Santa Clara, CA 9/18/18; Washington, DC 10/17/18; Santa Clara, CA 10/29/18—Twist Bioscience, which filed for an IPO last month on the US NASDAQ (see IBO 10/15/18), has priced the offering at $14–$16 per share. With an expected sale of 5.75 million shares, the company is anticipated to raise $103.5 million at a price of $16 per share.

Agilent Technologies, which is suing Twist Bioscience (see IBO 2/15/16), announced that it has sent a letter to the SEC accusing Twist Bioscience of making mis-statements in its S-1 registration statement. Specifically, Agilent contends that Twist Bioscience did not disclose that CEO Emily Leproust was still an Agilent employee when she formed the company and that Twist Bioscience employees took confidential documents from Agilent.

In September, Agilent announced the filing of a second amended complaint against Twist Bioscience and Dr. Leproust, adding two new defendants and the additional facts discussed in the SEC letter (see IBO 10/15/18). Agilent’s letter to the SEC states that although the S-1 notes that Dr. Leproust has served as CEO and president since April 2013, she had admitted under oath that she took the position in November 2011 and that she worked at Agilent until April 2013.  The letter also states that Twist employees, including Dr. Leproust retained confidential Agilent documents, including descriptions of Agilent’s oligonucleotide synthesis technology and “trade secrets.”