Rua Bioscience debuts on the NZX – media release

Media Release
Thursday 22 October 2020


Rua Bioscience debuts on the NZX; becomes only NZX listed
company headquartered in Tairāwhiti, and first founded by a
Māori community

Caption: Rua Bioscience Co-founders Manu Caddie (L) and Panapa Ehau (R), with Rua CEO, Rob Mitchell at the company's listing event today at
Uepohatu marae in Ruatorea.
Image | Download

Tairāwhiti pharmaceutical company, Rua Bioscience (NZX: RUA) has today started trading on the NZX, becoming the
only NZX listed company to be headquartered in the region, and founded by a Māori community.

The listing follows a fully subscribed Initial Public Offering this month that raised $20 million of new capital to fund
Rua’s next stage of development, support the achievement of sustainable revenue and accelerate growth. Rua has
an implied market capitalisation on listing of $70 million based on an issue price of $0.50 per share.

25 per cent of shares were allocated through a priority offer for Tairāwhiti residents, Waiapu Investments
Shareholders and other people closely associated with the business.

Approximately 86 per cent of Tairāwhiti and Waiapu applicants received their share application in full, with only
those who applied for over $5,000 of shares being scaled. Remaining shares were allocated to a small number of NZ
institutions and to brokers on behalf of New Zealand retail clients.

Rua Chairman Trevor Burt says, “I would like to welcome and thank all of Rua’s new and existing investors for their
support. The confidence you have shown allows the company to earn a position as a leader in the global medicinal
cannabis industry.”

“The progress that Rua has achieved since Panapa and Manu established the company has been immense. Over the
last 18 months we have achieved several major milestones including the development of plant cultivation and
genetics IP, building a high-quality and experienced team, completing commercially licenced facilities and securing a
binding sales agreement with Nimbus Health, one of Germany’s leading distributors of medicinal cannabis. Now, as a
listed company, we’ll be working to execute on our export-led strategy, with a clear path to sustainable revenue, to
deliver for Rua and our shareholders.

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“The company is well placed and ready to progress to the next
stage of commercial production. The funds raised through the IPO
will support Rua to expand its cultivation and processing expertise,
and allow critical investments to be made to secure further
international partnerships.”

- Rua Bioscience Board Chair, Trevor Burt
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Caption: Rua Bioscience Co-founder Panapa Ehau, blows the conch shell at Uepohatu Marae in Ruatorea, to mark the start of Rua trading on the NZX.
Image | Download

Rua Bioscience holds a Medicinal Cannabis Licence from New Zealand’s Medicinal Cannabis Agency and has
completed construction of an operational controlled cultivation facility in Ruatorea and an extraction and
manufacturing facility in Gisborne.

Rua CEO Rob Mitchell says, “Our GMP paperwork has been submitted to Medsafe and our first
GMP audit is scheduled to take place before the end of the year.”

“Our focus will then be on fulfilling our sales agreement with Nimbus Health which is a fully licenced German
importer and distributor focussed on medicinal cannabis products, and we anticipate our first wholesale exports of
dried cannabis flower to occur by the end of 2021.”


Caption: Rua Chairman Trevor Burt, with NZX Chief Executive Mark Peterson at the listing event at NZX in Auckland.
Image | Download

The company held its listing ceremony simultaneously across two locations; at the NZX in Auckland and at Uepohatu
marae in Ruatorea. As the RUA ticker went live on the main board at 11am, in place of the traditional ringing of the
bell, co-founder Panapa Ehau blew a conch shell in Ruatorea, to mark the start of trading.

Co-founders Manu Caddie and Panapa Ehau say the milestone is a testament to the Tairāwhiti and Ruatorea
communities who have supported the company since its inception.

“Rua’s community is at the heart of its journey and success, and it is important for us to acknowledge those people
who have been there from the beginning; we have built community into the DNA of Rua, and are committed to
continuing to attract more talent back to the region, and create economic development opportunities for
Tairāwhiti.

“Rua is proud to be the only NZX listed company to be headquartered in Tairāwhiti, and the first to be founded by a
Māori community. We are grateful for both the early local support and to the investors around the country that have
helped achieve this milestone for the East Coast.”

ENDS

Notes to editor
 In its IPO, Rua Bioscience offered 40 million shares, at a price of $0.50 cents per share, raising $20 million.
 Rua has an implied market capitalisation on listing of $70 million based on an issue price of $0.50 per share.

 A priority offer of $5 million shares was available to for Tairawhiti residents, Waiapu Investments
Shareholders and other people closely associated with the business.
 A total of $15 million shares were allocated across the largest retail brokers in New Zealand, as well as to a
small number of institutional investors.
 The $20m will be used to fund Rua’s next stage of development, support the achievement of sustainable
revenue and accelerate growth.

Company background
Rua Bioscience is a New Zealand pharmaceutical company aiming to be a leading producer of cannabinoid derived
medicines for both export and local markets. Rua has been an early mover in the sector and was the first private
company in New Zealand to receive a licence to cultivate cannabis for research purposes. Founded in 2017 in
Ruatorea as a subsidiary of charitable company Hikurangi Enterprises Limited, Rua is underpinned by its mission to
heal the people and heal the land. It is committed to New Zealand’s Te Tairāwhiti (East Coast) region and its
connection with its local community. The company has completed facilities for cultivation and manufacturing and is
currently going through the GMP certification process. www.ruabio.com
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Alexandra Martin
Sherson Willis
alex@shersonwillis.com
+64 21 023 11878