Policy & Regulation
Bellus Health Raises USD 70m from Stock Offering
12 September 2019 - - Canada-based biopharmaceutical company Bellus Health Inc. (NASDAQ: BLU) (TSX: BLU) has completed an underwritten public offering in Canada and the United States of 9,859,155 common shares at a price to the public of USD 7.10 per common share, for total gross proceeds of approximately USD 70m, before deducting the underwriting commissions and any expenses related to the offering.

In addition, the company has granted the underwriters a 30-day over-allotment option to purchase up to an additional 1,478,873 common shares from the company on the same terms and conditions.

Bellus Health's common shares are now dual-listed on the NASDAQ Global Market and the Toronto Stock Exchange under the trading symbol "BLU."

The company intends to use the net proceeds of the offering primarily to fund research and development activities, general and administrative expenses, working capital needs and other general corporate purposes, as set out in the Supplement.

Jefferies, Cowen and Guggenheim Securities acted as joint book-running managers, Baird acted as lead manager, and Bloom Burton Securities acted as co-manager for the offering.

Insiders of the company, chairman of Board Dr. Francesco Bellini, director Franklin M. Berger and Orbimed Advisors LLC, of which director Chau Q. Khuong is a partner, purchased an aggregate of 855,845 common shares under the offering or 8.68% of the shares issued under the offering.

Being insiders of the company, subscriptions for common shares by Dr. Bellini, Berger and Orbimed are related party transactions within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws.

The subscriptions by Dr. Bellini, Berger and Orbimed are exempt from the formal valuation and minority approval requirements applicable to related party transactions on the basis that the value of the transactions insofar as they involve related parties is less than 25% of the company's market capitalisation.

The board of directors of the company has approved the offering, and each of Dr. Bellini, Berger and Khuong declared their respective interest and abstained from voting thereon.

Bellus Health is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapeutics for the treatment of chronic cough and other hypersensitization-related disorders.

The company's product candidate, BLU-5937, is being developed for the treatment of chronic cough and chronic pruritus.
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