argenx

Co-Manager

Kempen & Co acted as Co-Manager in argenx’s largest capital increase to date - setting a new landmark for European biotech by raising USD 862 million

Transaction highlights

Global Accelerated Bookbuild Offering raising approximately USD 862m by placing a total of 4,207,292 ADSs and ordinary shares at a price of USD 205.00 per ADS and €186.52 per ordinary share after the over-allotment option was fully exercised. This marks the largest ECM transaction of a European biotech in history on any exchange.
The transaction was executed on the back of argenx’s lead asset efgartigimod meeting the primary endpoint in a Phase III trial in myasthenia gravis, a major milestone for the company and patients. The transaction was upsized from originally USD 500 million due to strong demand in a multiple times covered orderbook and was tightly priced with a discount of 3.4% to the last ADS closing price prior to deal announcement.
Kempen & Co has supported argenx throughout its public life via (virtual) roadshows and group meetings, its annual Life Sciences & Healthcare conferences and other stages. Kempen & Co was the only European syndicate bank and was able to secure significant demand from high quality European as well as US specialist and generalist investors.
Kempen & Co IPO-ed argenx on Euronext in 2014 and advised on its Nasdaq IPO in 2017 and was thereafter involved all of the company’s subsequent global offerings, most recently by acting as Lead Manager in its USD 557m US public offering in November 2019. Furthermore, Kempen & Co has been the number one broker in the stock ever since argenx’s 2014 IPO, trading over €2.0bn of its stock to date.

Company description

argenx is a global immunology company developing antibody-based medicines for patients suffering from severe autoimmune diseases and cancer. By translating immunology breakthroughs into innovative drug candidates, argenx is building a world-class portfolio of first-in-class antibodies in both early and late clinical-stages of development. argenx is evaluating efgartigimod in multiple serious autoimmune indications and cusatuzumab in hematological malignancies in collaboration with Janssen, along with advancing earlier stage assets within its therapeutic franchises.

Background Kempen & Co Life Sciences & Healthcare

Over the past year, Kempen & Co has successfully completed a large number of transactions in its Life Sciences & Healthcare franchise.

Recent transactions include:

Joint Bookrunner in the SEK 1,414 million Capital Increase by Oncopeptides, Co-Manager in the USD 161 million Global Offering of DBV Therapeutics, Joint Global Coordinator and Joint Bookrunner in the €19.0 million Capital Increase by Sequana Medical, Lead Manager in the USD 557 million Global Offering by argenx, Co-Manager in the USD 79.2 million US Public Offering by Merus, Co-Manager in the USD 57.5 million Capital Increase by ProQR, Co-Manager in the USD 150 million Nasdaq IPO of BioNTech, Sole Bookrunner in the €9.0 million Capital Increase by MDxHealth, Co-Manager in the USD 20 million Global Offering of Celyad, Co-Manager in the USD 582 million NASDAQ IPO of Genmab, Joint Bookrunner in the €116 million Secondary Sale of Fagron shares by Waterland and Baltisse, Joint Bookrunner in the €48.7 million Rights Issue by Transgene and Joint Bookrunner in the SEK 727 million Capital Increase by Oncopeptides.