NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION,

DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN OR INTO THE UNITED STATES

OF AMERICA, CANADA, JAPAN OR AUSTRALIA

 

STONEGATE GROUP ANNOUNCES LAUNCH OF SENIOR SECURED NOTES OFFERING

 

LONDON — January 28, 2019.

 

Stonegate Pub Company Financing plc (“Stonegate”) today announced that it intends to launch an offering of £150 million in aggregate principal amount of senior secured floating rate notes due 2022 (the “Notes”). The proceeds from the offering, if completed, will be used to (i) repay the borrowings under the existing senior secured bridge facilities that were used to finance the acquisitions of Be At One Holdings Limited, Bar Fever Limited and certain pubs acquired from A3D2 Limited (or, Novus), (ii) finance the acquisition of certain businesses and assets of Balls Brothers (Emporium) Limited and Tank and Paddle Limited, (iii) finance certain capital expenditures in relation to these recent acquisitions, (iv) pay certain fees and expenses in connection with the offering and related transactions and (v) fund cash on balance sheet. 

Cautionary Statement

The Notes will be offered only to qualified institutional buyers pursuant to Rule 144A and outside the United States pursuant to Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), subject to prevailing market and other conditions. There is no assurance that the offering will be completed or, if completed, as to the terms on which it is completed. The Notes to be offered have not been registered under the Securities Act or the securities laws of any other jurisdiction and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or unless pursuant to an applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act and any other applicable securities laws. This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy the Notes, nor shall it constitute an offer, solicitation or sale in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.

The Notes are not intended to be offered, sold or otherwise made available to and should not be offered, sold or otherwise made available to any retail investor in the European Economic Area (“EEA”). For these purposes, a retail investor means a person who is one (or more) of: (i) a retail client as defined in point (11) of Article 4(1) of Directive 2014/65/EU (as amended, “MiFID II”); or (ii) a customer within the meaning of Directive 2002/92/EC (as amended or superseded, the “Insurance Mediation Directive”), where that customer would not qualify as a professional client as defined in point (10) of Article 4(1) of MiFID II.

This announcement does not constitute and shall not, in any circumstances, constitute a public offering nor an invitation to the public in connection with any offer within the meaning of the Directive 2003/71/EC (as amended or superseded, the “Prospectus Directive”). The offer and sale of the Notes will be made pursuant to an exemption under the Prospectus Directive from the requirement to produce a prospectus for offers of securities.

In the United Kingdom, this announcement is directed only at (i) persons having professional experience in matters relating to investments falling within Article 19(5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005 (the “Order”), or (ii) high net worth entities falling within Article 49(2)(a) to (d) of the Order, or (iii) persons to whom it would otherwise be lawful to distribute them, all such persons together being referred to as “Relevant Persons.” The Notes are only available to, and any invitation, offer or agreement to subscribe, purchase or otherwise acquire such Notes will be engaged in only with, Relevant Persons.

MiFID II professionals/ECPs-only/ No PRIIPs KID – Manufacturer target market (MIFID II product governance) is eligible counterparties and professional clients only (all distribution channels). No PRIIPs key information document (KID) has been prepared as not available to retail in EEA.

In connection with the issuance of the Notes, the initial purchaser will serve as stabilizing manager and may over-allot the Notes or effect transactions with a view to supporting the market price of the Notes at a level higher than that which might otherwise prevail. However, there is no assurance that the stabilizing manager (or persons acting on behalf of the stabilizing manager) will undertake stabilization actions. Any stabilization action may begin on or after the date on which adequate public disclosure of the terms of the offer of the Notes is made and, if begun, may be ended at any time, but it must end no later than the earlier of 30 days after the issue date of the Notes and 60 days after the date of the allotment of the Notes. Any stabilization action or over-allotment must be conducted in accordance with all applicable laws and rules.

Neither the content of the Stonegate group’s website nor any website accessible by hyperlinks on the Stonegate group’s website is incorporated in, or forms part of, this announcement. The distribution of this announcement into certain jurisdictions may be restricted by law. Persons into whose possession this announcement comes should inform themselves about and observe any such restrictions. Any failure to comply with these restrictions may constitute a violation of the securities laws of any such jurisdiction.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may include forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology, including the terms “believes”, ‟estimates”, ‟anticipates”, “expects”, ‟intends”, ‟may”, ‟will” or “should” or, in each case, their negative, or other variations or comparable terminology. These forward-looking statements include all matters that are not historical facts and include statements regarding the Stonegate group’s or its affiliates’ intentions, beliefs or current expectations concerning, among other things, the Stonegate group’s or its affiliates’ results of operations, financial condition, liquidity, prospects, growth, strategies and the industries in which they operate. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that may or may not occur in the future. Readers are cautioned that forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and that the Stonegate group’s or its affiliates’ actual results of operations, financial condition and liquidity, and the development of the industries in which they operate may differ materially from those made in or suggested by the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. In addition, even if the Stonegate group’s or its affiliates’ results of operations, financial condition and liquidity, and the development of the industries in which they operate are consistent with the forward-looking statements contained in this press release, those results or developments may not be indicative of results or developments in subsequent periods.

The forward-looking statements and information contained in this announcement are made as of the date hereof and the Stonegate group undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements or information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless so required by applicable securities laws.