Gfinity PLC Appointment and grant of share options (0047Y)

TIDMGFIN

RNS Number : 0047Y

Gfinity PLC

03 May 2019

3 May 2019

Gfinity plc

("Gfinity" or the "Company")

Appointment of John Clarke as Global Brand and Marcomms Officer and

grant of share options

Gfinity plc (AIM: GFIN), a world leading esports solutions provider, announces the appointment of John Clarke to the newly created role of Global Brand and Marcomms Officer with immediate effect. John was appointed as Non-Executive Director of Gfinity plc in September 2018 and will now become an Executive Director. He will work alongside Executive Chairman, Garry Cook, and Global Chief Operating Officer, Graham Wallace, to deliver the Company's strategic plan and growth targets.

John is an experienced communications executive having worked in and with leading global companies for the last 25 years. Prior to joining Gfinity, John worked for HEINEKEN N.V. where he was Head of Global Communications and, most recently, a senior commercial director within Lagunitas Brewing Company, a 100% owned subsidiary of HEINEKEN N.V. Previously he held senior leadership, corporate affairs and marketing positions within The American Express Company and Burson-Marsteller Public Relations.

As the Company grows, Gfinity is committed to appointing additional Non-Executive Directors to further strengthen the Board.

Garry Cook, Executive Chairman, said: "I am delighted to welcome John to the Gfinity team. We have already seen in the short period of time that John has been a Non-Executive Director the value he brings. He is a seasoned leader and team builder who adds creativity, commercial acumen and fresh thinking. John's focus on the consumer and ability to share stories in a compelling way will drive Gfinity forward as we move into the next phase of growth. The competitive gaming landscape continues to grow. Gfinity is well placed to lead in this space based on our advisory capability and expertise in designing, developing and delivering esport solutions."

Grant of share options

The Company's remuneration committee has agreed that John is today issued with options over 3,000,000 new ordinary shares in the Company ("Options"); 2,083,333 under the Company's approved EMI share option scheme and 916,667 under the Company's unapproved scheme.

The Options have an exercise price of 12p per share and become exercisable over two years as follows: one third from the date of grant; one third from the first anniversary of the date of grant; and one third from the second anniversary of the date of grant. The Options expire on the tenth anniversary of the date of grant if not exercised.

Following the grant of the Options, the Company has a total of 54,367,754 options over ordinary shares outstanding, representing approximately 14.98 per cent of the Company's issued share capital.

Notification and public disclosure of transactions by persons discharging managerial responsibilities and persons closely associated with them.

 
 1    Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities 
       / person closely associated 
 a)   Name                              John Clarke 
     --------------------------------  ---------------------------------------- 
 2    Reason for the notification 
     -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
 a)   Position/status                   Global Brand and Marcomms Officer 
                                         (PDMR) 
     --------------------------------  ---------------------------------------- 
 b)   Initial notification /Amendment   Initial notification 
     --------------------------------  ---------------------------------------- 
 3    Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, 
       auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor 
     -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
 a)   Name                              Gfinity plc 
     --------------------------------  ---------------------------------------- 
 b)   LEI                               213800GNV14EDQNRWI17 
     --------------------------------  ---------------------------------------- 
 4    Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for 
       (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; 
       (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions 
       have been conducted 
     -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
 a)   Description of the financial      Options over ordinary shares of 
       instrument, type of instrument    0.1p each in Gfinity plc 
       Identification code 
                                         Identification code (ISIN) for Gfinity 
                                         plc ordinary shares: GB00BT9QD572 
     --------------------------------  ---------------------------------------- 
 b)   Nature of the transaction         Grant of options over ordinary shares 
     --------------------------------  ---------------------------------------- 
 c)   Price(s) and volume(s)              Price(s)   Volume(s) 
                                           12.00p     3,000,000 
                                                     ---------- 
     --------------------------------  ---------------------------------------- 
 d)   Aggregated information            N/A 
       - Aggregated volume 
       - Price 
     --------------------------------  ---------------------------------------- 
 e)   Date of the transactions          3 May 2019 
     --------------------------------  ---------------------------------------- 
 f)   Place of the transaction          Outside a trading venue 
     --------------------------------  ---------------------------------------- 
 

-ENDS-

Enquiries:

 
 Gfinity plc                                        020 7260 2700 
 Garry Cook (via Teneo)                         [e-mail] 
 Teneo                                              020 7260 2700 
 Camilla Cunningham                             [e-mail] 
 Allenby Capital Limited - Nominated Adviser 
  and Joint Broker                                  020 3328 5656 
 Jeremy Porter / John Depasquale 
 Shore Capital - Joint Broker                       020 7408 4090 
 Patrick Castle 
 

About Gfinity

Gfinity (AIM: GFIN) is a world-leading esports solutions provider. Its business to business platform, "Powered by Gfinity", delivers managed services to game publishers, sports rights holders, commercial partners and media companies. Gfinity creates bespoke solutions, including competitions and industry leading content production, connecting our partners with the esports community in authentic and innovative ways. Partnerships include EA SPORTS, F1 Esports Series, Halo World Championship and the Forza Racing Championship.

Gfinity connects directly with competitive gaming consumers through its owned competition platform, the "Gfinity Elite Series". The Series enables competitive gamers to be part of the Gfinity community, testing themselves and developing new skills, while providing a pathway for those who aspire to a career in esports to join a leading professional team. "Gfinity Elite Series" content is distributed through linear and digital channels and is enjoyed by tens of millions of esports fans around the world.

All Gfinity managed service solutions and owned competitions are underpinned by its proprietary technology platform delivering a level playing field for all competitors and supporting scalable multi-format leagues, ladders and knock out competitions.

More information about Gfinity is available at www.gfinityplc.com

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May 03, 2019 02:00 ET (06:00 GMT)