Vitrolife preparing distribution of the transplantation business
Vitrolife AB (publ) is today publishing the decision of the Board to begin preparations for a spin-off of the transplantation business, which today is run in the subsidiary Xvivo Perfusion AB. The spin-off will take place through distribution of the shares in the subsidiary in accordance with “Lex Asea”. It is intended that the shares in Xvivo Perfusion AB will be listed on NASDAQ OMX First North in connection with the distribution.
Vitrolife announced in November 2011 that Vitrolife´s transplantation business will become a more independent unit within the Vitrolife Group. After further consideration the Board has decided to begin preparations for a complete spin-off of the business. “With the increased investments in our transplantation business that we have previously communicated, we see this spin-off as a natural next step. Our two business areas, Fertility and Transplantation, are in different phases of development and we on the Board consider that separate ownership increases the strategic opportunities that each company can utilize for increased added value,” says the Chairman of the Board, Patrik Tigerschiöld.
A number of questions related to authority approval and administrative systems remain to be solved before distribution can be carried out, but it is the assessment of the Board that a decision regarding distribution can be taken at an Extraordinary General Meeting of the shareholders of Vitrolife during the second half of 2012. It is intended that the spin-off will take place through distribution of the shares in the subsidiary in accordance with “Lex Asea”. This means that the distribution will not result in any tax effect for the present shareholders of Vitrolife as long as they remain as owners of Xvivo.
It continues to be the assessment of the Board that it is important that Xvivo’s CEO, Dr Magnus Nilsson, is offered the opportunity of joint ownership in Xvivo and the Board will work towards this end. “Separating Xvivo from Vitrolife and a stock exchange listing will of course result in somewhat higher costs, but at the same time they give us increased degrees of freedom. This should lead to a higher pace and to us being able to take better advantage of the potential that we see in STEEN Solution™ and its applications,” says Magnus Nilsson, CEO of Xvivo.
Gothenburg
March 19, 2012
VITROLIFE AB (publ)
The Board
Queries should be addressed to:
Patrik Tigerschiöld, Chairman of the Board, phone 46 8 614 00 20
Mikael Engblom, CFO, phone 46 31 721 80 14
Vitrolife is required to publish the information in this press release in accordance with the Swedish Securities Market Act and/or the Financial Instruments Trading Act. The information was submitted for publication on March 19, at 11:00 a.m.
This is a translation of the Swedish version of the press release. When in doubt, the Swedish wording prevails.
Vitrolife is a global biotechnology/medical device Group that works in the areas of Fertility and Transplantation. The Fertility product area works with nutrient solutions (media), cryopreservation products and advanced consumable instruments such as needles and pipettes, for the treatment of human infertility. Work is also carried out to enable the use and handling of stem cells for therapeutic purposes. The Transplantation product area works with solutions and systems for assessing and preserving organs outside the body, so as to be able to select usable organs and keep them in optimal condition pending transplantation.
Vitrolife today has approximately 220 employees and its products are sold in almost 90 markets. The company is headquartered in Gothenburg, Sweden, and there are also offices in USA, Australia, France, Italy, United Kingdom, China and Japan. The Vitrolife share is listed on NASDAQ OMX Stockholm, Small Cap.
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Vitrolife AB (publ), Box 9080, SE-400 92 Göteborg, Sweden. Corporate identity number 556354-3452.
Tel: 46 31 721 80 00. Fax: 46 31 721 80 99. E-mail: info@vitrolife.com. Website: www.vitrolife.com/
