Company: ZLAB
Filing Date: 2025-04-18
Form Type: PRE 14A
Source: 0001628280-25-018384
Chunk: 20

Company: Zai Lab Ltd
Filing Date: 2025-04-18
Form: PRE 14A
Chunk 20
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 and to the same extent already authorized under our Current Articles and the rules of Nasdaq. We are not asking shareholders to approve an increase in authorized share capital.

In light of the dynamics in our industry and the markets in which we operate, we believe in maintaining a strong balance sheet with maximum flexibility to fund our continued efforts to pursue our corporate strategic goals. Such General Mandate authority would allow our company to meet the emerging needs of our business, such as advancing and expanding our pipeline through our research and development activities and pursuing growth opportunities through strategic transactions or business development arrangements, in a timely manner. Consistent with our past practice, the Board of Directors will only authorize issuances of securities under a General Mandate if it determines that such issuances are in the best interests of the Company and its shareholders. The Board of Directors has no immediate plans, arrangements, or understandings to issue any shares pursuant to a General Mandate, and we are not asking shareholders to approve a specific issuance of shares.

Further, the Company does not intend to issue any shares under a General Mandate at a discount of more than 10% to the benchmarked price as described in Rule 13.36(5) of the HK Listing Rules, being the higher of the closing price on the date of issue and the average closing price in the 5 trading days immediately prior to the date of issue.

In accordance with the HK Listing Rules, it is a customary practice for primary-listed companies on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange to seek shareholder authority to issue up to 20% of their total issued shares as of the date of the resolution granting the mandate and for such authority to remain effective until the next annual meeting of shareholders, unless otherwise revised or revoked or modified by shareholders at a general meeting. Our shareholders have approved such a 20% General Mandate at each annual meeting since we became primary listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2022. The General Mandate of up to 20% that shareholders approved at our 2024 annual meeting will expire on the date of our 2025 Annual Meeting. This year, in recognition of differing preferences and levels of comfort with respect to a General Mandate across our diverse global shareholder base, we are seeking shareholder approval for continuing authority for the Board of Directors to authorize the Company to issue new shares and/or resell treasury shares (as defined in the HK Listing Rules) (the “treasury shares”) of up to 10% of our issued shares (excluding treasury shares) where the price of any such