to the tender offer. THE
COMPANY’S STOCKHOLDERS AND OTHER INVESTORS ARE URGED TO READ
CAREFULLY THE TENDER OFFER MATERIALS (INCLUDING AN OFFER TO
PURCHASE, A RELATED LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL AND CERTAIN OTHER TENDER
OFFER DOCUMENTS), THE SOLICITATION/RECOMMENDATION STATEMENT ON
SCHEDULE 14D-9, BECAUSE THEY WILL EACH CONTAIN IMPORTANT
INFORMATION THAT HOLDERS OF THE COMPANY SECURITIES AND OTHER
INVESTORS SHOULD CONSIDER BEFORE MAKING ANY DECISION REGARDING WITH
RESPECT TO THE TENDER OFFER, OR, IF APPLICABLE, VOTING ON THE
TRANSACTION. The Offer to Purchase, the related Letter of
Transmittal, certain other tender offer documents, as well as the
Solicitation/Recommendation Statement will be made available to all
stockholders of the Company at no expense to them and will also be
made available for free at the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.
Additional copies may be obtained for free by contacting either
Fall Line or the Company. Copies of the documents filed with the
SEC by the Company will be available free of charge on the
Company’s website at https://investors.greenlightbio.com/ or by
contacting the Company’s Investor Relations Department at
investors@greenlightbio.com. Copies of the documents filed with the
SEC by Fall Line will be available free of charge on Fall Line’s
website at https://fall-line-capital.com/contact/ or by contacting
Fall Line’s Investor Relations Department at info@fall-line-cap.com
or 650.235.4032.
In addition to the Offer to Purchase, the
related Letter of Transmittal and certain other tender offer
documents, as well as the Solicitation/Recommendation Statement
Fall Line and the Company each file annual, quarterly and current
reports, proxy statements and other information with the SEC. You
may read and copy any reports or other information filed by Fall
Line or the Company at the SEC public reference room at 100 F
Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20549. Please call the SEC at
1-800-SEC-0330 for further information on the public reference
room. Fall Line’s and the Company’s filings with the SEC are also
available for free to the public from commercial document-retrieval
services and at the website maintained by the SEC at
http://www.sec.gov.
Cautionary Note Regarding
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements contained in this
communication may constitute forward-looking statements within the
meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section
21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. All statements, other
than statements of historical fact, are statements that could be
deemed forward-looking statements, including statements containing
the words “will,” “predicts,” “plans,” “expects,” “anticipates,”
“believes,” “goal,” “target,” “estimate,” “potential,” “may,”
“might,” “could,” “see,” “seek,” “forecast,” and similar words.
Forward-looking statements are based on the Company’s current plans
and expectations, estimates and projections about the industry and
markets in which the Company operates and the Company’s beliefs and
assumptions as to the timing and outcome of future events,
including related to the timing of, and costs associated with, the
transactions described in this communication. While the Company’s
management believes the assumptions underlying the forward-looking
statements are reasonable, such information is necessarily subject
to uncertainties and may involve certain risks and uncertainties
which are, in many instances, difficult to predict and beyond the
Company’s control, and which could cause actual results to differ
materially from those included in or contemplated or implied by the
forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include,
among others: (i) the occurrence of any event, change or other
circumstance that could give rise to the termination of the Merger
Agreement; (ii) the failure to satisfy any of the other conditions
to the completion of the proposed Merger, including the risk that
Fall Line may not receive the requisite number of shares tendered
from Company stockholders to complete the Offer prior to the
outside date set forth in the Merger Agreement; (iii) the effect of
the announcement of the proposed Merger on the ability of the
Company to retain and hire key personnel and maintain relationships
with its key business partners and customers, and others with whom
it does business, or on its operating results and businesses
generally; (iv) the response of the Company’s competitors to the
proposed Merger; (v) risks associated with the disruption of
management’s attention from ongoing business operations due to the
proposed Merger; (vi) the ability to meet expectations regarding
the timing and completion of the proposed Merger; (vii) significant
costs associated with the proposed Merger; (viii) potential
litigation relating to the proposed Merger; (ix) restrictions
during the pendency of the proposed Merger that may impact the
Company’s ability to pursue certain business opportunities; (x) the
outcome of any legal proceedings that may be instituted against the
parties and others following announcement of the Merger Agreement;
(xi) the closing of the proposed financing; and (xii) the other
risks, uncertainties and factors detailed in the Company’s most
recent annual and quarterly reports filed with the SEC and any
subsequent reports on Form 10-K, Form 10-Q or Form 8-K filed from
time to time. As a result of such risks, uncertainties and factors,
the Company’s actual results may differ materially from any future
results, performance or achievements discussed in or implied by the
forward-looking statements contained herein.
There can be no assurance that the proposed
transactions will in fact be consummated. The Company cautions
investors not to unduly rely on any forward-looking statements. The
Company is providing the information in this communication as of
this date and assumes no obligations to update the information
included in this communication or revise any forward-looking
statements, whether as a result of new information, future events
or otherwise, and the Company does not intend to do so.
Contacts:
Media Contact:Thomas
CramptonSVP Corporate AffairsGreenLight
Biosciencespress@greenlightbio.com
Investor Contact:Ingrid
FungDirector, Enterprise Operations and Strategy & Head of
Investor RelationsGreenLight
Biosciencesinvestors@greenlightbio.com
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/d4c93ec6-d36d-447a-9196-ce6d49be25b4
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