Author: Newsdesk

NEW YORK, Feb. 12, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — Future FinTech Group Inc. (NASDAQ: FTFT) (“Future FinTech”, “FTFT” or “Company”), a leading blockchain based e-commerce business and a fintech service provider, announced today that, its wholly-owned subsidiary Chain Cloud Mall Network and Technology (Tianjin) Co., Limited (“CCM”) has signed a cooperation agreement with The Merchandise and Quality Week Magazine, a news magazine directly owned by China Foundation of Consumer Protection. The cooperation has a term for five years, from February 1, 2021 to January 31, 2026. The Anti-Counterfeiting Committee of China Foundation of Consumer Protection will set up a “Quality and Safety Office” and appoint Mr. Zhi Yan, the general manager of CCM, as the deputy director of that office for a term of one year, who will be responsible for building the quality and safety credit system for Chinese brands and enterprises under the “Responsible Brand Plan”. The “Responsible Brand Plan” will be officially launched in March 2021 and operated by the “Quality and Safety Office” of the Anti-Counterfeiting Committee of China Foundation of Consumer Protection.

Mr. Zhi Yan said that: “The Responsible Brand Plan will make full use of the real name based blockchain anti-counterfeiting tracing technology developed by CCM, which will not only protect the legitimate rights and interests of the enterprises and their brands, but also impose  responsibility for their product’s quality and safety.”

China Foundation of Consumer Protection was established in November 1989. It is supervised by the State Owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council of China. Its mission is to protect the interest of consumers and implement its responsibility as a nonprofit consumer protection organization under the Consumer Protection Law of China. One of its main responsibilities is to support and participate in anti-counterfeiting activities and clean up the consumer products market.

The Anti-Counterfeiting Committee of China Foundation of Consumer Protection is the first and the only nonprofit organization that was approved by the Ministry of Civil Affairs specializing in anti-counterfeiting in China. It was established in July 2000. It focuses on cracking down counterfeit and shoddy products that harm the rights and interest of consumers.

About Future FinTech Group Inc.

Future FinTech Group Inc. (“Future FinTech”, “FTFT” or the “Company”) is a leading blockchain e-commerce company and a service provider for financial technology incorporated in Florida. The Company’s operations include a blockchain-based online shopping mall platform, Chain Cloud Mall (“CCM”), a cross-border e-commerce platform (NONOGIRL), an incubator for blockchain based application projects. The Company is also engaged in the development of blockchain based technology and services as well as financial technology services. For more information, please visit http://www.ftftex.com/.

Safe Harbor Statement 

Certain of the statements made in this press release are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning and protections of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act. Forward-looking statements include statements with respect to our beliefs, plans, objectives, goals, expectations, anticipations, assumptions, estimates, intentions, and future performance, and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may be beyond our control, and which may cause the actual results, performance, capital, ownership or achievements of the Company to be materially different from future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be forward-looking statements. You can identify these forward-looking statements through our use of words such as “may,” “will,” “anticipate,” “assume,” “should,” “indicate,” “would,” “believe,” “contemplate,” “expect,” “estimate,” “continue,” “plan,” “point to,” “project,” “could,” “intend,” “target” and other similar words and expressions of the future.

All written or oral forward-looking statements attributable to us are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary notice, including, without limitation, those risks and uncertainties described in our annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019 and our other reports and filings with SEC. Such reports are available upon request from the Company, or from the Securities and Exchange Commission, including through the SEC’s Internet website at http://www.sec.gov. We have no obligation and do not undertake to update, revise or correct any of the forward-looking statements after the date hereof, or after the respective dates on which any such statements otherwise are made.

 

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SOURCE Future FinTech Group Inc.

STOCKHOLM, Feb. 12, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — Bambuser today announced the launch of new dual host broadcasting capabilities and compatibility with external cameras and software, two in-demand features that give brands and retailers greater flexibility and control over their Live Video Shopping productions. The product updates closely follow several other major platform enhancements released to help customers increase awareness of and drive traffic to their interactive e-commerce initiatives. 

Dual Hosting for Split Screen Broadcasting

Bambuser’s Dual Hosting solves production challenges posed by stay-at-home recommendations and social distancing requirements, enabling Live Video Shopping events to have hosts and guests in different locations. As part of the Broadcaster app for iOS, Dual Hosting enables brands and retailers to easily produce shows featuring different hosts, guests and other influencers, each from a different location. The platform currently supports two simultaneous connections without lag, quality degradation or interruption to the platform’s e-commerce functionality. 

During extensive beta testing, Bambuser observed lifts in viewer engagement metrics such as the quantity of activities in the live chat during shows that leveraged dual hosting. The company attributes this improved performance to the more immersive and conversational nature of the split screen, dual host experience. 

Bambuser’s dual host broadcasting is currently in final testing and will be rolling out broadly within the next couple of months. To see how the dual host streaming works, check out this video: http://bmb.sr/dual. 

External Camera Compatibility

Expanding on the platform’s extensive mobile capabilities, Bambuser now supports the use of external hardware and software in show production. By leveraging Real-Time Messaging Protocol (RTMP), Bambuser now provides brands and retailers with more opportunities to create shows using the cameras and other tools of their choosing. With this added flexibility, they have more opportunity to deliver unique experiences and polished programs in line with their brands.

“Every day, our development team focuses on anticipating the needs of our customers as well as our customers’ customers. We’re incredibly proud to announce dual hosting and external camera compatibility, as we believe these features deliver benefit to both those groups,” said Jesper Funck, Chief Product Officer at Bambuser. For our retail and brand partners, we’re giving more power to customize the format and production quality of their shows. For their customers who participate in Live Video Shopping, we’re offering more engaging and interactive experiences that are consistently the highest quality possible.”

A pioneer in live video streaming since inception in 2007, Bambuser is pursuing an aggressive product development strategy to ensure the platform remains the most feature rich and robust available. The company is leveraging the recent investment of $60 million from renowned fashion and technology investor Anders Holch Povlsen along with Lancelot Asset Management AB, TIN Fonder and Handelsbanken Fonder, to accelerate its timeline for rolling out new capabilities. 

Contact information

Maryam Ghahremani

CEO Bambuser
[email protected] 
+46 8 400 160 02

About Bambuser

Bambuser is a software company specializing in interactive live video streaming. The Company’s primary product, Live Video Shopping, is a cloud-based software solution that is used by customers such as global e-commerce and retail businesses to host live shopping experiences on websites, mobile apps and social media. Bambuser was founded in 2007 and has its headquarters in Stockholm. Erik Penser Bank AB is Bambuser’s Certified Adviser.

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SOURCE Bambuser

TOKYO and CAMBRIDGE, England, Feb. 12, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — Sosei Group Corporation (“the Company”) (TSE: 4565) provides an update on operational activities and reports its consolidated results for the 12 months ended 31 December 2020. The full report can be accessed by clicking here. 

Shinichi Tamura, Chairman, President and CEO of Sosei Heptares, commented: “Sosei Heptares made a great deal of progress across all areas of its business in 2020, despite the challenges we faced. We adapted extremely well to the COVID-19 pandemic. This allowed us to successfully execute our strategy, adding several major partnering agreements around our early-stage programs, reinforcing our position as a leading go-to drug discovery and development partner. We also entered several strategic technology collaborations with innovative companies designed to strengthen our StaR® technology and SBDD capabilities and enhance our discovery and future partnering opportunities, including beyond GPCRs. In addition, we successfully refinanced the business, which is supporting the rapid advancement of our exciting and extensive pipeline and our ambitious growth plans, which could include a potentially transformative acquisition. Our ability to deliver further partnering and/or co-investment deals was further enhanced when we regained the rights to our muscarinic program early in the new year. With our clear strategy, our talented team and a strong financial position, we can look forward to 2021 with great optimism.”

Operational Highlights for Q4 2020

• New global agreement worth up to £370 million plus royalties with GlaxoSmithKline – to discover and develop selective, oral, small molecule agonists of GPR35 in inflammatory bowel disease and other gastrointestinal immune disorders.
• Creation of new company – Tempero Bio – with specialist venture capital firm Aditum Bio (founded by ex-Novartis executives Joe Jimenez and Mark Fishman) – Tempero in-licensed Sosei Heptares’ Phase 1 mGlu5 negative allosteric modulator program to develop novel therapeutics targeting addiction and anxiety. Sosei Heptares received an upfront payment and strategic equity stake in Tempero Bio and is eligible to receive future development and commercial milestone payments plus tiered royalties from any future product sales.
• New global agreement worth up to US$380 million plus royalties with Biohaven Pharmaceuticals – to develop, manufacture and commercialize novel, small-molecule CGRP receptor antagonists (including HTL0022562) for treating CGRP-mediated disorders.
• New strategic technology collaboration with Captor Therapeutics focused on targeted GPCR degradation as a novel approach to drug design – initial program to identify small molecules degraders of a GPCR strongly implicated in gastrointestinal disorders.
• Potent anti-viral compounds identified from the collaborative COVID-19 R&D program that was initiated during 2020 – several novel compounds, potentially broad-spectrum antivirals for COVID, identified are being optimized for preclinical studies having demonstrated high potency in inhibiting the activity of the SARS-CoV-2 Mpro protease as well as promising oral bioavailability.

Operational Highlights for the Full Year 2020

• Approximately US$
  200
   million raised from an International Offering of shares and convertible bonds – to pursue strategic growth initiatives including:
• a potentially transformative acquisition to secure long-term revenue growth,
• investments in novel technologies that complement and future-proof its drug discovery platform,
• expansion of its drug candidate discovery and early development into new target classes, and
• in-licensing late-stage clinical assets to develop for the Japanese market.

The balance of funds will support organic growth initiatives, and corporate purposes.

• New global agreement signed with AbbVie, initially worth up to US$409 million plus royalties – initially a single-target discovery and option-to-license collaboration to discover novel small molecules targeting inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. AbbVie has the option to expand the collaboration up to a total of four targets.
• Second novel drug candidate resulting from multi-target drug discovery collaboration with Pfizer entered clinical trials – first subject dosed with PF-07054894, a CCR6 antagonist targeting Inflammatory Bowel Disease, triggered US$5 million payment to Sosei Heptares.
• Enerzair® Breezhaler® approved in Europe and Japan to treat asthma – Enerzair® is once-daily, first-in-class inhaled LABA/LAMA/ICS combination developed by Novartis, and in which Sosei Heptares has an economic interest. The achievement of these milestones triggered the payment of US$6.25 million to Sosei Heptares from Novartis.
• Excellent scientific progress made with orexin agonist program in conjunction with spin-off companies Orexia and Inexia – progress building unique orexin modulator drug discovery and design engine triggered next tranche of funding from Medixci. Further orexin receptor structural data and insights generated to help optimize drug discovery targeting neurological diseases.
• Measures put in place to successfully operate in response to the COVID-19 pandemic – policies and practises were rapidly implemented to ensure safety of employees and other stakeholders and to reduce the spread of coronavirus, while also prioritizing revenue-generating work for our major collaboration partners.

Post-period Highlights

• Worldwide rights to out-licensed muscarinic agonist programs regained from AbbVie/Allergan – independent review of programs has completed, with increased investment allocated to advance the HTL0016878 selective muscarinic M4 agonist through clinical studies and build value ahead of future partnering. HTL0016878 represents a unique opportunity to develop a novel therapeutic with a new mechanism of action for neurological disorders including schizophrenia. Negotiations for collaborations on this and other muscarinic programs are now in progress.
• New strategic technology collaboration with PharmEnable for AI-driven drug discovery – aim to identify new leads against a challenging “peptidergic” GPCR target
• First strategic collaboration to explore SBDD approaches beyond GPCRs with Metrion Biosciences – collaboration targeting ion channels, a large, under-exploited target class where structural input to drug discovery has been limited. Drug discovery program to identify novel, highly specific leads for further development against a single ion channel associated with neurological diseases.

Financial Highlights for the 12-month Period ended 31 December 2020

• Revenue totalled JPY 8,842 million (US$82.8 million*), a decrease of JPY 884 million (US$6.4 million) vs. the prior corresponding period. Milestone revenues and upfront fees can vary considerably year on year and depend on the achievement of defined milestone events and the commencement of new partnership agreements within that year. Whilst four new out-licensing agreements were signed in 2020 vs. three in 2019, milestone receipts in 2019 from existing collaborations were larger, resulting in an overall drop in revenue. 2019 revenue included several major milestones, including a US$15 million milestone receipt from AstraZeneca.
• Cash R&D expenses totalled JPY 3,411 million (US$31.9 million), a decrease of JPY 526 million (US$4.2 million) vs. the prior corresponding period. This was primarily related to a reduction in project activity due to COVID-19, as well as the successful recovery of excess costs incorrectly charged by one supplier. In the period under review, 96% of R&D spend related to our UK operations.
• Cash G&A expenses totalled JPY 1,995 million (US$18.7 million), a decrease of JPY 169 million (US$1.2 million) vs. the prior corresponding period, and was primarily related to a reduction in our UK National Insurance liability linked to share based payments as a result of the reduction in our share price over the period.
• Cash earnings** totalled JPY 2,904 million (US$27.2 million), an increase of JPY 58 million (US$1.1 million) vs. the prior corresponding period.  Whilst there has been a slight reduction in revenue year on year, the strong management of costs has been greater, leading to an increase in cash earnings.
• Operating Profit totalled JPY 928 million (US$8.7 million), an increase of JPY 544 million (US$5.1 million) vs. the prior corresponding period.
• Net profit totalled JPY 1,479 million (US$13.8 million), an increase of JPY 47 million (US$0.7 million) vs. the prior corresponding period. The main reason for the increase was due to the increase in  operating profit and net finance income.
• Cash and cash equivalents increased by JPY 24,633 million from the beginning of the year and amounted to JPY 40,008 million as at December 31, 2020.
• Net cash provided by financing activities for the period under review totalled JPY 20,278 million. This was primarily due to net cash inflows from the issuance of new shares raising JPY 5,145 million (including shares issued through an international offering) and the issuance of convertible bonds raising JPY 15,902 million.

*Convenience conversion to US$ at the following rates: 2020: 1US$ =106.774 JPY; 2019: 1US$ =109.035 JPY

**Non-IFRS measure

About Sosei Heptares

We are an international biopharmaceutical group focused on the discovery and early development of new medicines originating from our proprietary GPCR-targeted StaR® technology and structure-based drug design platform capabilities. We are advancing a broad and deep pipeline of novel medicines across multiple therapeutic areas, including neurology, immunology, gastroenterology and inflammatory diseases.

We have established partnerships with some of the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies, including AbbVie, AstraZeneca, Biohaven, Genentech (Roche), GSK, Novartis, Pfizer and Takeda and additionally with multiple emerging technology companies. Sosei Heptares is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan with corporate and R&D facilities in Cambridge, UK.

“Sosei Heptares” is the corporate brand and trademark of Sosei Group Corporation, which is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange (ticker: 4565). Sosei, Heptares, the logo and StaR® are trademarks of Sosei Group companies.

For more information, please visit https://soseiheptares.com/ 
LinkedIn: @soseiheptaresco | Twitter: @soseiheptaresco | YouTube: @soseiheptaresco

Enquiries:

Sosei Heptares
 – Media and Investor Relation
Hironoshin Nomura
SVP Investor Relations and Corporate Strategy
+81 (0)3 6679 2178
[email protected]

Shinichiro Nishishita
VP Investor Relations
Head of Regulatory Disclosures
+81 (0)3 5210 3399 
[email protected]

Citigate Dewe Rogerson (for Sosei Heptares)

Yas Fukuda – Japanese Media
+81 (0)3 4360 9234
[email protected]

Mark Swallow

David Dible – International Media
+44 (0)20 7638 9571 
[email protected]

Forward-looking statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements, including statements about the discovery, development and commercialization of products. Various risks may cause Sosei Group Corporation’s actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including: adverse results in clinical development programs; failure to obtain patent protection for inventions; commercial limitations imposed by patents owned or controlled by third parties; dependence upon strategic alliance partners to develop and commercialize products and services; difficulties or delays in obtaining regulatory approvals to market products and services resulting from development efforts; the requirement for substantial funding to conduct research and development and to expand commercialization activities; and product initiatives by competitors. As a result of these factors, prospective investors are cautioned not to rely on any forward-looking statements. We disclaim any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

 

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SOURCE Sosei Heptares

BOLIDEN, Sweden, Feb. 12, 2021 /PRNewswire/ —

The Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves situation in Aitik, Garpenberg and Kevitsa is stable. During the year, exploration continued to be successful at the Tara Deep mineralization and Mineral Resources in the Boliden Area increased as a result of exploration at the Rävliden deposit.

– “We have a stable situation in our major mines, and developments are advancing in Tara and the Boliden Area. Naturally, the fact that we’ve begun underground drilling in Tara is very good news,” says Stefan Romedahl, President, Business Area Mines.

The cost of exploration in 2020 was SEK 504 m (570). Some exploration activities were affected by restrictions related to Covid-19.

Aitik

No large-scale exploration is currently in progress in Aitik, however, mining preparation work is continuing with the Liikavaara deposit, around 3 km northwest of Aitik. Exploration and evaluation is also in progress at the Nautanen deposit, around 15 km north of Aitik. Mineral Reserves in Aitik, including Liikavaara, increased by 165 Mtonnes (14%) while Mineral Resources fell by 210 Mtonnes (19%). Design changes and a refined cost model have allowed the Mineral Resource to be converted to a Mineral Reserve. 42 Mtonnes were milled during 2020. New estimations of resources in Nautanen during 2020 showed an increase of 5.7 Mtonnes (36%).

The Boliden Area

In the Boliden Area, exploration at the Rävliden mineralization in Kristineberg continued. Drilling, test mining and metallurgical testing were carried out during 2020 and a new Mineral Resource estimation has shown an increase in the Mineral Resource by 2.7 Mtonnes. The Mineral Reserve increased in Renström but fell in Kristineberg and Kankberg. In all, the Mineral Reserves fell by 1.2 Mtonnes (9%), which is less than milled during the year (1.6 Mtonnes). The Mineral Resource increased by 2.7 Mtonnes (12%).

Garpenberg

Garpenberg has good advance planning with Mineral Resources and Reserves. Exploration and studies were successful during the year and the Mineral Reserve increased by 14.7 Mtonnes (20%). In Garpenberg, 3.0 Mtonnes were milled during 2020. Exploration in Garpenberg has contributed as much as was mined in 2020, but by promoting such large tonnages to Mineral Reserves, Mineral Resources have been reduced by 6.4 Mtonnes (9%).

Kevitsa

In Kevitsa, the Mineral Reserve decreased by 12 Mtonnes (9%), 9.5 Mtonnes of which was mined during the year. Design changes, including wider ramps and higher cut-offs for the next two years, have caused the remainder of the reduction. Conversely, the Mineral Resource increased by 22 Mtonnes (14%). New borehole information and a new geological model are the most important factors behind this increase.

Tara

Exploration at the Tara Deep mineralization continued with drilling from the surface, while drifting is underway toward Tara Deep at a depth of around 1000 meters. Drifting has progressed far enough that drilling toward Tara Deep has begun from underground. Drilling from the surface has been successful and Tara Deep is now estimated to include 26 Mtonnes of inferred Mineral Resources, compared with 22 Mtonnes in 2019, which has also contributed to an increase in Tara’s total Mineral Resource of 4.7 Mtonnes (16%). Meanwhile, work on improving the geological models of the mineralization and designing stopes in the Tara mine continues. Together with the contribution from drilling, this has resulted in the replacement of the entire year’s mining output of 2.3 Mtonnes and an increase in the Mineral Reserve of 700 Ktonnes (4%).

Calculation of Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves, 2020

Boliden follows the recommendations of the Swedish Mining Association (SveMin) for reporting exploration results, Mineral Reserves and Mineral Resources and strives to report according to the Pan-European Reserves and Resources Reporting Committee (PERC). The PERC standard has clearer requirements for documentation and the competent persons who must evaluate the information that companies report. The transition to the PERC standard is a process that takes place during a transitional period until the company has had time to switch to using the PERC standard. As far as possible, this review is carried out in compliance with the PERC standard, but the reporting does not claim to be completely in accordance with the regulatory framework. All summarizing reports for Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves per project and mine are reviewed and approved by competent persons presented in the relevant report. This summary of Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves has been reviewed and approved by Gunnar Agmalm, Competent Person and Head of Ore Reserves and Project Evaluation, Boliden, which is a member of The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AusIMM) and The Fennoscandian Association for Metals and Minerals Professionals (FAMMP), both of which are approved organizations for competent persons according to PERC.

 

   

This information is information that Boliden AB is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of Director Communications, at 07.49 CET on February 12, 2020.

For further information, please contact:
Klas Nilsson, Director Group Communications, phone: +46 70-453 65 88

Boliden is a metals company with a focus on sustainable development. Our roots are Nordic, our market global. Our core competence lies within the fields of exploration, mining, smelting and metal recycling. Boliden has more than 5,700 employees and an annual turnover of SEK 50 billion. The share is listed in the Large Cap segment on NASDAQ OMX Stockholm 



www.boliden.com

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SOURCE Boliden

UPPSALA, Sweden, Feb. 12, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — October – December

• Net sales amounted to 298.1 MSEK (288.6), an increase by 3.3 percent, and organically* an increase by 10.0 percent.

• Operating profit amounted to 59.6 MSEK (37.9).

• The operating margin amounted to 20.0 percent (13.1).

• Result after tax amounted to 44.4 MSEK (18.5).

• Earnings per share was 0.68 SEK (0.28) before and after dilution.

• The cash flow from operating activities increased to 87.5 MSEK (76.3).

• Net cash* at December 31 was 157.0 MSEK (net debt -69.2).

• Cash and cash equivalents amounted to 371.3 MSEK (185.9).

• Liabilities to credit institutions amounted to 110.0 MSEK (109.6).

• On November 4 the Board of Directors announced that a decision was taken to not convene an Extraordinary General Meeting to decide on dividends due to the continued uncertainty concerning the effects of the Corona pandemic.

January – December

• Net sales amounted to 1,092.3 MSEK (1,101.4), a decrease by 0.8 percent, and organically* an increase by 1.4 percent.

• Operating profit amounted 206.2 MSEK (208.1).

• The operating margin amounted to 18.9 percent (18.9).

• Result after tax amounted to 175.3¹⁾ MSEK (186.8).

• Earnings per share was 2.69¹⁾SEK (2.87) before and after dilution.

• The cash flow from operating activities amounted to 279.0 MSEK (211.8).

• On August 18 the Board of Directors decided to carry out a new share issue and to repurchase 243,313 class C shares in accordance with the resolution of the Annual General Meeting.

• On August 31 it was announced that the total number of shares increased by 243,313, corresponding to 24,331.3 votes after the new issue of class C shares, and that the shares had been repurchased.

• The Board of Directors intends to propose to the Annual General Meeting a dividend to the shareholders for 2020 of 1.50 SEK (0) per share, corresponding to 55.8 percent of the result after tax. According to the dividend policy Biotage shall distribute at least 50 percent of the net profit.

Comments by the CEO 

Double-digit organic growth -a record quarter

It is with immense pride that I present this report on the last quarter and the full year 2020, especially under the challenging conditions caused by the ongoing Corona pandemic (COVID-19).

I note with satisfaction that we after the second and third quarters, that were greatly affected by the pandemic, now once again deliver a strong quarter. In fact, our sales are the highest ever in a single quarter, for the full year this means continued organic growth for the Group. For the fourth quarter the reported sales were 3.3 percent higher compared to the corresponding period 2019, which organically was a 10.0 percent increase. For the full year the corresponding figures were a decrease by 0.8 percent and an organic growth by 1.4 percent.

The operating margin, EBIT, improved by 6.9 percentage points in the quarter compared to last year and achieved a margin of 20.0 percent.

For the full year the EBIT margin amounted to 18.9 percent, the same as last year.

It was our largest single product area, Organic chemistry, that contributed the most to the success in the fourth quarter, as its share of our sales increased by no less than 7 percentage points, from 46 to 53 percent, and 51 percent for the full year. All geographical areas except Japan showed growth for these products in the fourth quarter. The Asian countries had the strongest development, but it is also worth noting that the US came back strongly with a double-digit percentage sales increase and a record for the quarter.

Biotage’s Scale-up product area saw a sales decrease, which was due to a reduction of CBD sales in the US. Instead, we focused resources and activities on parties active in vaccine manufacturing. This contributed to increased sales and some recovery for Scale-up, which we see as very positive. We have long striven to broaden our customer and application base for the area and we have now further strengthened this work.

Many of our customers in the Analytical chemistry product area are among those who have been hit hard by the consequences of the pandemic. This applies in particular to commercial laboratories working with the analysis of patient samples. Here, however, we saw a gradual increase in activity levels during the quarter, which hopefully may indicate a trend break.

Another effect of the covid-19 pandemic was that Biotage’s sales and beta testing in the Biomolecules product area was limited as we had fewer opportunities to visit customers. A commercial launch of our automated plasmid purification system at maxi, mega and giga scale is approaching and is planned for the first half of 2021.

Our product mix continued to have an overweight of system sales in the quarter, accounting for 51 percent. Great sales successes for our purification systems in all regions except Japan contributed to this.

Geographically we continue to build a stronger presence in Asia. China and South Korea remain double-digit growth markets for Biotage. We also see great potential in India which, however, was hard struck by the restrictions resulting from the pandemic. Fortunately, we still noted a strong recovery of the operations in India in the latter part of the year. In Japan sales did not meet our expectations, but also here we saw positive signs with increased sales in the last quarter. After two quarters with weaker figures, the Americas ended the year with recovery in the last quarter, and I am very delighted to see that EMEA showed growth both in the quarter and the full year.

Looking at important investments during the year, we have expanded the machinery with automation solutions at our production unit in Cardiff, UK to strengthen manufacturing capacity. This work will continue in 2021. Furthermore, we have started work on the completion of a completely new building in Cardiff. It will be used primarily for the production of various types of consumables, with improved and more efficient production flows. We expect the first part of the expansion to be completed in the summer of 2021.

We are investing in efficiencies also in our production of the PhyTip^® consumables in the Biomolecules product area in the US. In 2020 we started a project to introduce automation solutions that are currently undergoing production tests. We expect to be able to deploy them in the spring of 2021.

For our future development it is reassuring to see our strong balance sheet with a net cash of 157.0 MSEK, which is a 226.2 MSEK improvement compared to last year’s net debt of 69.2 MSEK. Through focused work we have improved our operating capital by 9.2 MSEK compared to the last full year.

The year has certainly been very challenging for us all, professionally as well as on the private level. For many the Covid-19 pandemic has blurred the boundary between home and workplace. This has been and continues to be a challenge in terms of work environment issues and the balance between work and leisure. Throughout this period, Biotage has constantly been working to maintain a high level of information to the Group’s employees, both on the global level and as country specific instructions in the various regions. We have utilized digital meetings and tried to facilitate homework for all employees by providing mobile computers, screens, office chairs, etc.

It is our assessment that we will continue to live with the limitations of the pandemic also in 2021. Through the lessons we take with us from this time, we are likely to work differently also when the pandemic is finally over. During the pandemic we have learned to work with greater flexibility. We have also travelled less both within and across national borders, which contributes to diminishing our environmental footprint and to increasing sustainability. We have developed new methods of working and been forced to be innovative and swift in order to overcome various problems.

Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all our talented employees who, despite very challenging external circumstances, have enabled the Group to continue to perform at such a high level. Biotage is well positioned and I am very much looking forward to continuing with another successful year 2021.

Uppsala February 12 2021 

Tomas Blomquist

President and CEO

Calendar

All financial reports are published at www.biotage.com

The interim report for Biotage AB (publ) has been issued by the Company’s President and CEO Tomas Blomquist after authorization by the Board of Directors.

Uppsala February 12, 2021
Tomas Blomquist
President and CEO

For further information:

Tomas Blomquist, President and CEO
phone: +46 705 23 01 63                                                                                                                    

Annette Colin, CFO
phone: +46 703 19 06 76       

This information is information that Biotage AB (publ) is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation and the Securities Markets Act. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact persons set out above, on February 12, 2021 at 08:00 CET.

Biotage in brief

Biotage is a Global Impact Tech Company committed to solving society’s problems. We offer workflow solutions and products to customers in drug discovery and development, analytical testing and water and environmental testing.

Biotage is contributing to sustainable science with the goal to make the world healthier, greener and cleaner – HumanKind Unlimited.

Our customers span a broad range of market segments including pharmaceutical, biotech, contract research and contract manufacturers as well as clinical, forensic and academic laboratories in addition to organizations focused on food safety, clean water and environmental sustainability.

Biotage is headquartered in Uppsala in Sweden and employs approx. 485 people worldwide. The Group had sales of 1.092 MSEK in 2020 and our products are sold in more than 70 countries. Biotage’s share (BIOT) is listed in the Mid Cap segment on the NASDAQ Stockholm.

Website: www.biotage.com

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SOURCE Biotage

BOLIDEN, Sweden, Feb. 12, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — Revenues for the fourth quarter amounted to SEK 16,170 m (12,972) and operating profit, excluding revaluation of process inventory, totaled SEK 3,043 m (1,721). Free cash flow totaled SEK 2,750 m (822). For the full year, revenues amounted to SEK 56,321 m (49,936) and operating profit, excluding revaluation of process inventory, totaled SEK 8,438 m (7,035).

“A very good quarter. At our mines, development in Kevitsa is particularly positive, while production at the smelters has been characterized by a high level of stability,” says Mikael Staffas, President and CEO.

The operating profit in Business Area Mines increased to SEK 1,858 m (890), mainly due to higher grades and overall good production. The milled volume in Kevitsa increased by more than 30% compared to the fourth quarter of 2019 and in Garpenberg 3.0 Mtonnes were milled in 2020, which is in line with the current environmental permit. Aitik’s milled volume was in line with the previous year, but has not yet reached the new design capacity. The Boliden Area’s earnings were positively affected by a good ore mix with a high proportion of gold, while production in Tara was affected by maintenance and some disruptions. The Kylylahti mine was closed down during the quarter, and the mine is now being prepared for reclamation and the concentrator is being mothballed.

Within Business Area Smelters, operating profit, excluding revaluation of process inventory, increased to SEK 1,109 m (759) as a result of higher volumes. In Rönnskär, production of most metals increased compared to the corresponding period last year due to good process stability and new capacity. In Harjavalta, copper production was also higher than in the fourth quarter of 2019 after completed investments, while production of nickel in matte was slightly lower. Zinc production in both Kokkola and Odda was characterized by high stability and was higher than in the previous year. Production in Bergsöe was lower than the corresponding period last year due to poorer supply and lower quality of input materials.

At the start of 2021, Boliden submitted an application for membership in the International Council on Metals and Mining (ICMM). The aim of membership is to work with other member companies to develop the industry’s work on various aspects of sustainability.

For further information, please contact:

Klas Nilsson, Director Group Communications, tel.: +46 70 453 65 88

Boliden is a metals company with a focus on sustainable development. Our roots are Nordic, our market global. Our core competence lies within the fields of exploration, mining, smelting and metal recycling. Boliden has around 6,000 employees and an annual turnover of SEK 50 billion. The share is listed in the Large Cap segment on NASDAQ OMX Stockholm.

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SOURCE Boliden

BOLIDEN, Sweden, Feb. 12, 2021 /PRNewswire/ —

 Q4 2020

• Revenues totaled SEK 16,170 m (12,972) 

• The operating profit totaled SEK 3,077 m (1,744)

• The operating profit, excluding the revaluation of process inventory, totaled SEK 3,043 m (1,721)

• Free cash flow totaled SEK 2,750 m (822)

• Earnings per share totaled SEK 8.60 (4.97)

Strong earnings and cash flow during the quarter 

• Stable production in Mines and Smelters.
• The Board of Directors proposes a payment to the shareholders of SEK 14.25 per share through:
• oan ordinary dividend of SEK 8.25 (7.00) per share.
• oan extra payment of SEK  6.00 (0.00) per share through automatic share redemption.

Please find enclosed the full report.

The Interim Report will be presented via a webcast/conference call on Friday, 12 February at 09:30 (CET). Information is available at www.boliden.com.

This information is information that Boliden AB is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of Director Investor Relations, at 07.45 CET on 12 February, 2021.

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SOURCE Boliden