Option and Danlaw enter into strategic partnership

Regulated Information

Leuven / detroit– November 9, 2015Option (EURONEXT: OPTI; OTC: OPNVY), the company Connecting Things to the Cloud, and Danlaw Inc. (Danlaw), a global provider of telematics and connected vehicle solutions, today announced a corporate partnership through Danlaw’s investment in Option of up to € 10 million. Mr. Raju Dandu, Founder and CEO of Danlaw also joins Option’s Board of Directors. The partnership will enable new ways of combining the engineering expertise and strengthen both companies in offering solutions for the market of Internet of Things (IoT).

 

The partnership marks a milestone for both companies signaling a collaborative model where companies join forces to complement each others strengths for achieving breakthrough solutions.

 

Raju Dandu, Founder and CEO of Danlaw said: “This cooperation between two highly compatible companies with complementary strategic priorities, product and service offerings will deliver significant value for both organizations. We see numerous opportunities to enhance our growth profile by offering integrated solutions that leverage Option’s superb design and engineering capabilities to deliver a more robust set of Connected Car and IoT solutions.”

 

 Jan Callewaert, Founder and Executive Chairman of Option further commented: “Entering in strategic partnerships is a unanimous decision of our Board of Directors. We are honored to be partnering with Danlaw, the clear technology and market leader in its segment. Both our companies highly regard creativity and excellence and we are looking forward to sharing our technical expertise and paving the way for innovations in the IoT market.”  

 Danlaw is a fast growing company with over 31 years of experience in networked vehicle electronics, telematics and infotainment systems. Danlaw’s specialty areas include Connected Car solutions, Electronic Control Units (ECUs) and Cloud based SaaS applications. Danlaw’s customers include automotive OEM’s, Tier-1 Suppliers, Insurance Companies and Fleet Management Companies, worldwide. Danlaw also works with Departments of Transportation to develop and finalize connected car device specifications, test procedures and test suites. Danlaw is the #1 telematics provider for OBD (On Board Diagnostics) devices in North America.

 Option and Danlaw will closely work together in the development of synergies for the CloudGate platform and engineering projects, by establishing joint sales and marketing channels and in developing new solutions for Connected Cars, smart housing, smart cities and new industrial M2M solutions.

 Under the terms of the agreement Danlaw invests up to € 10 million in Option by means of a private placement in two phases. Initially via a Convertible Bond loan of € 6 million at an accrued interest of 5% yearly as agreed by the Board on November 6, 2015 within the context of the authorized capital. The Convertible Bond loan has a term of 5 years and will expire on November 5, 2020 and can be converted in maximum 32.894.736 shares of Option at a conversion price of € 0.228 per share, interest included, taxes excluded.  The conversion price is set at 30 days average stock price before issue in accordance with Article 598 of the Code of Companies.

 In addition to the Bond loan, Danlaw has the possibility to invest an amount of € 4 million through warrants to be issued by an Extraordinary Shareholders’ Meeting to be convened shortly by the Board of Directors. The special reports of the Board of Directors and the auditor of the transaction  can be found on Option’s website https://www.option.com/about/.

 

Option NV – Auditer Special Report: Uitgifte van Converteerbare Obligaties met opheffing van het voorkeurrecht.  Verslag van de Commissaris in het kader van artikel 596 en artikel 598 van het Wetboek van Vennootschappen

 

Special Report of the Board of Directors: Bijzonder verslag van de Raad van Bestuur overeenkomstig artikelen 583 en 596 juncto 598 van het Wetboek van Vennootschappen over de uitgifte van Converteerbare Obligaties

 

Media Contact

Option

Jan Poté, PR & Media Relations Option

Tel +32 (0)475 92 55 82, E-mail: j.pote@option.com

 

Danlaw

Tim Morris

Tel +1 (248) 522-2529, E-mail : timm@danlawinc.com

 

ABOUT OPTION

Option connects Things to the Cloud. With more than 25 years of experience and many industry’s firsts in the wireless industry, the Company is ideally positioned to bring the most efficient, reliable and secure wireless solutions to business markets (B2B) and industrial markets (M2M). The Company partners with system integrators, value added resellers, application platform providers, value add distributors and network operators to bring tailor made solutions to end-customers. Option is headquartered in Belgium and maintains offices in Europe, the US, Greater China, Japan and Australia. More information: www.option.com

 

ABOUT DANLAW

Danlaw’s 300+ engineering professionals have been providing automotive embedded electronics solutions to OEMs and its Tier-1 supply base for over three decades. Danlaw has facilities in the USA, India and China. Its specialty areas include Connected Car solutions, embedded hardware and software  development  for Electronic Control Units (ECUs), vehicle network communications, infotainment and telematics. Its customers include automotive OEM’s, Tier-1 Suppliers, Insurance Companies and Fleet Management Companies, worldwide. More information: www.danlawinc.com

 

 

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