NOT FOR PUBLICATION, RELEASE OR DISTRIBUTION, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, IN OR INTO THE UNITED STATES, AUSTRALIA, CANADA, JAPAN, THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA OR ANY OTHER JURISDICTION IN WHICH IT WOULD BE UNLAWFUL TO DO SO. PLEASE SEE THE IMPORTANT NOTICE AT THE END OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT.

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION. THIS ANNOUNCEMENT DOES NOT CONSTITUTE AN OFFER TO SELL OR A SOLICITATION TO BUY SECURITIES IN ANY JURISDICTION, INCLUDING AUSTRALIA, CANADA, JAPAN, THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA OR THE UNITED STATES.

ARBUTHNOT BANKING GROUP PLC  

Proposed secondary placing of ordinary shares in Secure Trust Bank PLC ("Secure Trust")

Arbuthnot Banking Group PLC ("Arbuthnot" or "the Group") has indicated that it intends to sell up to 1,050,000 ordinary shares of 40 pence each ("Sale Shares"), held by its subsidiary Arbuthnot Latham & Co., Limited in the capital of Secure Trust (the "Sale").

The purpose of the sale is both to support future growth of the Arbuthnot Latham lending businesses and to reduce the significant additional regulatory capital that a holding of this size in another bank requires.  The Sale will improve the Group's regulatory capital position.  In the event that the total number of Sale Shares are sold, there will be a reduction of approximately £0.8m in dividend income for the Group (based on the full year dividend paid by Secure Trust in the year ended 31 December 2018).

Arbuthnot has agreed that, following completion of the Sale, it will not, subject to customary exceptions, dispose of ordinary shares in Secure Trust for a period of 180 days.

The Sale will be managed by Shore Capital Stockbrokers Limited acting as sole bookrunner (the "Bookrunner") in relation to the Sale. The Company and the Bookrunner reserve the right to increase or decrease the size of the Sale in their absolute discretion.

The book for the Sale will open with immediate effect following this announcement. Final pricing and allocations are expected to be announced as soon as practicable following the closing of the book, which will be at the absolute discretion of the Bookrunner. The Sale is not being underwritten.

For further information contact:

Important Notice

MEMBERS OF THE GENERAL PUBLIC ARE NOT ELIGIBLE TO TAKE PART IN THE SALE. THIS ANNOUNCEMENT AND ANY OFFER OF SECURITIES TO WHICH IT RELATES ARE ONLY ADDRESSED TO AND DIRECTED AT (1) IN ANY MEMBER STATE OF THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AREA, PERSONS WHO ARE QUALIFIED INVESTORS WITHIN THE MEANING OF ARTICLE 2(1)(E) OF EU DIRECTIVE 2003/71/EC AND ANY RELEVANT IMPLEMENTING MEASURES (THE "PROSPECTUS DIRECTIVE"); and (2) IN THE UNITED KINGDOM, PERSONS WHO (I) HAVE PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE IN MATTERS RELATING TO INVESTMENTS WHO FALL WITHIN ARTICLE 19(5) OF THE FINANCIAL SERVICES AND MARKETS ACT 2000 (FINANCIAL PROMOTION) ORDER 2005 (AS AMENDED) (THE "ORDER"); OR (II) FALL WITHIN ARTICLE 49(2)(A) TO (D) OF THE ORDER OR (III) ARE PERSONS TO WHOM AN OFFER OF THE SALE SHARES MAY OTHERWISE LAWFULLY BE MADE (ALL SUCH PERSONS REFERRED TO IN (1) AND (2) TOGETHER BEING REFERRED TO AS "RELEVANT PERSONS"). THE INFORMATION REGARDING THE SALE SET OUT IN THIS ANNOUNCEMENT MUST NOT BE ACTED ON OR RELIED ON BY PERSONS WHO ARE NOT RELEVANT PERSONS. ANY INVESTMENT OR INVESTMENT ACTIVITY TO WHICH THIS ANNOUNCEMENT RELATES IS AVAILABLE ONLY TO RELEVANT PERSONS AND WILL BE ENGAGED IN ONLY WITH RELEVANT PERSONS.

This announcement and the information contained herein is for information purposes only and does not constitute or form part of any offer or an invitation to acquire or dispose of securities in the United States, Canada, Australia, South Africa or Japan or in any other jurisdiction in which such an offer or solicitation is unlawful.

The Sale Shares have not been, and will not be, registered under the US Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "US Securities Act"), or under the securities laws of any state or other jurisdiction of the United States, and, absent registration, may not be offered or sold in the United States except pursuant to an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the US Securities Act and the securities laws of any relevant state or other jurisdiction of the United States. There will be no public offering of the Sale Shares in the United States or elsewhere.

The Sale Shares have not been approved or disapproved by the US Securities and Exchange Commission, any state securities commission or other regulatory authority in the United States, nor have any of the foregoing authorities passed upon or endorsed the merits of the Sale or the accuracy or adequacy of this announcement. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offence in the United States.

No prospectus or offering document has been or will be prepared in connection with the Sale. Any investment decision to buy securities in the Sale must be made solely on the basis of publicly available information. Such information is not the responsibility of and has not been independently verified by Arbuthnot or Shore Capital, or any of their respective affiliates.

Neither this announcement nor any copy of it may be taken, transmitted or distributed, directly or indirectly, in or into or from the United States (including its territories and possessions, any state of the United States and the District of Columbia), Canada, Australia, South Africa or Japan. Any failure to comply with this restriction may constitute a violation of United States, Canadian, Australian, South African or Japanese securities laws.

The distribution of this announcement and the offering or sale of the Sale Shares in certain jurisdictions may be restricted by law. No action has been taken by Arbuthnot, Shore Capital or any of their respective affiliates that would, or which is intended to, permit a public offer of the Sale Shares in any jurisdiction or possession or distribution of this announcement or any other offering or publicity material relating to the Sale Shares in any jurisdiction where action for that purpose is required. Persons into whose possession this announcement comes are required by Arbuthnot and Shore Capital to inform themselves about and to observe any applicable restrictions.

No representation or warranty express or implied is, or will be made as to, or in relation to, and no responsibility or liability is or will be accepted by Shore Capital or by any of their respective affiliates or agents as to or in relation to, the accuracy or completeness of this announcement or any other written or oral information made available to or publicly available to any interested party or its advisers, and any liability therefore is expressly disclaimed.

Shore Capital is acting exclusively for Arbuthnot in connection with the Sale and no-one else. They will not regard any other person as their respective clients and will not be responsible to anyone other than Arbuthnot for providing the protections afforded to their respective clients, nor will they be responsible for providing advice in relation to the contents of this announcement or any transaction, arrangement or other matter referred to herein.

Shore Capital and any of its respective affiliates acting as an investor for its own account may participate in the Sale on a proprietary basis and in that capacity, may retain, purchase or sell for their own account such securities referred to herein. In addition, they may enter into financing arrangements and swaps with investors in connection with which they may from time to time acquire, hold or dispose of such securities. Shore Capital does not intend to disclose the extent of any such investment or transactions otherwise than in accordance with any legal or regulatory obligation to do so.

Solely for the purposes of the product governance requirements contained within: (a) EU Directive 2014/65/EU on markets in financial instruments, as amended ("MiFID II"); (b) Articles 9 and 10 of Commission Delegated Directive (EU) 2017/593 supplementing MiFID II; and (c) local implementing measures (together, the "MiFID II Product Governance Requirements"), and disclaiming all and any liability, whether arising in tort, contract or otherwise, which any "manufacturer" (for the purposes of the MiFID II Product Governance Requirements) may otherwise have with respect thereto, the Sale Shares have been subject to a product approval process, which has determined that the Sale Shares are: (i) compatible with an end target market of retail investors and investors who meet the criteria of professional clients and eligible counterparties, each as defined in MiFID II; and (ii) eligible for distribution through all distribution channels as are permitted by MiFID II (the "Target Market Assessment"). Notwithstanding the Target Market Assessment, distributors should note that: the price of the Sale Shares may decline and investors could lose all or part of their investment; the Sale Shares offer no guaranteed income and no capital protection; and an investment in the Sale Shares is compatible only with investors who do not need a guaranteed income or capital protection, who (either alone or in conjunction with an appropriate financial or other adviser) are capable of evaluating the merits and risks of such an investment and who have sufficient resources to be able to bear any losses that may result therefrom. The Target Market Assessment is without prejudice to the requirements of any contractual, legal or regulatory selling restrictions in relation to the Offer. For the avoidance of doubt, the Target Market Assessment does not constitute: (a) an assessment of suitability or appropriateness for the purposes of MiFID II; or (b) a recommendation to any investor or group of investors to invest in, or purchase, or take any other action whatsoever with respect to the Sale Shares. Each distributor is responsible for undertaking its own target market assessment in respect of the Sale Shares and determining appropriate distribution channels.

Shore Capital Stockbrokers Limited is authorised and regulated in the United Kingdom by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Forward-looking statements and projections

Certain statements in this announcement are forward-looking statements. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and assumptions could adversely affect the outcome and financial consequences of the plans and events described herein. No one undertakes any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Readers should not place any undue reliance on forward-looking statements which speak only as of the date of this announcement. Statements contained in this announcement regarding past trends or events should not be taken as representation that such trends or events will continue in the future.