Important Notice

IMPORTANT NOTICE

NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO ANY U.S. PERSON OR TO ANY PERSON OR ADDRESS IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (“UNITED STATES”)

IMPORTANT: You must read the following before continuing. The following applies to the Registration Document (the "Registration Document" or the “Document”) following this page, and you are therefore advised to read this carefully before reading, accessing or making any other use of the Registration Document. In accessing the Registration Document, you agree to be bound by the following terms and conditions, including any modifications to them any time you receive any information from us as a result of such access.

NOTHING IN THIS REGISTRATION DOCUMENT CONSTITUTES AN OFFER TO SELL OR THE SOLICITATION OF AN OFFER TO BUY THE SECURITIES OF THE ISSUER IN THE UNITED STATES OR ANY OTHER JURISDICTION WHERE IT IS UNLAWFUL TO DO SO. THE BONDS HAVE NOT BEEN AND WILL NOT BE REGISTERED UNDER THE UNITED STATES SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED (THE "SECURITIES ACT"), OR ANY SECURITIES LAWS OF ANY STATE OF THE UNITED STATES. THE BONDS MAY NOT BE OFFERED OR SOLD WITHIN THE UNITED STATES OR TO, OR FOR THE ACCOUNT OR BENEFIT OF, U.S. PERSONS ("U.S. PERSONS"), AS DEFINED IN REGULATION S UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT ("REGULATIONS"), NOR U.S. RESIDENTS (AS DETERMINED FOR THE PURPOSES OF THE U.S. INVESTMENT COMPANY ACT OF 1940) ("U.S. RESIDENTS") EXCEPT PURSUANT TO AN EXEMPTION FROM SUCH REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS.

WITHIN THE UNITED KINGDOM (“UK”), THIS REGISTRATION DOCUMENT IS DIRECTED ONLY AT PERSONS WHO HAVE PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE IN MATTERS RELATING TO INVESTMENTS AND WHO QUALIFY EITHER AS INVESTMENT PROFESSIONALS IN ACCORDANCE WITH ARTICLE 19(5) OR AS HIGH NET WORTH COMPANIES, UNINCORPORATED ASSOCIATIONS, PARTNERSHIPS OR TRUSTEES IN ACCORDANCE WITH ARTICLE 49(2) OF THE FINANCIAL SERVICES AND MARKETS ACT 2000 (FINANCIAL PROMOTION) ORDER 2005 (TOGETHER, "EXEMPT PERSONS"). IT MAY NOT BE PASSED ON EXCEPT TO EXEMPT PERSONS OR OTHER PERSONS IN CIRCUMSTANCES IN WHICH SECTION 21(1) OF THE FINANCIAL SERVICES AND MARKETS ACT 2000 DOES NOT APPLY (ALL SUCH PERSONS TOGETHER BEING REFERRED TO AS "RELEVANT PERSONS"). THE REGISTRATION DOCUMENT MUST NOT BE ACTED ON OR RELIED ON BY PERSONS WHO ARE NOT RELEVANT PERSONS. ANY INVESTMENT OR INVESTMENT ACTIVITY TO WHICH THE REGISTRATION DOCUMENT RELATES IS AVAILABLE ONLY TO RELEVANT PERSONS AND WILL BE ENGAGED IN ONLY WITH RELEVANT PERSONS. ANY PERSONS OTHER THAN RELEVANT PERSONS SHOULD NOT ACT OR RELY ON THIS DOCUMENT.

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You are reminded that the Registration Document has been delivered to you on the basis that you are a person into whose possession the Registration Document may lawfully be delivered in accordance with the laws of the jurisdiction in which you are located and you may not, nor are you authorised to, deliver the Registration Document to any other person.

The materials relating to the offering do not constitute, and may not be used in connection with, an offer or solicitation in any place where offers or solicitations are not permitted by law. If a jurisdiction requires that the offering be made by a licensed broker or dealer and the managers or any affiliate of the managers is a licensed broker or dealer in that jurisdiction, the offering shall be deemed to be made by the managers or such affiliate on behalf of the Issuer in such, jurisdiction.

The Registration Document has been sent to you in an electronic form. You are reminded that documents 1 transmitted via this medium may be altered or changed during the process of electronic transmission and consequently none of the Issuer or Dante Partners LLP nor any director, officer, employee or agent or affiliate of any such person accepts any liability or responsibility whatsoever in respect of any difference between the Registration Document distributed to you in electronic format herewith and the hard copy version available to you on request from the Issuer.

Hipgnosis Copyrights plc – Registration Document dated 7th March 2017

This Registration Document has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of Commission Regulation (EC) No. 809/2004 of 29 April 2004 implementing Directive 2003/71/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards information contained in Registration Document as well as the format, incorporation by reference and publication of such Registration Document and dissemination of advertisements (as amended by Directive 2010/73/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council and Commission delegated Regulation (EU) No. 486/2012 of 30 March 2012, Commission delegated regulation (EU) No. 862/2012 of 4 June, 2012, Commission delegated Regulation (EU) No. 759/2013 of 30 April 2013 and Commission delegated Regulation (EU) No. 382/2014 of 7 March 2014).

In respect of

HIPGNOSIS COPYRIGHTS PLC

(the “Company” or the “Issuer”) A PUBLIC LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY INCORPORATED IN ENGLAND AND WALES UNDER THE COMPANIES ACT 2006 (WITH REGISTERED NUMBER 10368580)

Admission to Gibraltar Stock Exchange (GSX) of £50,000,000, 7.00% per cent, Secured Bonds due 30 April 2022 (the “Bonds”)

THE ISSUER IS NOT, AND WILL NOT BE, LICENSED OR REGULATED BY THE FINANCIAL CONDUCT AUTHORITY (“FCA”) OR THE GIBRALTAR FINANCIAL SERVICES COMMISSION (“FSC”).

THE SECURITIES OFFERED NOT BE SUITABLE FOR ALL TYPES OF INVESTORS. A POTENTIAL INVESTOR SHOULD NOT INVEST IN THE SECURITIES UNLESS:

I. S/HE HAS THE NECESSARY KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE TO UNDERSTAND THE RISKS RELATING TO THIS TYPE OF FINANCIAL INSTRUMENT; II. THE SECURITIES MEET THE INVESTMENT OBJECTIVES OF THE POTENTIAL INVESTOR; III. SUCH POTENTIAL INVESTOR IS ABLE TO BEAR THE INVESTMENT AND FINANCIAL RISKS WHICH RESULT FROM INVESTMENT IN THESE SECURITIES.

THIS REGISTRATION DOCUMENT HAS NOT BEEN, AND WILL NOT BE, REVIEWED OR APPROVED BY THE FCA, OR ANY OTHER REGULATORY AUTHORITY IN THE UK.

THE FSC ACCEPTS NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE CONTENTS OF THIS REGISTRATION DOCUMENT, MAKES NO REPRESENTATIONS AS TO ITS ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY LIABILITY WHATSOEVER FOR ANY LOSS HOWEVER ARISING FROM, OR IN RELIANCE UPON, THE WHOLE OR ANY PART OF THE CONTENTS HEREOF.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

This document constitutes a Registration Document within the terms of Directive 2003/71/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council to be published when securities are offered to the public or admitted to trading and amending Directive 2001/34/EC (as amended by Directive 2010/73/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council and Commission).

This Registration Document dated 7th March 2017 contains information relating to Hipgnosis Copyrights plc (the “Issuer”).

This Registration Document has been submitted to and approved by the FSC (in its capacity as competent authority in terms and for the purposes of the Prospectus Directive). This Registration Document has not been, and will not be, reviewed or approved by the FCA, or any other regulatory authority in the UK.

This Registration Document shall be valid in connection with issues of Bonds by the Issuer.

This Registration Document does not contain or constitute investment advice.

The intention is for the Bonds to be listed on the Gibraltar Stock Exchange and potentially on another EU stock exchange or stock exchanges.

This Registration Document contains all information which is necessary to enable Investors to make an informed decision regarding the financial position and prospects of the Issuer. Some of this information is incorporated by reference from other publicly available documents. You should read the documents incorporated by reference together with this Registration Document.

For a description of certain matters that the prospective investors should consider, see "Risk Factors".

The Issuer accepts responsibility for the information contained in this Registration Document. To the best of the knowledge and belief of the Issuer (having taken all reasonable care to ensure that such is the case), such information is in accordance with the facts and does not omit anything likely to affect the import of such information. The Issuer accepts responsibility accordingly.

Where information has been sourced from a third party, this information has been accurately reproduced and, as far as the Directors of the Issuer are aware and are able to ascertain from information published by a third party, no facts have been omitted which would render the reproduced information inaccurate or misleading. The source of third party information is identified where used.

The Bonds may not be offered or sold directly or indirectly, and neither this Registration Document nor any offering circular, prospectus, form of application, advertisement, other offering material or other information relating to the Issuer or the Bonds may be issued, distributed or published in any country or jurisdiction (including the Republic of Ireland ("Ireland") and the United Kingdom), except in circumstances that will result in compliance with all applicable laws, orders, rules and regulations.

The distribution of this Registration Document and the offering of the Bonds in certain jurisdictions may be restricted by law. Persons into whose possession this Registration Document comes are required by the Issuer to inform themselves about and to observe any such restrictions.

Any offer of the Bonds (as contemplated by this Registration Document) to the public in any Member State of the European Economic Area (each, a "Member State") may be made at any time (a) to any legal entity which falls within the definition of "qualified investor" as defined in the Prospectus Directive; (b) to fewer than 150 natural or legal persons (other than qualified investors as defined in the Prospectus Directive); or (c) in any other circumstances falling within Article 3(2) of the Prospectus Directive.

No person is authorised to give any information or to make any representation not contained in this Registration Document and any information or representation not so contained must not be relied upon as having been authorised by or on behalf of the Issuer. The delivery of this Registration Document at any time does not imply that the information contained in it is correct as at any time subsequent to its date and neither the Issuer nor Dante Partners LLP (as Listing Agent) undertake to update the information contained in this document.

Neither of Dante Partners LLP nor the Debenture Trustee has separately verified the information contained in this Registration Document. Accordingly, no representation, warranty or undertaking, express or implied, is made (to the fullest extent permitted by law) and no responsibility or liability is accepted by Dante Partners LLP or the Debenture Trustee as to the accuracy or completeness of the information contained in this Registration Document or any other information provided by the Issuer in connection with the issuance of the Bonds. Neither Dante Partners LLP nor the Debenture Trustee accepts any liability whether arising in tort or contract or otherwise (save as referred to above) in relation to the information contained in this Registration Document or any other information provided by the Issuer in connection with the issuance of the Bonds.

Neither this Registration Document nor any part hereof constitutes an offer of, or an invitation by, or on behalf of the Issuer to subscribe or purchase any of the Bonds and neither this Registration Document, nor any part hereof, may be used for or in conjunction with an offer to, or solicitation by, any person in any jurisdiction or in any circumstances in which such offer or solicitation is not authorised or to any person to whom it is unlawful to make such offer or solicitation.

This Registration Document may only be communicated (i) to persons who have professional experience in matters relating to investments falling within Article 19 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005 (the "FPO"); or (ii) who are persons falling within Article 49(2) of the FPO; or (iii) to whom this Registration Document may otherwise be lawfully communicated in accordance with all applicable laws (all such persons together being referred to as "relevant persons"). This Registration Document must not be acted on or relied on by persons who are not relevant persons. Any investment or investment activity to which this communication relates is available only to relevant persons and will be engaged in only by relevant persons.

In this Registration Document, unless otherwise specified or the context otherwise requires, references to "£" and "sterling" are to the lawful currency for the time being of the United Kingdom.

The offering of the Bonds is being made in reliance upon an exemption from registration under the Securities Act for an offer and sale of the Bonds which does not involve a public offering. In making your purchase, you will be deemed to have made certain acknowledgments, representations and agreements.

Any investment in the Bonds does not have the status of a bank deposit and is not subject to any deposit protection schemes operated by the FSC or the FCA.

The Bonds described in this Registration Document have not been registered with, recommended by or approved by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), any state securities commission in the United States or any other securities commission or regulatory authority, nor has the SEC, any state securities commission in the United States or any such securities commission or authority passed upon the accuracy or adequacy of this Registration Document. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offence.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This Document includes statements that are, or may be deemed to be, “forward-looking statements”. These forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology, including the terms “anticipates”, “believes”, “estimate”, “expected”, “intends”, “may”, or “will” or, in each case, their negative or other variations or comparable terminology. These forward-looking statements relate to matters that are not historical facts. They appear in a number of places throughout this Document and include statements regarding the intentions, beliefs or current expectations of the Issuer and the Directors concerning, amongst other things, the investment strategy, financing strategies and investment performance. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that may or may not occur in the future. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. There are a number of factors that could cause actual results and developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These factors include, but are not limited to, changes in general market conditions, legislative or regulatory changes, changes in taxation, the Company’s ability to invest its cash and the proceeds of the Issue in suitable investments on a timely basis and the availability and cost of capital for future investments.

Illustrative projections

There is no assurance that the illustrative forecasts and projections will prove to be accurate. The illustrative financial projections and forecasts referred to herein are based on Company assumptions and subject to the risks described in this Document including, but not limited to, delays in completion of revenue target or inability to obtain timely financing. Such projections and forecasts are inherently subject to significant economic and other uncertainties in a competitive market, all of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond the control of the Company. While the Company believes that it was conservative in formulating the assumptions on which any illustrative projections and forecasts are based, there is no assurance they will be correct. Industry experts may disagree with these assumptions and with the Company’s views of the market and the prospects for the Company. If the assumptions prove to be materially incorrect, any illustrative forecasts and other financial projections may be materially inaccurate. In addition, these statements are based upon the Company’s present plans and may change upon unforeseen circumstances or if management believes such change is in the best interests of the Company. Under no circumstances should the inclusion of the illustrative forecasts and other financial projections referred to herein be regarded as a representation, warranty or prediction with respect to the likelihood of their achievement or of the underlying assumptions being, or proving to be, correct or that the Company will achieve, or is likely to achieve, any particular result.

CONTENTS

Page

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 7

EXPECTED TIMETABLE OF EVENTS 7

RISK FACTORS 8

DESCRIPTION OF THE ISSUER 12

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION 19

DEFINITIONS 27

AUDITED FINANCIAL STATEMENT FOR THE 29 PERIOD ENDED 19 October 2016

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

Hipgnosis Copyrights plc (the “Company”) was incorporated as Hipgnosis Copyrights plc in England and Wales, under the Companies Act 2006 on 9 September 2016, with registered number 10368580 and registered address 869 High Road, London, United, N12 8AQ.

The Company’s aim is to acquire, manage and extract revenue from the commercial rights to music song catalogues. Two back catalogues of publishing rights have been identified as potential targets, with an objective to identify and buy further three catalogues during a five-year acquisition strategy. The Directors expect that this will result in a total managed portfolio of five song catalogues with a total cost up to £44.3m.

The CEO of the Company is Mr Merck Mecuriadis. Formerly CEO of The Sanctuary Group PLC, which was one of the largest independent record labels with an annual unaudited revenue up to 31st March 2007 of approximately £131m in the UK and amongst the largest independent music management companies globally at the time of his exit in 2007. Collectively, Mr Mecuriadis,the Directors and the consultants named in this Document bring over 50 years combined experience as music executives to the Company’s management.

The Directors believe that due to depressed revenues caused by the decline in both the physical purchase of music and digital downloads and separately due to the ageing of well-known rock stars a unique opportunity exists to buy these commercial rights at well below their true value. The Directors expect a turnaround in the industry that analysts are also beginning to identify as a result of music streaming services like Apple Music and Spotify. Music streaming services provide the public with instant access to a huge range of artists’ music on a fixed pay-per-month contract. The Directors of the Company believe that streaming will change the way the public consume music, and if, as the Directors expect, more music is consumed in this way, then this will provide greater opportunities for royalty payments.

Moreover, the Directors believe these catalogues can be exploited by replacing outdated revenue collection techniques with technology partners who allow the Company to collect more money and collect it faster.

EXPECTED TIMETABLE OF EVENTS

Publication of this Document 7 March 2017

Admission and dealings to commence in the Bonds 7 March 2017

RISK FACTORS

An investment in Securities involves certain risks. Prospective investors should carefully consider, with their own independent financial and other professional advisors, the following risk factors and other investment considerations as well as all the other information contained in the Registration Document before deciding to acquire Securities. Prospective investors should ensure that they fully understand the nature of the Securities as well as the extent of their exposure to risks associated with an investment in the Securities – including a risk of loss of part or all their investment.

The risk factors set out below are a summary of the principal risks associated with an investment in the Securities:

Investment range and performance

The Company will be dependent upon the Directors successful implementation of the Company’s business strategy, and ultimately on its ability to generate attractive returns. This implementation in turn will be subject to a number of factors, including market conditions and the timing of investments relative to market conditions which are inherent in the music industry, many of which are beyond the control of the Company and difficult to predict.

Dependence on availability of capital

Whilst it is not anticipated that the Company will borrow to finance acquisition and development costs, the Company may do so. Should the Company require further additional funds, these may not be available when needed, or may not be forthcoming on terms that are advantageous to the Company or Bondholders.

Borrowing exposes the Company to movements in loan interest rates and the possibility that the Company’s capital repayment commitments may exceed the capital value of the Company’s assets. There is no debt ceiling or borrowing limit imposed on the Company by way of its Articles of Association or other constituting documents.

The Company may not identify all risks and liabilities in respect of an investment or strategy

The Company has no operating history, whilst the Directors have a large amount of experience in the music industry, there can be no guarantee that the Directors possess all of the skills necessary in order to carry out the strategies of the Company. The activity of identifying, acquiring and realising income from music copyrights involves a high degree of skill and uncertainty and failure to implement this appropriately may impact on the profitability of the investment.

Competition

Music copyright companies face competitive threats both domestically and globally. The threats exist from other companies, predominantly global music companies, also acquiring music rights but also from other artists and writers who create music which will be in direct competition with the music owned by the Company.

Competition may exist that has not been mentioned in this Document or that the Company may not be aware of and which may adversely affect the Company’s business. The market in which the Company operates is a competitive industry and there may be developments that the Company is not aware of that may compete with the Company’s offerings and products.

Risk to changes in regulation

The Company is obliged to comply with any new rules, regulations and laws applicable to the music industry in which the Company operates. Approvals, licences and permits are, as a practical matter, subject to the discretion of the applicable governments or governmental offices. The Company must comply with existing standards, laws and regulations that may entail greater or lesser costs and delays, depending on the nature of the activity to be permitted and the permitting authority. New laws and regulations could have a material adverse impact on the Company’s results of operations and financial condition. The Company’s intended activities will be dependent upon the grant and maintenance of appropriate licences, leases, permits and regulatory consents which could subsequently be withdrawn or made subject to limitations. There can be no assurance that they will be granted, renewed or, if so, on what terms.

Operational Risk

Operational risk and losses can result from external and internal failures or inadequacies, failure to comply with regulatory requirements and conduct of business rules, failure or inadequacy of regulatory systems generally, natural 8 disasters or the failure of external systems, for example, those of the Company’s contractual counterparties.

Terrorist acts, other acts of war or hostility and geopolitical, pandemic or other such events may result in economic and political uncertainties which could have a material adverse effect on the United Kingdom, the United States of America (“US”) and international economic conditions and more specifically on the Company’s results of operations, financial condition or prospects. Notwithstanding anything in this risk factor, this risk factor should not be taken as implying that the Company will be unable to comply with its obligations as a Company with securities admitted to the Gibraltar Stock Exchange or any other stock exchange to which the Securities may be admitted.

Dependence on key personnel

The Company’s future performance and success is substantially dependent on the continued services and continuing contributions of its Directors and senior management. Although the Company has agreed contractual arrangements to secure the services of the Directors, the retention of these services cannot be guaranteed. The loss of the services of any of the Company’s executive officers or senior management could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business.

In particular Merck Mercuriadis, the founder and CEO, has a number of key relationships in the music industry and the Company’s future success may well be impared if the Company were unable to retain Mr Mercuriadis’s services.

The Company’s future success will also depend on its ability to attract and retain additional suitably qualified and experienced employees. There can be no guarantee that the Company will be able to attract and retain such employees, and failure to do so could have a material adverse effect on the financial condition, results or operations of the Company. In addition, the future success of the Company may be dependent on the Company’s ability to integrate new teams or professionals. There can be no guarantee that the Company will be able to recruit such teams or effect such integration. Failure to do so could have a material adverse effect on the financial condition, results or operations of the Company.

Overseas taxation

The Company may be subject to tax under the tax rules of the jurisdictions in which it invests. Although the Company will endeavour to minimise any such taxes, the Company’s ability to minimise such taxes may be restricted and this may affect the performance of the business which may affect the Company’s ability to provide returns to Bondholders.

Changes in tax legislation or practice

Any changes to the tax status of the Company or any of its underlying investments, or to tax legislation or practice (whether in the UK, Gibraltar or in jurisdictions in which the Company invests), could affect the value of investments held by the Company, affect the Company’s ability to provide returns to Bondholders and affect the tax treatment for Bondholders of their investments in the Company (including the applicable rates of tax and availability of reliefs). It is strongly advised that any prospective investors take their own independent professional tax advice before acquiring any Bonds and seek updated professional tax advice on a regular basis thereafter.

Changes in interest rates

If the Company incurs any indebtedness other than by way of issuance of the Bonds, changes in interest rates could adversely affect the results of the Company’s operations by increasing finance costs. Any increase in interest rates would increase debt service costs and would adversely affect the Company’s cash flow. Changes in interest rates could therefore have an adverse effect on the Company’s business, results of operations, financial condition and/or prospects. In addition, if interest rates on any future borrowing entered into are higher than the rates applicable to existing debt, then the Company’s profitability may be affected.

Risk of damage to reputation and negative publicity

The Company’s ability to retain existing management contracts and client relationships and to attract new business is dependent on the maintenance of its reputation. The Company is vulnerable to adverse market perception as it operates in an industry where a high level of integrity and client trust is paramount. Any perceived, actual or alleged mismanagement, fraud or failure to satisfy the Company’s responsibilities, or the negative publicity resulting from such activities or the allegation by a third party of such activities (whether well founded or not) associated with the Company, could have a material adverse effect on the financial condition, results or operations of the Company.

Litigation

Legal proceedings may arise from time to time in the course of the Company’s businesses. The Directors cannot 9 preclude that litigation may be brought against the Company and that such litigation could have a material adverse effect on the financial condition, results or operations of the Company.

Risks related to the Bonds generally

The conditions of the Bonds contain provisions for calling meetings of the Bondholders to consider matters affecting their interests generally and to obtain written resolutions on matters relating to the Bonds from Bondholders without calling a meeting. These provisions permit defined majorities to bind all Bondholders including Bondholders who did not attend and vote at the relevant meeting and Bondholders who voted in a manner contrary to the majority.

Modification, waivers and substitution

The Company may without the consent of Bondholders agree to any modification of the Trust Deed which is (in the opinion of the Company) of a formal, minor or technical nature or which is made to correct a manifest error.

The imposition of withholding taxes in certain jurisdictions

There can be no assurance that payments to the Issuer will not be subject to a withholding or other taxes. Therefore, if a payment is made via a country which has opted for a withholding system and an amount of, or in respect of, tax were to be withheld from that payment, the Issuer nor any other person would be obliged to pay additional amounts with respect to any Bond as a result of such imposition of such withholding tax.

Automatic exchange of Information legislation

Prospective investors should consult their own professional tax and other advisors in relation to the (international) automatic exchange of information legislation currently in force and how such legislation affects the Bondholder in terms of the potential exchange of information to the Bondholder’s governing tax authority and any payments made to or received by the Bondholder.

Risk of early repayment

In the event that a change in law relating to taxation results in the Company becoming obliged to increase the amounts payable under the Bonds, the Company may repay outstanding amounts under the Bonds early. Upon repayment of the Bonds prospective investors may not be able to reinvest the repayment proceeds at an effective interest rate as high as the interest rate on the Bonds being repaid and may only be able to do so at a significantly higher rate. Prospective investors should consider investment risk in light of other investments available at the time.

Change in English Law

The Company is an entity domiciled and incorporated in England. No assurance can be given as to the impact of any possible change to English law, regulatory or administrative practice in the UK, or to UK tax law, or the interpretation or administration thereof, or to the published practice of HM Revenue & Customs as applied in the UK after the date of this Document.

The secondary market generally

The Bonds may have no established trading market when issued, and one may never develop. If a market does develop, it may not be very liquid. Therefore, investors may not be able to sell their Bonds easily or at prices that will provide them with a yield comparable to similar investments that have a developed secondary market. The Bonds are designed for specific investment objectives or strategies. As such, the Bonds generally will have a more limited secondary market and more price volatility than conventional debt securities. Illiquidity may have a severely adverse effect on the market value of the Bonds.

Realisation from sale of the Bonds may be less than original investments

A Bondholder who chooses to sell his Bonds at any time prior to their maturity, if a sale is capable of being made, may receive a price from such sale which is less than the original investment made. Factors that will influence the price may include, but are not limited to, market appetite, inflation, the time of redemption, interest rates and the current financial position and an assessment of the future prospects of the Company.

Exchange rate risks and exchange controls

Revenues received by the Company from international sources may be received in a number of currencies, this presents certain risks relation to currency conversions, and as a result this may affect the cashflow of the Company. Investors should be aware that this may affect the Company’s ability to meet its obligations to the Bondholders. 10

The Company will pay principal and interest on the Bonds in sterling. This presents certain risks relating to currency conversions if an investor's financial activities are denominated principally in a currency or currency unit other than sterling. These include the risk that exchange rates may significantly change (including changes due to devaluation of sterling or revaluation of the investor's currency) and the risk that authorities with jurisdiction over the investor's currency may impose or modify exchange controls. An appreciation in the value of the investor's currency relative to sterling would decrease (i) the investor's currency-equivalent yield on the Bonds, (ii) the investor's currency- equivalent value of the principal payable on the Bonds and (iii) the investor's currency-equivalent market value of the Bonds. Government and monetary authorities may impose (as some have done in the past) exchange controls that could adversely affect an applicable exchange rate. As a result, investors may receive less interest or principal than expected, or no interest or principal.

Interest rate risks

The Bonds bear interest at a fixed rate rather than by reference to an underlying index. Accordingly, if interest rates rise, then the income payable on the Bonds might become less attractive and the price that may be realised on a sale of the Bonds may fall. However, the market price of the Bonds from time to time has no effect on the total income a prospective investor can expect to receive on maturity of the Bonds if s/he holds the Bonds until maturity. Further, inflation will reduce the real value of the Bonds over time, which may affect what a prospective investor could buy with his or her investment in the future and may make the fixed rate payable on the Bonds less attractive in the future, again affecting the price that a prospective investor could realise on a sale of the Bonds.

Security

Investors should note that the Bonds are a secured debt of the Company and will rank above unsecured debts of the Company. However, notwithstanding this there is no certainty or guarantee that the Company will be able to meet its obligations to the Bondholders. If the Company were to become insolvent, there is a risk that (a) some or all of the nominal value of the Bonds will not be redeemed, and (b) some or all of the interest return due on the Bonds will not be paid.

DESCRIPTION OF THE ISSUER

1. INTRODUCTION

The Company was incorporated as Hipgnosis Copyrights plc in England and Wales, under the Companies Act 2006 on 9 September 2016, with registered number 10368580 and registered address 869 High Road, London, N12 8AQ United Kingdom.

PRINCIPAL ACTIVITIES

THE BUSINESS

The Company’s aim is to acquire, manage and extract revenue from the commercial rights to music song catalogues. Two back catalogues of publishing rights have been identified as potential targets, with an objective to identify and buy a further three catalogues during a five-year acquisition strategy. The Directors expect that this will result in a total managed portfolio of five song catalogues with a total cost up to £44.3m.

The CEO of the Company is Mr Merck Mecuriadis. Formerly CEO of The Sanctuary Group PLC, which was one of the largest independent record labels with an annual unaudited revenue up to 31st March 2007 of approximately £131m in the UK and amongst the largest independent music management companies globally at the time of his exit in 2007. He and the other consultants bring over 50 years combined experience as music executives to the Company’s management.

Music streaming services provide the public with instant access to a huge range of artists’ music on a fixed pay-per- month contract. The Directors of the Company believe that streaming will change the way in the public will consume music ,and if, as they expect, more music is consumed in this way, then this will provide greater opportunities for royalty payments. This is supported by Universal Music Group posting in December 2016 streaming only revenues of over £1 billion for the first time ever in 20161 and Warner Music Group having just announced its best performance in 8 years2. In December 2016, more than a billion streams were served in a single week for the first time. This is confirmed by the figures3 from BPI (British Recorded Music Industry) Limited (“BPI”), which is the trade body for the UK’s recorded music industry, and that information does not take into account music videos viewed to on YouTube – it is estimated by BPI that if YouTube views were included, the figure for streams accessed by music fans in the UK would double. According to a BBC report, people in the UK are now streaming more songs in a week than they would have done in a month just three years ago4.

HISTORY OF THE BUSINESS

The business has no operating history however Mr Mercuriadis, some of the Directors, senior management and the consultants named in this Document have significant experience in the music industry and believe they are well placed to identify, acquire and manage the music rights they are seeking to buy.

2. COMPANY STRUCTURE AND HISTORY

Company Structure

The Company is 100% owned by Hipgnosis Music Limited.

1 http://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/universal-streaming-revenues-have-topped-1bn-already-this-year/ 2 http://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/streaming-drives-warners-biggest-annual-revenues-in-8-years/ 3 https://www.bpi.co.uk/home/bpi-official-uk-recorded-music-market-report-for-2016.aspx 4 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-38487837 12

The shareholders of Hipgnosis Music Limited are as follows:

Shareholder Percentage shareholding in Hipgnosis Music Limited Aeon Beaumont Manahan 5.0% Alexander Mathiesen-Ohman 6.0% Merck Mercuriadis 44.5% Solid Venture Capital Limited* 44.5%

* the sole shareholder of Solid Venture Capital Limited is Afram Gergeo.

Merck Mercuriadis and Alexander Mathiesen-Ohman are directors of the Company.

3. BUSINESS STRATEGY

The Company intends to execute purchase of numerous separate catalogues of song publishing rights and exploit those song rights over at least a five-year period with the aim of increasing both the annual yield and the capital value of assets.

Catalogue 1: valued at approximately £11.5m using a multiple of 8.5 of the annual total royalty rights. This catalogue comprises the rights to songs written by an Ivor Novello Song Writer of the Year for International Achievements recognised as one of most influential songwriters of the last decade. The writer’s corpus of work contains a number of recent global pop hits from successful artists and groups like Nicki Minaj, Olly Murs, One Direction and others. These songs are relatively new and thus the directors expect them to have long lifetime of revenue generation ahead of them.

Catalogue 2: the Directors expect to be able to acquire this catalogue for approximately £11.4m. This catalogue contains almost 50 songs ranging from Motown hits to soul classics, some of which are well known. These songs have been in print for decades, and have consistent annual earnings.

Others. The Company will, after these initial acquisitions, aim to buy a further three standalone catalogues bringing the total purchase cost to in excess of £40m.

Together, the above will form a compilation of song publishing rights that the Directors will look to license and monetise using their industry experience to extract the best possible yields from these.

The Directors will target catalogues with variable multiples of earnings which will generate sufficient and consistent revenues that will more than cover the 7% bond interest yield.

The Company intends to accept subscriptions in the Bonds held by the Custodian in tranches that are sufficient to ensure the acquisition of music catalogues. This approach has been taken to ensure that the Company is not in a position whereby it has received subscriptions that are insufficient to facilitate the acquisition of music catalogues as such a position might provide the Company with a commitment to pay a coupon without the ability to acquire a suitable revenue-generating asset.

Kobalt Music Group, Ltd (“Kobalt”) has been appointed by the Company to act as a royalty collection service company. The Directors anticipate that by using Kobalt yields previously achieved from the Catalogues would be increased. Kobalt has been operating as a specialist music royalty collection service since 2000 and the Directors believe that the application of Kobalt to the proposed catalogue acquisitions will provide a significant uplift in revenue compared with the present levels.

Revenue Collection

By owning the publishing rights to these songs, the Company will be able to collect revenue from three main royalty sources: mechanical, performance and synchronization.

Mechanical royalties are per-unit payments made for the reproduction of musical material under copyright, paid to the songwriter, composer or owner of the publishing rights. These encompass physical units, like CDs or records, but also digital downloads bought through services like iTunes. They are also paid every time a copy of a song is streamed or listened to via terrestrial broadcast. The size of the payment is set statutorily. In the US, for example, the minimum statutory rate is set at 9.1 cents per composition or 1.75 cents per minute (for songs over five minutes). Performance royalties are paid to the songwriter, composer or publisher whenever a song is played (from any recording of the song) 13 or performed (by any artist) publicly. Royalties must be paid, finally, on synchronization rights, which are needed whenever a reproduction/or copyright is used in film or television or a commercial.

The large volume and variety of different payments owed to a rights owner are collected by an array of collection societies around the world, who normally then make payments via territorial publishers and then local publishers to the songwriter. The Directors believe the the publisher registration, tracking and payment process can be substantially streamlined by collecting mechanical and performance royalties through Kobalt, an online web-based software system for aggregating and automating rights payments. The web-based software will bear the administrative burden of managing a large number of payments and will translate it from an expensive fixed administrative cost to a fully variable cost of sale. It is expected by the Directors that the application of Kobalt to the proposed catalogue acquisitions will see an uplift of in excess of 20% in revenue compared with the present levels.

Licence management

The Company will actively manage its publishing rights by promoting the use of its songs for synchronization usage – the royalties for which will be managed manually through staff, employed by the Company, rather than Kobalt’s automated process. The Directors believe that they will create a competitive advantage by having a smaller catalogue to manage, as each licence manager will oversee 300 songs on estimate, rather than a much higher industry standard figure, experienced by the directors and consultants named in this Document throughout their careers. Thus each manager will be able to extract more revenue from each song and invest more into key relationships, generating more plays and more interest for the songs under management. This is part of the management’s strategy for increasing the long-term value by tailoring the embedding of their catalogue to fit the new requirements of popular culture and media including social and virtual reality platforms.

4. INDUSTRY OVERVIEW

The advent of mp3s and digital downloads has been the cause of a long-term destabilization and decline in profits (partly due the ease with which published music can be pirated). According to the Global Music Report 2016 of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (“IFPI”)5, until 2016 the total global revenue for the music industry had been declining for more than a decade despite the continued evolution of technology, the growth in mobile usage and a digital music services, such as iTunes and Spotify.

The Directors believe the sector is presently at a pivotal juncture, as the first half of 2016 saw retail spending grow 8.1% to $3.4bn in the influential US market. This suggests that the industry is set to see the first consecutive year-on- year growth in the late 1990s; the Directors contend that this is an indication of changing fortunes.

US revenue from streaming in the first half of 2016 was up 57% year-on-year, which includes both paid-for subscription services and free services supported by ad revenue, like YouTube, Vevo and Spotify. Paid subscriptions to streaming services, like Apple Music and Spotify Premium, on their own experienced massive growth, growing year-on-year 112% to $1.01bn in the first half of 2016.6

Globally, the graph below demonstrates that the general turnaround trend is solely due to the increase in streaming revenue and that analysts expect this trend to continue as a result.

5 http://www.ifpi.org/downloads/GMR2016.pdf 6 All figures quoted in this paragraph are from the 2016 Mid-Year RIAA Music Shipment and Revenue Statistics 14

A number of industry analysts believe that streaming is the key to seeing continual growth return to the global music industry, with PwC for example projecting total growth of 1% year-on-year to 2020, with streaming overtaking physical sales in 2018 as the largest channel7.

There are three factors that could accelerate the music streaming revenues: Firstly, the video site YouTube has operated without a contract with most of the major record labels and is paying its licence fees on a month-to-month rolling basis. Secondly, the launch of Apple Music in the second half of 2015 as well as other streaming services in the second half of 2016, e.g. Pandora, are already starting to positively impact the overall growth in the music industry (In the US recorded music market grew by 8.1%8 in the first half of 2016, and Apple Music hit 20 million subscribers9).Lastly, and most importantly, based on their in-depth knowledge of the industry, the Directors' view is that streaming is yet to penetrate the mass market. IFPI Digital Music Report 2015, for instance, mentions that “there are several ways to move subscription streaming further into the mass market. They include increasing bundling partnerships and integrating more music subscriptions into phone billing; better consumer education to improve awareness of the value of the paid subscription service; more varied payment options to supplant the basic payment model of free versus premium; and addressing the underlying problem of the ‘value gap’”.10

These three factors mean that the transformation is more severe than is being predicted.

In summary, the recent trends in the music industry have caused a decline in revenues globally which has meant that the key asset underpinning the business, the publishing rights to the songs themselves, have been undervalued. In the experience of some of the Directors and senior management named in this Document, as at 2003 the song catalogues could be acquired at around that time for about 20 times their net publisher’s share ((the total royalties received by a publisher, less the royalties paid out to songwriters, performers and any others), and in the current experience of the directors and senior management named in this Document, a typical purchase price would be 8.5 – 12 times NPS (which is within the previously reported range of 5 – 15 NPS). Based on the above, the Directors believe, combined with the strong signals that the music industry is about to experience a sustained upturn, that it presents a timely opportunity to enter the market.

7 PwC Global Entertainment and Media Outlook 2016-2020 8 http://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/apple-music-helps-us-recorded-music-market-grow-8-1-in-first-half-of- 2016/ 9 http://www.billboard.com/articles/business/7604098/apple-music-20-million-subscribers-eddy-cue-zane-lowe- interview 10 IFPI Digital Music Report 2015: http://www.ifpi.org/downloads/Digital-Music-Report-2015.pdf 15

5. FINANCIAL INFORMATION

The Company’s financial year-end is the 30th September.

The Company has no operating history. Audited financial statements for the Company for the period from incorporation on 9 September 2016 to 19 October 2016 can be found on page 29 of this Registration Document. These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with UK Generally Accepted Accounting Practice applicable to Smaller Entities (UK Accounting Standards and applicable law) and have been audited in accordance with applicable law and International Standards on Auditing (UK and Ireland) and that such standards require the auditors to comply with Auditing Practices Board’s Ethical Standards for Auditors.

The Directors hereby confirm that, as of the date of this Registration Document, there has been no material adverse change in the financial or commercial prospects of the Issuer since the date of its last issued accounts. Please note that the independent auditor’s reports cannot be relied upon by any third party and are solely for the benefit of the Company and its shareholders.

6. USE OF PROCEEDS

Hipgnosis Copyrights plc is seeking to raise £50 million through the subject corporate bond offering.

Assuming a full subscription of the Bonds the proceeds expected to be raised by the offer and the expected net proceeds after deduction of the expenses of the offer are as follows:

£ (000’s) Total Proceeds of the Bonds 50,000 (assuming full subscription) Less expected broker commission (4,000) Less approximate professional fees in connection with the offer (150) and listing on GSX

Net Proceeds (assuming full subscription) 45,850

Substantially all of the estimated net amount of the proceeds is expected to be used for purchasing music copyright assets.

Although some of the Net Proceeds will be used to fund the working capital of the Company it is envisaged that income from the music assets will be sufficient to cover both the bond interest and overheads. The overheads of the Company will primarily be the salaries of the Board and details of these salaries are set out section Directors’ Service Contracts on pages 24-25.

7. BOARD OF DIRECTORS, SENIOR MANAGEMENT AND CONSULTANTS:

BOARD OF DIRECTORS:

Merck Mercuriadis, (age 53, Chief Executive Officer)

Mr Mecuriadis is the current Chief Executive Officer and founder of Hipgnosis Music Limited, an artist management company, music publisher and record label based in London and Los Angeles and founded in 2015.

Mr Mercuriadis served as director and Group CEO of The Sanctuary Group PLC, a major independent artist management company and record label (1986 – 2007,being first employed in 1986, becoming a director in 1998 and a group CEO in 2005).. During this time he was responsible for overseeing the management, development and recording work of a number of globally successful and notable recording artists.

Mr Mercuriadis is known as the former manager of several notable rock and pop bands and musicians including Guns N' Roses, Iron Maiden, Elton John, Morrissey, Pet Shop Boys, Macy Gray, Mary J. Blige, Joss Stone and Jane's Addiction.

Alexander Mathiesen-Ohman (age 42, Chief Commercial Officer)

Mr Mathisen-Ohman is currently Executive Producer at Rumble Fish Production Inc., where he was also a founding 16 partner in 2010. From 2010-2015 he was Chief Commercial Officer of Poseidon Diving Group AB, a sporting goods company based in Gothenburg, Sweden, where he was responsible for developing and launching new product ranges. Prior to this he was the Global Brand Director at Eton of Sweden, a prestige European shirt brand, He was also previously Chief Executive Officer at MTV Spider, part of the Zodiak Media Group, an independent entertainment company that produces television shows around the world.

Mr Mathisen-Ohman has experience spanning 20 years with the management and development of brands and products predominantly in the fashion, luxury goods and entertainment industries.

SENIOR MANAGEMENT

Chris Helm (age 40, CFO and company secretary)

The Company has agreement in place with Mr Chris Helm for the provision various services relating to the analysis of catalogues. Mr Helm was most recently employed to consult for PRSforMusic, one of the pre-eminent rights collection society in Europe. His mandate was to deliver a program to improve and optimize the royalty payment process, which he did successfully. Throughout his career Mr Helm has also been directly involved with deal modelling and negotiations for artist and writer contracts and various high profile catalogue acquisitions.

Mr Helm was formerly UK Finance Director at EMI Music Publishing and has worked as a senior finance professional at both Universal Music Group and Sony Records. In total his experience in the financial management of music publishing rights spans 16 years.

CONSULTANTS

Hipgnosis Music Limited, the Company’s holding company, has agreements in place with the following consultants who will provide invaluable advice to the holding company and its group companies, including the Company, and access to a network of copyright owners. The Company is not liable for consulting fees to these individuals; however, Hipgnosis Music Limited is entitled to receive distributable profits from its shareholding in the Company, which may be used to pay consulting fees to:

Nile Rodgers

Nile Rodgers (Born September 19, 1952) is an American record producer, song writer, musician, composer, arranger, and guitarist. He is the lead guitarist, and co-founding member of the band Chic, which has been active since 1976, and responsible for hits such as Le Freak, Everybody Dance, Good Times and others.

Nile’s work as a producer and song writer has resulted in some of music’s most influential and iconic albums including David Bowie’s “Let’s Dance,” Madonna’s “Like A Virgin,” Diana Ross’ “Diana,” and Daft Punk’s “Random Access Memories.”

His songs are also some of the most sampled of all time. He is also the author of the number one, best selling autobiography, “Le Freak: An Upside Story of Family, Disco and Destiny.”

Lance Freed

Lance Freed is arguably the most successful publishing executive of all time with a career that started in 1972 at Rondor Music International. He became its Worldwide President in 1985. His tenure lasted 31 years, including the last 16 as part of the Universal Music Publishing Group, from which he resigned as Chairman Emeritus in 2016.

In 2012, he was inducted into the Song Writers Hall of Fame and was the recipient of the Abe Olman Publisher Award, “This award is given to publishers who have had a substantial number of songs that have become world renowned and who have helped further the careers and success of many song writers.”11

His biggest successes have included Michael Jackson- “Thriller,” Dire Straits - “Money for Nothing,” Bryan Adams - “(Everything I Do) I Do It For You,” Justin Timberlake - “No Air", Eric Clapton - “Tears in Heaven", Peter Frampton - "Baby, I Love Your Way,” Avril Lavigne - “Complicated,” The Carpenters - “We’ve Only Just Begun,” Billy Joel - “Just the Way You Are,” Whitney Houston - “I Want to Dance With Somebody” and Celine Dion - “My Heart Will Go On,” the theme from Titanic, which was the Academy Award Winner for Best Original Song, Grammy Award Winner for Song of the Year, Grammy Award Winner for Record Of The Year, Grammy Award Winner for Best Song From A Motion Picture, and Golden Globe Winner for Best Original Song.

11 http://songwritershalloffame.org/ceremony/awards/C3002 17

The-Dream

Terius Youngdell Nash (born September 20, 1977), better known by his stage name The-Dream, is an American R&B record producer, singer, and songwriter. His co-writing credits include some of the most culturally important pop hits of the last 15 years including "Me Against the Music" (2003) for Britney Spears and Madonna, "Umbrella" (2007) for Rihanna, "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" (2008) for Beyoncé , "Baby" (2010) for Justin Bieber, "All Of The Lights" (2011) for Kanye West, "No Church In The Wild" for Jay Z, Kanye West and Frank Ocean (2012) and "Holy Grail" for Jay Z and Justin Timberlake.

He is a multiple Grammy Award winner and as of 2015 "Baby" has overtaken Elton John's "Candle In The Wind" as the most certified song in music history.

In 2016 he wrote songs featuring on the new album releases from Rihanna, Kanye West and Beyoncé.

8. CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

The Directors will act in the best interests of the Company and its stakeholders. The Directors will act with honesty and integrity and will seek to promote the success of the Company when selecting investments and making business decisions.

Each of the Directors has a statutory duty (i) under section 175 of the Companies Act 2006 to avoid a situation in which he has, or can have, a conflict of interest or a possible conflict of interest with the Company's interests; (ii) under section 177 to declare an interest in a proposed transaction or arrangement with the Company and (iii) under section 182 to declare an interest in an existing transaction or arrangement with the Company and the Directors shall adhere to these statutory requirements.

The Company is not aware of any current or potential conflicts of interest. Conflicts of interest can exist due to the multiple interests of our organisation and its Directors. However, a conflict of interest can be discovered and defused before a problem or impropriety occurs. With respect to the operations and assets of the Company, there are no circumstances that create a risk that professional judgment or actions have been or will be influenced. The primary interest of the Company, to protect its shareholders and clients, will always be maintained. In the event that a conflict of interest arises, the Directors will act in the best interests of the Company.

9. CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

The Directors recognise the importance of sound corporate governance. The Directors intend to review the main provisions of the QCA Corporate Governance Code in consultation with the solicitors to the Company and the Listing Agent, in so far as is desirable and practicable given the Company’s size and the constitution of the Board, to implement and thereafter comply with those main provisions of the QCA Corporate Governance Code for small and mid-sized quoted Companies 2013 as the Directors (in consultation with the solicitors to the Company and the Listing Agent) deem appropriate.

10. WORKING CAPITAL

The Board is of the opinion that, having made due and careful consideration, the working capital available to the Company will be sufficient for its requirements for at least the 12-month period from the date of Admission.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

11. SUBSIDIARIES

The Company has no subsidiaries.

12. MEMORANDUM AND ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION

The Company has authority to issue and allot the Bonds pursuant to its articles of association and the Bonds are duly constituted pursuant to the Bond Instrument.

13. DIRECTORS’ SHAREHOLDINGS & INTEREST

The Company is 100% owned by Hipgnosis Music Limited

The interests of the Directors, their immediate families, civil partners (as defined in the Civil Partnership Act 2004) and persons connected with them, all of which are beneficial as at the date of this Document and as expected to be immediately following Admission are as follows:

Merck Mercuriadis and Alexander Mathiesen-Ohman hold their interests in the Company through Hipgnosis Music Limited, of which he is the 44.5% beneficial owner.

Name Hipgnosis Music Ltd Hipgnosis Music Ltd Number of issued % of issued Ordinary Ordinary Shares of £1 Shares

Alexander Mathiesen-Ohman 60 6%

Merck Mercuriadis 445 44.5%

14. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THE BOARD

In addition to directorships of the Company, the Directors hold or have held the following directorships or have been partners in the following partnerships within the five years prior to the date of this Document:

Current Directorships/ Director Past Directorships/ Partnerships Partnerships Merck Mercuriadis Hipgnosis Music Limited Redzone Music Inc Hipgnosis Artists Group Inc Attack Records Limited

Alexander Mathiesen-Ohman Bostadsrättsföreningen Villa Slottet None Marstrand Rumblefish Production AB

None of the Directors have:

a) any unspent convictions in relation to indictable offences; b) had any bankruptcy order made against him or entered into any voluntary arrangements; c) been a director of a company which has been placed in receivership, insolvent liquidation or administration or been subject to a voluntary arrangement whilst he was a director of that company or within the 12 months after he ceased to be a director of that company. d) been a partner in any partnership which has been placed in receivership insolvent liquidation, administration or been the subject of a partnership voluntary arrangement whilst he was a partner in that partnership or within the 12 months after he ceased to be a partner in that partnership; e) been publicly criticized by any statutory or regulatory authority (including designated professional bodies); or f) been disqualified by a court from acting in the management or conduct of the affairs of a company. 19

Since incorporation of the Company there has been no remuneration paid (including any contingent or deferred compensation) nor any benefits in kind granted to the Directors by the Company.

15. MAJOR SHAREHOLDERS

The Company is 100% owned by Hipgnosis Music Limited.

The shareholders of Hipgnosis Music Limited are as follows:

Shareholder Percentage shareholding in Hipgnosis Music Limited Aeon Beaumonth Manahan 5.0% Alexander Mathiesen-Ohman 6.0% Merck Mercuriadis 44.5% Solid Venture Capital Limited* 44.5%

* the sole shareholder of Solid Venture Capital Limited is Afram Gergeo.

Merck Mercuriadis and Alexander Mathiesen-Ohman are directors of the Company.

16. COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH THE LISTING

With regards to the listing on the Gibraltar Stock Exchange, the total costs associated with the listing are expected to be no more than £150,000.

17. LITIGATION & ARBITRATION

The Company is not involved in any legal governmental or arbitration proceedings which may have or have had since incorporation a significant effect on the Company’s financial position and, so far as the Directors are aware, there are no such proceedings pending or threatened against the Company.

18. TAXATION

It is advised that all prospective investors take independent professional tax advice before acquiring any Bonds and, upon acquisition, to continue to seek updated tax advice on a regular basis.

United Kingdom taxation

The following summary is intended only as a general guide and outlines certain aspects of UK taxation, which apply to persons who are the beneficial owners of Bonds. It is based on a summary of the Company’s understanding of current law and practice in the UK and is not a complete or exhaustive analysis. Some aspects do not apply to certain classes of person (such as dealers, certain professional investors and persons connected with the Company) to whom special rules may apply. The UK tax treatment of prospective Bondholders depends on their individual circumstances and may therefore differ to that set out below or may be subject to change in the future. Prospective Bondholders who are in any doubt over their tax position or may be subject to tax in a jurisdiction other than the UK should seek their own professional advice. This summary only deals with the matters expressly set out below.

18.1 Withholding tax on the Bonds

Other than in the circumstances below, an amount must generally be withheld from payments of interest on the Bonds on account of UK income tax at the basic rate (currently 20 per cent). If interest is paid under deduction of UK income tax, taxpayers not chargeable to UK income tax on interest income may reclaim the tax withheld.

Interest on the Bonds may usually be paid without withholding or deduction on account of UK tax to UK companies believed to be chargeable to UK corporation tax on the interest or non-resident companies believed to be similarly chargeable carrying on a UK trade through a permanent establishment. HM Revenue & Customs ("HMRC") can however require tax to be withheld in limited circumstances. Interest may also be paid without withholding tax or subject to a reduced rate of withholding tax where the Company has received a direction from HMRC in respect of such relief as may be available under the provisions of any relevant double taxation treaty.

18.2 UK Income Tax

Interest on the Bonds constitutes UK source income for tax purposes and, as such, may be subject to income tax even where paid without withholding.

However, interest with a UK source properly received without deduction or withholding on account of United Kingdom tax will not be chargeable to UK tax in the hands of a Bondholder (other than certain trustees) who is not resident for tax purposes in the UK other than in certain circumstances where the Bondholder carries on a trade in the UK.

18.3 UK Corporation Tax Payers

Companies which are within the charge to UK corporation tax (including non-resident companies whose Bonds are used, held or acquired for the purposes of trade carried on in the UK through a permanent establishment) will be charged to corporation tax on the interest.

18.4 Provision of information

EU Member States are required to provide to the tax authorities of another Member State details of payments of interest paid by a person within its jurisdiction to (or for the benefit of) an individual or certain other entities resident or established in that other Member State.

The EU has recently widened the scope of automatic exchange of information provisions between Member States. Information on interest payments made to bond holders in other countries may also have to be disclosed under exchange of information provisions.

18.5 Stamp Duty and Stamp Duty Reserve Tax (“SDRT”)

No UK stamp duty or SDRT is payable on the issue or transfer by delivery of the Bonds.

19. SIGNIFICANT CHANGE

Other than as disclosed in this Document, there has been no significant change in the financial or trading position of the Company from the date of the most recent audited financial statements.

20. RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

There are no Related Party Transactions to disclose.

21. REASON FOR THE OFFER

The offer of the Bonds is being made to enable the Company to primarily fund the acquisition of music rights, after settling the commission in respect of raising the funds, in accordance with the Company’s business plan. The total costs in respect of the fundraising and subsequent Admission for the Bonds are expected to be up to 10%.

22. COMPANY’S ACCOUNTING REFERENCE DATE

The Company’s Accounting Reference Date is 30th of June

23. THE AUDITORS

The auditors of the Company are Jeffreys Henry LLP Chartered Accountants of Finsgate, 5-7 Cranwood Street, London, EC1V 9EE, England. They have been the auditors of the Company since 2016. The auditors are registered to carry on audit work in the UK & Ireland by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales.

24. BANKING FACILITIES

The Company has no banking facilities in place at the moment other than normal corporate bank accounts.

25. NO OTHER INFORMATION

There is no other information of which the Company or the Directors are aware that they consider (acting reasonably) would be reasonably required in order to make an informed assessment of the Company, its financial position and business activities.

26. MATERIAL CONTRACTS

The Company has entered into the following material contracts:

Consultancy Services Agreement – Hipgnosis Artists Group, Inc.

By a consultancy services agreement dated [ ] entered into between the Company and Hipgnosis Artists Group, Inc. (a company of which Merck Mercuriadis and Alexander Mathiesen-Ohman are the beneficial owners) (“HAG”) HAG agrees to provide the Company with certain services (primarily those of management, publishing and operations duties commensurate with the position of a Chief Executive Officer) which services shall be provided by Merck Mercuriadis.

If notice to terminate the engagement is given by either party within the first 12 months the engagement shall terminate 15 months after its commencement. If notice to terminate the engagement is given after the first 12 months the engagement shall end 6 months after the notice is given (or later if so specified in the notice).

The Company shall pay to HAG a fee of £92,000 plus VAT (if applicable) per annum. This fee shall be reviewed by the board of the Company annually.

Under this agreement, HAG will agree not to and will agree to procure that Merck Mercuriadis does not for a period of 12 months after the engagement:-

o solicit the business of persons (hereinafter known as “Restricted Customers”) who were clients of or who dealt with the Company during the 12 months prior to the termination of the engagement with a view to providing services in competition with the Company;

o solicit anyone (hereinafter known as “Restricted Persons”) employed or engaged by the Company and who could materially damage the interests of the Client if they were involved in any capacity in any business which competes with the Company and with whom HAG dealt in the 12 months before the termination of the engagement;

o in the course of any business concern which is in competition with the Company, employ or engage any Restricted Person; or

o have any business dealings with any Restricted Customer in the course of any business concern which is in competition with the Company.

Under this agreement, HAG will agree not to and will agree to procure that Merck Mercuriadis does not at any time after termination of the engagement represent itself or himself as connected with the Company, other than as a former consultant or director (if applicable).

Consultancy Services Agreement – Easttree Limited

By a consultancy services agreement dated [ ] (but expressed to commence on 1st January 2017) entered into between the Company and Easttree Limited (a company of which Chris Helm is the beneficial owner) (“EL”) EL agrees to provide the Company with certain services (primarily those commensurate with the position of a Chief Financial Officer) which services shall be provided by Chris Helm.

The Company shall pay to EL a fee of £30,000 plus VAT (if applicable) per annum. This fee shall be reviewed by the board of the Company annually.

Easttree shall be expected to provide the services of Chris Helm for an aggregate period of 4 days per month plus one monthly board meeting.

Under this agreement, EL will agree not to and will agree to procure that Chris Helm does not for a period of 12 months after the engagement:-

o solicit anyone (hereinafter known as “Restricted Persons”) employed or engaged by the Company and who could materially damage the interests of the Client if they were involved in any capacity in any business which competes with the Company and with whom EL dealt in the 12 months before the termination of the engagement;

o in the course of any business concern which is in competition with the Company, employ or engage any Restricted Person; or

o have any business dealings with any Restricted Customer in the course of any business concern which is in competition with the Company.

Under this agreement, EL will agree not to and will agree to procure that Afram Gergeo does not at any time after termination of the engagement represent itself or himself as connected with the Company, other than as a former consultant or director (if applicable).

Listing Agent - Dante Partners LLP

By an engagement letter dated 12 January 2017 (“Dante Agreement”), Dante Partners LLP (“Dante”) were appointed to act as Listing Agent to the Company. Dante’s role includes acting as corporate adviser for the purposes of establishing, listing and lead managing the Bond issue. Subject to certain rights of either Dante or the Company to terminate the Dante Agreement earlier, including on no less than 3 months’ written notice, the term of the Dante Agreement will expire on the earlier of redemption of the Bond or its de-listing. Dante will charge a fee on successful Listing of £10,000 plus VAT, a management and selling commission of an amount equal to 7% of the gross proceeds of received by the Company from investors in the Bond and originated by Dante provided that such investors invest within 12 months of the origination and were not in any event in discussions with the Company prior to Dante’s origination and an annual fee of £20,000 plus VAT to act as the Company’s Listing Agent which is a requirement of the GSX. In addition, the Company will reimburse to Dante certain out-of pocket-expenses and certain other agreed transactional expenses.

Legal advisors – Burlingtons Legal LLP

By an engagement letter dated [ ] Burlingtons Legal LLP (“Burlingtons”) were appointed to act as solicitors to the Company for the purposes of the Listing. Burlingtons’ duties include to assist in the preparation of the Prospectus, prepare the accompanying verification pack, to ensure the directors of the Company are properly advised of their duties and to draft and finalise any ancillary documents. The fee chargeable by Burlingtons will be based on time spent calculated at an hourly rate ranging from £250 - £400 per hour depending on the seniority of person carrying out the work.

Auditors – Jeffreys Henry LLP

By an engagement letter dated 19 October 2016 (“Auditors Agreement”), Jeffreys Henry LLP were appointed to act as the Company’s auditors. The Auditors Agreement is for an indefinite period until terminated in accordance with its terms. The fee payable by the Company to the auditors will depend on the scope of work and time spent on a particular matter, with an estimate being provided for any specific work.

Registrar - Capita Registrars Limited

By an agreement dated [ ] 2017, Capita Registrars Limited were appointed to act as the Company’s bond registrar and to provide certain other ancillary services (“Registrar Agreement”). The Registrar Agreement is for a period of 12 months, automatically renewing for successive periods of 12 months unless terminated in accordance with its terms. The Company will be responsible for one-off fees of £3,750 plus VAT and annual recurring fees of £7,500 plus VAT. 23

Certain other charges will be payable by the Company. Some of these charges will be incurred regardless of use (such as storage charge of £200 plus VAT per annum) and are not expected to exceed £1,000 plus VAT per annum and certain will be use dependent such as general out-of-pocket expenses (for example stationery and postage).

Custodian Agent - Capita Trustees Limited

By an agreement dated [ ] 2017, Capita Trustees Limited were appointed to act as the Company’s custodian and to provide certain other ancillary services (“Custodian Agreement”). The Custodian Agreement is for a period of 12 months, automatically renewing for successive periods of 12 months unless terminated in accordance with its terms. The Company will be responsible for fees equal to 0.05% of the value of the Bonds deposited (on Admission this will be 0.05% of £50,000,000 being £25,000 plus VAT). Certain other charges will be payable by the Company, for example transaction charges relating to deposits and withdrawals and general out-of-pocket expenses (for example stationery and postage).

Debenture Trustee - Woodside Corporate Services Limited (“Debenture Trustee”)

By an agreement dated [ ] (the “Trust Deed”) and a supplemental Trustee Fee Agreement dated [ ] Woodside Corporate Services Limited were appointed to act as trustee for the Bondholders. The engagement is for a period of twelve months, automatically renewing for successive periods unless terminated in accordance with its terms. The fee payable by the Company to such trustee is £5,000 plus VAT per annum.

By a security deed dated [ ] the Company granted security to Woodside Corporate Services Ltd to secure its obligations under the Trust Deed.

27. DIRECTORS’ SERVICE CONTRACTS

The Company has entered into the following contracts with the Directors:-

Directors Service Agreement – Merck Mercuriadis

By an agreement dated [ ] Merck Mercuriadis was appointed as director of the Company.

If notice to terminate the appointment is given by either party within the first 12 months the appointment shall terminate 15 months after its commencement. If notice to terminate the appointment is given after the first 12 months the appointment shall end 6 months after the notice is given (or later if so specified in the notice). The appointment may also be terminated by the Company with immediate effect in certain circumstances.

It is the expectation that Merck Mercuriadis commits such time as is necessary for him to be able to properly perform his duties as director of the Company. It is anticipated that he spend an average of [90] hours per month undertaking these duties.

Merck Mercuriadis shall be entitled to a fee of £8,000 per annum (which shall be subject to PAYE), payable monthly in arrears. This fee will be reviewed annually.

Directors Service Agreement – Alexander Mathiesen-Öhman

Under this agreement, Alexander Mathiesen-Öhman will be appointed as director of the Company.

It is the expectation that Alexander Mathiesen-Öhman commits such time as is necessary for him to be able to properly perform his duties as director of the Company. It is anticipated that he spend an average of [90] hours per month undertaking these duties.

Alexander Mathiesen-Öhman shall be entitled to a fee of £8,000 per annum (which shall be subject to PAYE), payable monthly in arrears. This fee will be reviewed annually.

28. CREDIT RATING

At the date of this Registration Document, the Issuer has not been assigned a credit rating by any independent credit rating agency and, accordingly, the Bonds have not been assigned a credit rating by any independent credit rating agency.

29. USE OF PROCEEDS

Hipgnosis Copyrights plc is seeking to raise £50 million through the subject corporate bond offering.

Assuming a full subscription of the Bonds the proceeds expected to be raised by the offer and the expected net proceeds after deduction of the expenses of the offer are as follows:

Net Proceeds (assuming full subscription) 45,850

Substantially all of the estimated net amount of the proceeds is expected to be used for purchasing music right assets.

Although some of the Net Proceeds will be used to fund the working capital of the Company it is envisaged that income from the music assets will be sufficient to cover both the bond interest and overheads. The overheads of the Company will primarily be the salaries of the Board and details of these salaries are set out in the section headed “Directors’ Service Contracts” on pages 24-25.

30. WORKING CAPITAL

The Board is of the opinion that, having made due and careful consideration, assuming the working capital available to the Company will be sufficient for its requirements for at least the twelve-month period from the date of Admission, having met the minimum fundraise, as set out in the Securities Note.

31. CREST

Trades may be cleared through CREST, which is a computerised share transfer and settlement system enabling securities to be held in electronic uncertificated form and transferred otherwise than by written instrument. The Articles permit the Company to issue bonds in uncertificated form in accordance with the CREST Regulations.

The Company has applied to Euroclear for the Bonds to be admitted to and enabled through CREST with effect from Admission. Accordingly, settlement of transactions in Bonds following Admission may take place within CREST if the relevant Bondholders so wish. However, if a Bondholder wishes to receive and retain physical bond certificates, he will be able to do so.

The ISIN for the GBP denominated secured Bonds of 7.00% per annum maturing April 2022 is GB00BDZC8P23.

The address of CREST is Euroclear UK & Ireland, 33 Cannon Street, London EC4M 5SB.

32. DOCUMENTS AVAILBLE FOR INSPECTION

For the life of the Registration Document, copies of the following documents will, when published, be available for inspection at the registered office of the Company:

(i) The certificate of incorporation and the memorandum and articles of association of the Company; (ii) a copy of this Registration Document and any documents referred to therein (iii) any historical financial information of the Company; (iv) the Security Deed; 25

(v) the Trust Deed; and (vi) any future offering circulars and supplements to this Registration Document, any other documents incorporated therein by reference.

DEFINITIONS

The following terms apply in this Document unless the context requires otherwise:

“Admission” admission of the Bonds to the Gibraltar Stock Exchange and such admission becoming effective in accordance with the GSX Listing Code for Debt Securities. “Articles” the articles of association of the Company

“Board” the board of directors of the Company

“Bond” or “Bonds” the Euro or Sterling denominated secured bonds issued by the Company pursuant to the Bond Instrument

“Bondholder” or the holders of the Bonds “Bondholders”

“Bond Instrument” the bond instrument, a copy of which is set out in Appendix I to this document

“CREST” the computerised settlement system used to facilitate the transfer of title to shares in uncertificated form, operated by Euroclear UK & Ireland Limited.

“Custodian” Capita IRG Trustees Limited or such other custodian as may be appointed by the Company from time to time

“Directors” directors of the Company

“Euroclear” Euroclear UK & Ireland Limited, the operator of CREST

“FCA” the Financial Conduct Authority

“FSC” the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission

Gibraltar Stock Exchange GSX Limited ('GSX'), trading as The Gibraltar Stock Exchange, is a Gibraltar- (“GSX”) based private limited Company that, since 2014, has a Stock Exchange license from the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission. st st st “Interest Date” the 31 of April and the 31 of October in each year (excluding 31 April 2017).

“Registration Document” This Registration Document.

“Ordinary Shares” ordinary shares of the Company of £1 nominal value

“Prospectus” This Registration Document and the relevant Securities Note collectively.

“Securities” the Bond or Bonds

“Securities Act” the US Securities Act 1933, as amended

“Securities Note” The securities note produced by the Company for the purposes of the issue of Bonds

“Security Deed” the security deed to be entered into between the Company and the Debenture Trustee under which Bondholders rights will be secured.

“Trust Deed” The trust deed to be entered into between the Company and the Debenture Trustee

REGISTERED OFFICE OF THE ISSUER 869 High Road, London, N12 8QA United Kingdom Tel.: +44 •

LISTING AGENT Dante Partners LLP 3rd Floor 207 Regent Street London W1B 3HH

LEGAL ADVISERS TO THE COMPANY (in respect of UK legal matters) Burlingtons Legal LLP 38 Hertford Street London W1J 7SG

ACCOUNTANTS TO THE COMPANY (UK) EA (UK) LLP 869 High Road London N12 8QA

AUDITORS TO THE COMPANY (UK) Jeffreys Henry LLP Finsgate 5-7 Cranwood Street London EC1V 9EE

REGISTRAR Capita Registrars Limited The Registry 34 Beckenham Road Beckenham Kent, BR3 4TU

CUSTODIAN Capita IRG Trustees Limited The Registry 34 Beckenham Road Beckenham Kent, BR3 4TU

DEBENTURE TRUSTEE Woodside Corporate Services Limited 4th Floor 50 Mark Ln London EC3R 7QR

Company Registration No. 10368580 (England and Wales)

HIPGNOSIS COPYRIGHTS PLC

ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE PERIOD ENDED 19 OCTOBER 2016 HIPGNOSIS COPYRIGHTS PLC