LUND, Sweden, Jan. 29, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- Precise Biometrics has implemented a share issue worth SEK 30.5 million directed at Swedish investment institutions. The company is on the brink of a market breakthrough for which the new share issue is needed.
Having been authorized at the Annual General Meeting, in April 2001, to implement a new capital stock issue, the Board of Directors of Precise Biometrics opted to implement a directed placement of SEK 30.5 million before deductions for issue expenses. The issue comprises 350,000 stocks, which amounts to 9.0 percent of the capital and votes after completion of the issue. The total number of stocks in the company after the issue is 3,876,700. The negotiated issue price per stock was fixed at SEK 87. Before fixing the issue price the most recent price paid was SEK 93.
"Precise Biometrics has received several significant orders in recent months and sees positive development ahead. The year 2002 is expected to be a breakthrough year for Precise Biometrics, and therefore we are pleased to have the capital that we need to focus our complete attention on our customers, on implementing our plans, and on meeting growing market demand. Having a strong financial position makes a difference in our dialog with customers," said Christer Berman, CEO, Precise Biometrics.
The Board of Directors had considered various forms of a new capital stock issue and concluded that a directed placement was the most secure method of guaranteeing funds for the company. The company has not yet reported positive results or cash flow, which may make the valuation of the stock difficult. As a consequence the stock has been highly volatile. Furthermore, without the issue, the company risked having insufficient liquidity during the second half of 2002. These factors, in combination with the general conditions of the stock market, which is characterized by great uncertainty, formed the basis of the Board's decision.
The issue was carried out in cooperation with Handelsbanken Securities.
Precise Biometrics AB, Europe's leading biometrics company, markets products and systems developed in-house for biometric* identification using fingerprints. The products replace passwords, PINs and ID cards in IT, telecom and pass systems. Precise Biometrics, which was started in Lund, Sweden, in 1997, by Nils Bernhard, Marten Oebrink and Christer Fahraeus, currently has 60 employees. The company has its head office in Lund, Sweden, an associate office in Stockholm, and a subsidiary in Washington, D.C., USA. The company's shares are quoted on the O-list of the Stockholm Exchange. For additional information, please visit the company website at: to www.precisebiometrics.com.
*Biometrics is the technical analysis of biological data for verifying a person's identity.