Unigene Receives Additional Capital in Debt Restructuring; Begins to Revamp Management Team
March 17, 2010 08:03 AM Eastern Daylight Time
BOONTON, N.J.--(EON: Enhanced Online News)--Unigene Laboratories, Inc. (OTCBB: UGNE, http://www.unigene.com) today announced that it has entered into an amended and restated financing agreement for $33 million three-year convertible senior secured term notes. At the closing, which is scheduled to occur today, Unigene will issue $33,000,000 of new convertible senior secured notes due in 2013, in exchange for approximately $19,360,000 of existing non-convertible senior secured term notes which are due in 2011 and the payment to the Company of approximately $13,640,000 in cash at the closing, minus fees related to this restructuring. An entity managed by Victory Park Capital Advisors, LLC is the sole investor in the transaction. Victory Park has the right to designate two directors to the Board of the Company, one as the Chairman of the Board. In connection with this restructuring, Unigene has also restructured notes held by family members of its management. The Company has also agreed to make changes to its senior management. Details of the transaction and copies of the material transaction documents can be found in the Company's 8-K which will be filed today with the SEC.
"This infusion of additional capital, coupled with the fact that we will not need to make interest payments on the notes until their maturity and that maturity date has been extended by approximately 18 months, will significantly improve our financial condition."
"We are pleased to be able to complete this debt restructuring with our largest stockholder and senior lender to provide the Company with approximately $13.6 million in additional capital," commented Dr. Warren P. Levy, President and CEO of Unigene. "This infusion of additional capital, coupled with the fact that we will not need to make interest payments on the notes until their maturity and that maturity date has been extended by approximately 18 months, will significantly improve our financial condition."
This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of offers to buy securities. The convertible notes and the shares of Unigene common stock issuable upon conversion have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933 or the securities laws of any other jurisdiction and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from registration requirements.
About Unigene
Unigene Laboratories, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company focusing on the oral and nasal delivery of large-market peptide drugs. Due to the size of the worldwide osteoporosis market, Unigene is targeting its initial efforts on developing calcitonin and PTH-based therapies. Fortical®, Unigene's nasal calcitonin product for the treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis, received FDA approval and was launched in 2005. Unigene has licensed the U.S. rights for Fortical to Upsher-Smith Laboratories, worldwide rights for its oral PTH technology to GlaxoSmithKline, worldwide rights for its calcitonin manufacturing technology to Novartis and worldwide rights (except for China) for its oral calcitonin program to Tarsa Therapeutics, Inc. Unigene's patented oral delivery technology has successfully delivered, in preclinical and/or clinical trials, various peptides including calcitonin and PTH analogs. Unigene's patented manufacturing technology is designed to cost-effectively produce peptides in quantities sufficient to support their worldwide commercialization as oral or nasal therapeutics. For more information about Unigene, call (973) 265-1100 or visit www.unigene.com. For information about Fortical, visit www.fortical.com.
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