Absci Announces Inducement Grant Under Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4)

Rhea-AI Summary

Absci (Nasdaq: ABSI) has announced an inducement grant of stock options to a newly-hired non-executive employee. The grant, approved by the Compensation Committee under the 2023 Inducement Plan, includes options to purchase 162,800 shares of common stock at $3.42 per share, matching the closing price on March 3, 2025.

The stock option features a 10-year term with a four-year vesting schedule: 25% vests on the first anniversary, followed by the remaining 75% vesting in 36 approximately equal monthly installments. Full vesting will occur on the fourth anniversary, contingent on continued employment.

VANCOUVER, Wash. and NEW YORK, March 04, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Absci Corporation (Nasdaq: ABSI), a data-first generative AI drug creation company, today announced that on March 3, 2025, the company granted a non-statutory stock option to purchase an aggregate of 162,800 shares of its common stock to one newly-hired non-executive employee. The inducement grant was previously approved by the Compensation Committee of Absci’s Board of Directors pursuant to Absci’s 2023 Inducement Plan (the “Inducement Plan”), and is being made as an inducement material to the new employee’s acceptance of employment with the company in accordance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4).

The stock option award has an exercise price of $3.42 per share, the closing price of Absci’s common stock on the Nasdaq Global Select Market on March 3, 2025 the (“Grant Date”). The stock option has a 10-year term and vests over four years, and 25% of the shares subject to the option vest and become exercisable on the one-year anniversary of the Grant Date and the remaining 75% of the shares subject to the option vest and become exercisable in 36 approximately equal monthly installments thereafter such that the shares underlying the option granted to the new employee will be fully vested on the fourth anniversary of the Grant Date, subject to the new employee’s continued service with Absci on each such date (subject to the terms and conditions of the Inducement Plan and the option award agreement covering the grant).

About Absci
Absci is a data-first generative AI drug creation company that combines AI with scalable wet lab technologies to create better biologics for patients, faster. Our Integrated Drug Creation™ platform unlocks the potential to accelerate time to clinic and increase the probability of success by simultaneously optimizing multiple drug characteristics important to both development and therapeutic benefit. With the data to train, the AI to create, and the wet lab to validate, we can screen billions of cells per week, allowing us to go from AI-designed candidates to wet lab-validated candidates in as little as six weeks. Absci’s headquarters is in Vancouver, WA, with our AI Research Lab in New York City and an Innovation Center in Zug, Switzerland. Visit www.absci.com and follow us on LinkedIn (@absci), X (Twitter) (@Abscibio), and YouTube.

Availability of Other Information about Absci
Investors and others should note that we routinely communicate with investors and the public using our website (www.absci.com) and our investor relations website (investors.absci.com), including without limitation, through the posting of investor presentations, SEC filings, press releases, public conference calls and webcasts on these websites, as well as on X (Twitter), LinkedIn and YouTube. The information that we post on these websites and social media outlets could be deemed to be material information. As a result, investors, the media, and others interested in Absci are encouraged to review this information on a regular basis. The contents of our website and social media postings, or any other website that may be accessed from our website or social media postings, shall not be deemed incorporated by reference in any filing under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

Investor Contact
Alex Khan
VP, Finance & Investor Relations
investors@absci.com

Media Contact
press@absci.com

FAQ

What are the terms of Absci's (ABSI) March 2025 stock option grant?

The grant includes options for 162,800 shares at $3.42 per share, with a 10-year term and 4-year vesting schedule starting March 3, 2025.

How does the vesting schedule work for ABSI's March 2025 inducement grant?

25% vests after one year, with the remaining 75% vesting monthly over the following three years.

What is the exercise price for Absci's March 2025 inducement stock options?

The exercise price is $3.42 per share, matching ABSI's closing price on Nasdaq on March 3, 2025.

Under which plan was ABSI's March 2025 inducement grant issued?

The grant was issued under Absci's 2023 Inducement Plan, approved by the Compensation Committee.