OptiBiotix Health plc

("OptiBiotix" or the "Company")

Placing and Issue of Warrants

New Subsidiary

OptiBiotix Health plc (AIM: OPTI), a life sciences business products which reduce hunger and food cravings, enhance the gut microbiome, and sweet fibres as healthy sugar substitutes, announces that it has raised £750,000 through the issue of 5,357,143  new ordinary shares of 2 pence each ("Ordinary Shares") in the Company ("Placing Shares") at a price of 14 pence per share ("Issue Price") ("Placing").

As part of the Placing, the Company has issued one warrant for every two new Ordinary Shares subscribed for, exercisable at a price of 21 pence per share for a period of 3 years from the date of Admission (as defined further below).

A new USA institutional investor subscribed for approximately £500,000 of new Ordinary Shares as part of the Placing, with previous experience of investing in companies with weight management products who became aware of OptiBiotix's recent launches of SlimBiome products in the USA.

The net proceeds of the Placing will be utilised to include the following:-

·    Leasing a US warehousing and logistics facility, manufacturing and warehousing 5-10 metric tonnes of SlimBiome in the USA to support partner forecasts and the lead times (2-3 weeks) required by the growing number of ecommerce and retail partners.  Current lead times are 12-16 weeks and increasingly impacted by shipping companies taking longer to fill cargoes and customs delays at USA ports.

·    Investing in growing sales with existing and new partners in the USA.  The Company is seeing increased interest from established brands both globally, and particularly in the USA, who are currently providing traditional weight management products looking for science based ingredients with health claims to bring functionality to existing well known, but declining product ranges.

·    Increasing the number of new partners in Asia, India, Europe, and the USA to reduce dependency on a limited range of partners in each territory

·    Investing in social media advertising to increase awareness of OptiBiotix's own label products on Ecommerce platforms in India, including Amazon, Flipkart, and HealthKart

New Subsidiary

The Company is pleased to announce that as part of its strategy of growing its presence in the USA it has established a 100% owned subsidiary, OptiBiotix Health USA.  This will help mitigate risks of tariffs and establish a physical presence in a large and important market.

Admission

Application will be made to the London Stock Exchange to admit the Placing Shares to trading on AIM ("Admission"). Admission of the new Ordinary Shares is expected to occur on or around 30 May 2025. The new Ordinary Shares will rank pari passu with the existing Ordinary Shares.

Total Voting Rights

For the purpose of the Disclosure and Transparency Rules, following Admission the enlarged issued share capital of the Company will comprise 103,300,304 Ordinary Shares of 2p each. The above figure may be used by shareholders as the denominator for the calculations by which they will determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest in, the Company, under the Disclosure and Transparency Rules.

Stephen O'Hara, CEO of OptiBiotix, commented: "We are pleased that recent product launches in the USA has attracted a new US institutional investor.  This investor has seen returns from previous investments in weight management products and recognised the growth potential of our products.  The Company is determined to ensure that funds raised are used to accelerate sales growth and take the Company to profitability."

This announcement contains information which, prior to its disclosure, was considered inside information for the purposes of the UK Market Abuse Regulation and the Directors of the Company are responsible for the release of this announcement.

For further information, please contact:

About OptiBiotix - www.optibiotix.com

OptiBiotix Health plc (AIM: OPTI), which was formed in March 2012, brings science to the development of compounds which modify the human microbiome - the collective genome of the microbes in the body - in order to prevent and manage human disease and promote wellness.

OptiBiotix has an extensive R&D programme working with leading academics in the development of microbial strains, compounds, and formulations which are used as active ingredients and supplements. More than twenty international food and healthcare supplement companies have signed agreements with OptiBiotix to incorporate their human microbiome modulators into a wide range of food products and drinks.

OptiBiotix is also developing its own range of consumer supplements and health products. The Company's current areas of focus include obesity, cardiovascular health, and diabetes. 

Caution regarding forward looking statements

Certain statements in this announcement, are, or may be deemed to be, forward looking statements. Forward looking statements are identified by their use of terms and phrases such as ''believe'', ''could'', "should" ''envisage'', ''estimate'', ''intend'', ''may'', ''plan'', ''potentially'', "expect", ''will'' or the negative of those, variations or comparable expressions, including references to assumptions.  These forward looking statements are not based on historical facts but rather on the Directors' current expectations and assumptions regarding the Company's future growth, results of operations, performance, future capital and other expenditures (including the amount, nature and sources of funding thereof), competitive advantages, business prospects and opportunities. Such forward looking statements reflect the Directors' current beliefs and assumptions and are based on information currently available to the Directors.