HONG KONG, Dec. 6, 2012 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- China Cord Blood Corporation (NYSE:CO) (“CCBC” or the “Company”), the first and largest cord blood banking operator in China, today announced that one of its non-wholly owned subsidiaries, Favorable Fort Limited (“Favorable Fort”), has entered into a definitive agreement with Cordlife Services (S) Pte. Ltd., a subsidiary of the Company’s strategic affiliate, Cordlife Limited (CBB.AU) (“Cordlife”), a cord blood and tissue banking service provider listed on the Australian Securities Exchange, to acquire Cordlife’s interest in the joint venture, which has a minority interest in Shandong Province Qilu Stem Cells Engineering Co., Ltd. (“Qilu”), the operator of Shandong Cord Blood Bank, for a cash consideration of US$8.65 million. Upon completion of the transaction, CCBC’s effective equity interest in Qilu will increase from approximately 19.9% to 24.0%.
The incremental increase in equity ownership of Qilu is consistent with the Company’s strategy to expand its China presence, and at the same time, streamlines the organizational structure of the Company. The completion of this transaction will be subject to approval by Cordlife’s shareholders. The Company engaged Roth Capital Partners to provide, and Roth Capital Partners has delivered, an opinion to the Company’s Board of Directors as to the fairness, from a financial point of view, of the transaction.
About China Cord Blood Corporation
China Cord Blood Corporation is the first and largest umbilical cord blood banking operator in China in terms of geographical coverage and is the only cord blood banking operator with multiple licenses. Under current PRC government regulations, only one licensed cord blood banking operator is permitted to operate in each licensed region and only seven licenses have been authorized as of today. China Cord Blood Corporation provides cord blood collection, laboratory testing, hematopoietic stem cell processing and stem cell storage services. For more information, please visit the Company’s website at http://www.chinacordbloodcorp.com.
For more information, please contact:
China Cord Blood Corporation
Investor Relations Department
Tel: (+852) 3605-8180
Email: ir@chinacordbloodcorp.com
ICR, Inc.
Mr. Rob Koepp
Tel: (+86) 10-6583-7516 or (646) 405-5185
Email: robert.koepp@icrinc.com
SOURCE China Cord Blood Corporation
