Regulatory News
Discretionary Share Incentive Plan and 2022 Awards
14 December 2022
Equals Group plc (AIM:EQLS), the fast-growing payments group focused on the SME marketplace, announces further awards under its Discretionary Share Incentive plans comprising the grant of Share Incentive Plan (‘SIP’) for all eligible employees of the Company concurrently with a discretionary Long-Term Incentive Plan (‘LTIP’) for senior employees and two executive directors.
In common with many businesses, the Group faces continued challenges to not only recruit but also retain high-quality talent across all its operations. Accordingly, the further following awards are being made under the SIP and LTIP as announced previously in October 2021.
Share Incentive Plan (‘SIP’)
In keeping with 2021 award, the Group will grant an award with a value equivalent to 4,000 new ordinary shares in the capital of the Company (‘Ordinary Shares’) to all 196 employees of the Group who have one year’s service or more as of 14 December 2022 (being the date of grant), in the form of a SIP Free Shares award. The valuation of the Ordinary Shares granted will be the market closing price on the dealing day prior to the award. There are no performance conditions and no purchase price. The award is subject to a three-year holding period in the SIP Trust. Staff who leave employment before the end of the holding period will lose their award, subject to certain limited ‘good leaver’ conditions.
Discretionary Long-Term Incentive Plan (‘LTIP’)
The LTIP, which was announced by the Group on 18 October 2021, detailed that grants were made for senior employees without performance conditions and that grants were also made to two executive directors with performance conditions.
The Group is now making further awards under this LTIP to 44 senior employees and two executive directors. All of these new awards will incorporate performance conditions.
The shares will vest on the third anniversary of the grant of the award, subject to the satisfaction of the pre-determined performance conditions and such vested shares will be subject to a two-year holding period thereafter. The total target award level is up to 3,182,500 Ordinary Shares. The exact award level will be determined on a sliding scale dependent on performance relative to CAGR targets for revenue and EPS, KPI’s for customer quality and ESG and the same minimum share price threshold as 2021 awards, being 80 pence. Participants who leave employment before vesting will lose their award, subject to certain limited ‘good leaver’ conditions.
Set out below is a table of grants under the Plan to certain Directors and persons discharging managerial responsibilities (‘PDMRs’).
| PERSON | JOB TITLE | LTIP* | SIP | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ian Strafford-Taylor | Chief Executive Officer | 637,500 | 4,000 | 641,500 |
| Richard Cooper | Chief Financial Officer | 375,000 | 4,000 | 379,000 |
| Jack Bryant | Director - Operations | 50,000 | 4,000 | 54,000 |
| Matthijs Boon | Chief Operations Officer | 175,000 | 4,000 | 179,000 |
| Simon England | Chief Infrastructure Officer | 175,000 | 4,000 | 179,000 |
| Shona Kerfoot | Chief People Officer | 100,000 | 4,000 | 104,000 |
| Darren Kilner | Director - Dealing | 100,000 | 4,000 | 104,000 |
| Thomas Kiddle | Chief Commercial Officer | 200,000 | - | 200,000 |
| Stephen Paul | Director - Finance | 80,000 | 4,000 | 84,000 |
| Andrew Phillips | Chief Technology Officer | 175,000 | 4,000 | 179,000 |
| James Simcox | Chief Product Officer | 200,000 | 4,000 | 204,000 |
*award dependent on performance criteri
Further details are available in the Company’s 2021 Annual Report available from the Company’s website at www.equalsplc.com
ADDITIONAL TECHNICAL DISCLOSURES
The following disclosure are made in accordance with Article 19 of the EU Market Abuse Regulations 596/2014:
| 1 | Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities / person closely associated | |
| a) | Name | Ian Strafford-Taylor |
| 2 | Reason for the notification | |
| a) | Position/status | Chief Executive Officer |
| b) | Initial notification /Amendment | Initial notification |
| 3 | Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor | |
| a) | Name | Equals Group plc |
| b) | LEI | 213800CPI5S2GYB3RI27 |
| 4 | Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted | |
| a) | Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument Identification code | Options over Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each Issue of Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each ISIN: GB00BLS0XX25 |
| b) | Nature of the transaction | Grant of options Issue or Ordinary Shares |
| c) | Price(s) and volume(s) | 637,500 options over Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the LTIP grant) 4,000 Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the SIP grant) |
| d) | Aggregated information - Aggregated volume - Price | N/A |
| e) | Date of the transaction | 14 December 2022 14 December 2022 |
| f) | Place of the transaction | London Stock Exchange, AIM |
| 1 | Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities / person closely associated | |
|---|---|---|
| a) | Name | Richard Cooper |
| 2 | Reason for the notification | |
| a) | Position/status | Chief Financial Officer |
| b) | Initial notification /Amendment | Initial notification |
| 3 | Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor | |
| a) | Name | Equals Group plc |
| b) | LEI | 213800CPI5S2GYB3RI27 |
| 4 | Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted | |
| a) | Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument Identification code | Options over Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each Issue of Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each ISIN: GB00BLS0XX25 |
| b) | Nature of the transaction | Grant of options Issue or Ordinary Shares |
| c) | Price(s) and volume(s) | 375,000 options over Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the LTIP grant) 4,000 Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the SIP grant) |
| d) | Aggregated information - Aggregated volume - Price | N/A |
| e) | Date of the transaction | 14 December 2022 14 December 2022 |
| f) | Place of the transaction | London Stock Exchange, AIM |
| 1 | Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities / person closely associated | |
|---|---|---|
| a) | Name | Andrew Phillips |
| 2 | Reason for the notification | |
| a) | Position/status | Chief Technology Officer |
| b) | Initial notification /Amendment | Initial notification |
| 3 | Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor | |
| a) | Name | Equals Group plc |
| b) | LEI | 213800CPI5S2GYB3RI27 |
| 4 | Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted | |
| a) | Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument Identification code | Options over Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each Issue of Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each ISIN: GB00BLS0XX25 |
| b) | Nature of the transaction | Grant of options Issue or Ordinary Shares |
| c) | Price(s) and volume(s) | 175,000 options over Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the LTIP grant) 4,000 Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the SIP grant) |
| d) | Aggregated information - Aggregated volume - Price | N/A |
| e) | Date of the transaction | 14 December 2022 14 December 2022 |
| f) | Place of the transaction | London Stock Exchange, AIM |
| 1 | Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities / person closely associated | |
|---|---|---|
| a) | Name | Matthijs Boon |
| 2 | Reason for the notification | |
| a) | Position/status | Chief Operating Officer |
| b) | Initial notification /Amendment | Initial notification |
| 3 | Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor | |
| a) | Name | Equals Group plc |
| b) | LEI | 213800CPI5S2GYB3RI27 |
| 4 | Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted | |
| a) | Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument Identification code | Options over Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each Issue of Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each ISIN: GB00BLS0XX25 |
| b) | Nature of the transaction | Grant of options Issue or Ordinary Shares |
| c) | Price(s) and volume(s) | 175,000 options over Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the LTIP grant) 4,000 Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the SIP grant) |
| d) | Aggregated information - Aggregated volume - Price | N/A |
| e) | Date of the transaction | 14 December 2022 14 December 2022 |
| f) | Place of the transaction | London Stock Exchange, AIM |
| 1 | Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities / person closely associated | |
|---|---|---|
| a) | Name | Simon England |
| 2 | Reason for the notification | |
| a) | Position/status | Chief Infrastructure Officer |
| b) | Initial notification /Amendment | Initial notification |
| 3 | Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor | |
| a) | Name | Equals Group plc |
| b) | LEI | 213800CPI5S2GYB3RI27 |
| 4 | Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted | |
| a) | Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument Identification code | Options over Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each Issue of Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each ISIN: GB00BLS0XX25 |
| b) | Nature of the transaction | Grant of options Issue or Ordinary Shares |
| c) | Price(s) and volume(s) | 175,000 options over Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the LTIP grant) 4,000 Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the SIP grant) |
| d) | Aggregated information - Aggregated volume - Price | N/A |
| e) | Date of the transaction | 14 December 2022 14 December 2022 |
| f) | Place of the transaction | London Stock Exchange, AIM |
| 1 | Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities / person closely associated | |
|---|---|---|
| a) | Name | James Simcox |
| 2 | Reason for the notification | |
| a) | Position/status | Chief Product Officer |
| b) | Initial notification /Amendment | Initial notification |
| 3 | Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor | |
| a) | Name | Equals Group plc |
| b) | LEI | 213800CPI5S2GYB3RI27 |
| 4 | Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted | |
| a) | Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument Identification code | Options over Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each Issue of Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each ISIN: GB00BLS0XX25 |
| b) | Nature of the transaction | Grant of options Issue or Ordinary Shares |
| c) | Price(s) and volume(s) | 200,000 options over Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the LTIP grant) 4,000 Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the SIP grant) |
| d) | Aggregated information - Aggregated volume - Price | N/A |
| e) | Date of the transaction | 14 December 2022 14 December 2022 |
| f) | Place of the transaction | London Stock Exchange, AIM |
| 1 | Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities / person closely associated | |
|---|---|---|
| a) | Name | Jack Bryant |
| 2 | Reason for the notification | |
| a) | Position/status | Director - Operations |
| b) | Initial notification /Amendment | Initial notification |
| 3 | Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor | |
| a) | Name | Equals Group plc |
| b) | LEI | 213800CPI5S2GYB3RI27 |
| 4 | Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted | |
| a) | Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument Identification code | Options over Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each Issue of Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each ISIN: GB00BLS0XX25 |
| b) | Nature of the transaction | Grant of options Issue or Ordinary Shares |
| c) | Price(s) and volume(s) | 50,000 options over Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the LTIP grant) 4,000 Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the SIP grant) |
| d) | Aggregated information - Aggregated volume - Price | N/A |
| e) | Date of the transaction | 14 December 2022 14 December 2022 |
| f) | Place of the transaction | London Stock Exchange, AIM |
| 1 | Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities / person closely associated | |
|---|---|---|
| a) | Name | Stephen Paul |
| 2 | Reason for the notification | |
| a) | Position/status | Director - Finance |
| b) | Initial notification /Amendment | Initial notification |
| 3 | Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor | |
| a) | Name | Equals Group plc |
| b) | LEI | 213800CPI5S2GYB3RI27 |
| 4 | Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted | |
| a) | Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument Identification code | Options over Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each Issue of Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each ISIN: GB00BLS0XX25 |
| b) | Nature of the transaction | Grant of options Issue or Ordinary Shares |
| c) | Price(s) and volume(s) | 80,000 options over Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the LTIP grant) 4,000 Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the SIP grant) |
| d) | Aggregated information - Aggregated volume - Price | N/A |
| e) | Date of the transaction | 14 December 2022 14 December 2022 |
| f) | Place of the transaction | London Stock Exchange, AIM |
| 1 | Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities / person closely associated | |
|---|---|---|
| a) | Name | Thomas Kiddle |
| 2 | Reason for the notification | |
| a) | Position/status | Chief Commercial Officer |
| b) | Initial notification /Amendment | Initial notification |
| 3 | Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor | |
| a) | Name | Equals Group plc |
| b) | LEI | 213800CPI5S2GYB3RI27 |
| 4 | Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted | |
| a) | Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument Identification code | Options over Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each Issue of Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each ISIN: GB00BLS0XX25 |
| b) | Nature of the transaction | Grant of options Issue or Ordinary Shares |
| c) | Price(s) and volume(s) | 200,000 options over Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the LTIP grant) |
| d) | Aggregated information - Aggregated volume - Price | N/A |
| e) | Date of the transaction | 14 December 2022 14 December 2022 |
| f) | Place of the transaction | London Stock Exchange, AIM |
| 1 | Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities / person closely associated | |
|---|---|---|
| a) | Name | Darren Kilner |
| 2 | Reason for the notification | |
| a) | Position/status | Director - Dealing |
| b) | Initial notification /Amendment | Initial notification |
| 3 | Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor | |
| a) | Name | Equals Group plc |
| b) | LEI | 213800CPI5S2GYB3RI27 |
| 4 | Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted | |
| a) | Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument Identification code | Options over Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each Issue of Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each ISIN: GB00BLS0XX25 |
| b) | Nature of the transaction | Grant of options Issue or Ordinary Shares |
| c) | Price(s) and volume(s) | 100,000 options over Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the LTIP grant) 4,000 Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the SIP grant) |
| d) | Aggregated information - Aggregated volume - Price | N/A |
| e) | Date of the transaction | 14 December 2022 14 December 2022 |
| f) | Place of the transaction | London Stock Exchange, AIM |
| 1 | Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities / person closely associated | |
|---|---|---|
| a) | Name | Shona Kerfoot |
| 2 | Reason for the notification | |
| a) | Position/status | Chief People Officer |
| b) | Initial notification /Amendment | Initial notification |
| 3 | Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor | |
| a) | Name | Equals Group plc |
| b) | LEI | 213800CPI5S2GYB3RI27 |
| 4 | Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted | |
| a) | Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument Identification code | Options over Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each Issue of Ordinary Shares of £0.01 each ISIN: GB00BLS0XX25 |
| b) | Nature of the transaction | Grant of options Issue or Ordinary Shares |
| c) | Price(s) and volume(s) | 100,000 options over Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the LTIP grant) 4,000 Ordinary Shares at nil pence (being the SIP grant) |
| d) | Aggregated information - Aggregated volume - Price | N/A |
| e) | Date of the transaction | 14 December 2022 14 December 2022 |
| f) | Place of the transaction | London Stock Exchange, AIM |
For more information, please contact:
| Equals Group plc | |
| Ian Strafford-Taylor, CEO Richard Cooper, CFO | Tel: +44 (0) 20 7778 9308 www.equalsplc.com |
| Canaccord Genuity (Nominated Adviser / Broker) | |
| Max Hartley / Harry Rees | Tel: +44 (0) 20 7523 8150 |
| Buchanan (Financial Communications) | |
| Henry Harrison-Topham / Toto Berger [email protected] | Tel: +44 (0) 20 7466 5000 www.buchanan.uk.com |
Notes to Editors:
Equals Group is a technology-led international payments group augmented by highly personalised service for the payment needs of SME’s whether these be FX, card payments or via Faster Payments. Founded in 2007, the Group listed on AIM in 2014 and currently employs around 285 staff across sites in London and Chester. For more information, please visit www.equalsplc.com.
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