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Opthea Ltd Major Shareholding Notification 2022

Mar 30, 2022

32698_rns_2022-03-30_d3f69d45-fb86-4998-b8f2-88c1f583027f.pdf

Major Shareholding Notification

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Corporations Act Section 671B

Notice of change of interests of substantial holder

Form 604

To: Company Name/Scheme OPTHEA LIMITED ACN/ ~~ARSN~~ 006 340 567

1. Details of substantial holder

Name Bank of America Corporation and its related bodies corporate (See Appendix C)

ACN/ARSN (if applicable):

There was a change in the interests of the substantial holder on 29 March 2022 The previous notice was given to the company on 30 March 2022

2. Previous and present voting power

The total number of votes attached to all the voting shares in the company or voting interests in the scheme that the substantial holder or an associate (2) had a relevant interest (3) in when last required, and when now required, to give a substantial holding notice to the company or scheme, are as follows:

Class of
securities (4)
Previous Notice Previous Notice Present Notice Present Notice
Person’s Votes Voting Power (5) Person’s Votes Voting Power (5)
Ordinary 14,088,124 4.00% 14,087,108 4.00%
American
Depository Shares
(ADS)
15,776,080 4.49% 6,427,496 1.83%
Total 29,864,204 8.49% 20,514,604 5.83%

3. Changes in relevant interests

Particulars of each change in, or change in the nature of, a relevant interest of the substantial holder or an associate in voting securities of the company or scheme, since the substantial holder was last required to give a substantial holding notice to the company or scheme are as follows:

Date of
change
Person whose relevant
interest changed
Nature of
Change (6)
Consideration given
in relation to
change (7)
Class and Number
of securities
affected
Person’s
votes
affected
Please see Appendix A

4. Present relevant interests

Particulars of each relevant interest of the substantial holder in voting securities after the change are as follows:

Holder of
relevant
interest
Registered
holder of
securities
Person entitled
to be registered
holder (8)
Nature of relevant interest
(6)
Class and
number of
securities
Person’s
votes
Merrill Lynch
(Australia)
Futures
Limited
Merrill Lynch
(Australia)
Nominees Pty. Ltd
Merrill Lynch
(Australia)
Futures Limited
Power to control voting
and/or disposal of
securities in its capacity as
ultimate beneficial owner
having a principal position.
Ordinary
4,540,688
4,540,688
Merrill Lynch
International
Merrill Lynch
(Australia)
Nominees Pty. Ltd
Merrill Lynch
International
Power to control voting
and/or disposal of
securities in its capacity as
ultimate beneficial owner
having a principal position.
Ordinary
4,919
4,919
Merrill Lynch
International
Merrill Lynch
(Australia)
Nominees Pty. Ltd
Merrill Lynch
International
Borrowing of securities
pursuant to a Prime
Brokerage Agreement (see
Appendix B), with power to
control the voting and/or
disposal of borrowed
securities.
Ordinary
153,813
153,813
Merrill Lynch
Markets
(Australia) Pty.
Limited
Merrill Lynch
(Australia)
Nominees Pty. Ltd
Merrill Lynch
Markets
(Australia) Pty.
Limited
Borrowing of securities
pursuant to a Prime
Brokerage Agreement (see
Appendix B), with power to
control the voting and/or
disposal of borrowed
securities.
Ordinary
8,887,688
8,887,688
BofA
Securities, Inc.
Merrill Lynch
(Australia)
Nominees Pty. Ltd
BofA Securities,
Inc.
Borrowing of securities
pursuant to a Stock Borrow
Loan Agreement (see
Appendix B), with power to
control the voting and/or
disposal of borrowed
securities.
Ordinary
500,000
500,000
Merrill Lynch
International
Merrill Lynch
International
Borrowing of securities
pursuant to a Prime
Brokerage Agreement (see
Appendix B), with power to
control the voting and/or
disposal of borrowed
securities.
802,337 ADS
representing
6,418,696
Ordinary
Shares
6,418,696
BofA
Securities, Inc.
BofA Securities,
Inc.
Borrowing of securities
pursuant to a Stock Borrow
Loan Agreement (see
Appendix B), with power to
control the voting and/or
disposal of borrowed
securities.
1,100 ADS
representing
8,800
Ordinary
Shares
8,800

5. Changes in association

The persons who have become associates (2) of, ceased to be associates of, or have changed the nature of their association (9) with, the substantial holder in relation to voting interests in the company or scheme are as follows:

Name and ACN/ ARSN (if applicable) Nature of association
N/A N/A

6. Addresses

The addresses of persons named in this form are as follows:

Name Addresses
Bank of America Corporation 100 North Tryon Street, Charlotte, North Carolina, 28255, USA
Merrill Lynch (Australia) Futures Limited Level 34, Governor Phillip Tower, 1 Farrer Place, Sydney NSW
2000,Australia
Merrill Lynch (Australia) Nominees Pty. Limited Level 19, 120 Collins St, Melbourne Vic 3000, Australia
Merrill Lynch Markets (Australia) Pty. Limited Level 34, Governor Phillip Tower, 1 Farrer Place, Sydney NSW
2000,Australia
Merrill Lynch International 2 King Edward Street, London, England, EC1A 1HQ, United
Kingdom
BofA Securities, Inc. One Bryant Park, New York NY 10036, USA

SIGNATURE

Print Name:
Sign Here:
Kelvin Kwok
Capacity:
Authorised signatory
Date:
31 March 2022

Appendix A

Date of
change
Person whose relevant interest
changed
Nature of change (4) Consideration (5) Class (6) of
securities
**Securities affected ** Person's votes
affected
Remark
3/29/2022 Merrill Lynch International Securities borrowed N/A Ordinary 1 1 Refer to App. B
3/29/2022 Merrill Lynch International Securities returned N/A ADS (477,513) (3,820,104) Refer to App. B
3/29/2022 Merrill Lynch International Securities returned N/A ADS
(691,060)

(5,528,480)
Refer to App. B
3/29/2022 Merrill Lynch International Securities borrowed N/A ADS 1,168,573 9,348,584 Refer to App. B
3/29/2022 Merrill Lynch International Securities returned N/A ADS (1,168,573) (9,348,584) Refer to App. B
3/29/2022 Merrill Lynch (Australia) Futures
Limited
SELL (1,129) Ordinary (1,017) (1,017) N/A

Appendix B-1: Prescribed information

Type of agreement International Prime Brokerage Agreement
Parties to
agreement
Merrill Lynch International, Merrill Lynch Markets (Australia) Pty Limited and
Equity Trustees Limited As Trustee And Responsible Entity Of Regal
InvestmentFund
Holder of voting
rights
Securities borrower. Securities lender may instruct the registered holder to vote
on securities.
Are there any
restrictions on
voting rights?
No
If yes, detail N/A
Scheduled return
date (if any)
On recall of the securities loan by the securities lender.
Does the borrower
have the right to
return early?
Yes
If yes, detail Securities borrower will have right to return assets at any time.
Does the lender
have the right to
recall early?
Yes
If yes, detail Securities lender will have right to recall assets at any time.
Will the securities
be returned on
settlement?
Yes
If yes, detail any
exceptions
N/A

Appendix B-2: Prescribed information

Type of agreement International Prime Brokerage Agreement
Parties to
agreement
Merrill Lynch International and Integrated Core Strategies (Asia)
Holder of voting
rights
Securities borrower. Securities lender may instruct the registered holder to vote
on securities.
Are there any
restrictions on
voting rights?
No
If yes, detail N/A
Scheduled return
date (if any)
On recall of the securities loan by the securities lender.
Does the borrower
have the right to
return early?
Yes
If yes, detail Securities borrower will have right to return assets at any time.
Does the lender
have the right to
recall early?
Yes
If yes, detail Securities lender will have right to recall assets at any time.
Will the securities
be returned on
settlement?
Yes
If yes, detail any
exceptions
N/A

Appendix B-3: Prescribed information

Type of agreement International Prime Brokerage Agreement
Parties to
agreement
Merrill Lynch International, Merrill Lynch Markets (Australia) Pty Limited and
Regal Funds Management Pty Limited as Trustee of Atlantic Absolute Return
Fund
Holder of voting
rights
Securities borrower. Securities lender may instruct the registered holder to vote
on securities.
Are there any
restrictions on
voting rights?
No
If yes, detail N/A
Scheduled return
date (if any)
On recall of the securities loan by the securities lender.
Does the borrower
have the right to
return early?
Yes
If yes, detail Securities borrower will have right to return assets at any time.
Does the lender
have the right to
recall early?
Yes
If yes, detail Securities lender will have right to recall assets at any time.
Will the securities
be returned on
settlement?
Yes
If yes, detail any
exceptions
N/A

Appendix B-4: Prescribed information

Type of agreement International Prime Brokerage Agreement
Parties to
agreement
Merrill Lynch International, Merrill Lynch Markets (Australia) Pty Limited and
Regal Funds Management Pty Limited as Trustee of Regal Australian Long
Short Equity Fund
Holder of voting
rights
Securities borrower. Securities lender may instruct the registered holder to vote
on securities.
Are there any
restrictions on
voting rights?
No
If yes, detail N/A
Scheduled return
date (if any)
On recall of the securities loan by the securities lender.
Does the borrower
have the right to
return early?
Yes
If yes, detail Securities borrower will have right to return assets at any time.
Does the lender
have the right to
recall early?
Yes
If yes, detail Securities lender will have right to recall assets at any time.
Will the securities
be returned on
settlement?
Yes
If yes, detail any
exceptions
N/A

Appendix B-5: Prescribed information

Type of agreement International Prime Brokerage Agreement
Parties to
agreement
Merrill Lynch International, Merrill Lynch Markets (Australia) Pty Limited and
Regal Funds Management Pty Limited as Trustee of Tasman Market Neutral
Fund
Holder of voting
rights
Securities borrower. Securities lender may instruct the registered holder to vote
on securities.
Are there any
restrictions on
voting rights?
No
If yes, detail N/A
Scheduled return
date (if any)
On recall of the securities loan by the securities lender.
Does the borrower
have the right to
return early?
Yes
If yes, detail Securities borrower will have right to return assets at any time.
Does the lender
have the right to
recall early?
Yes
If yes, detail Securities lender will have right to recall assets at any time.
Will the securities
be returned on
settlement?
Yes
If yes, detail any
exceptions
N/A

Appendix B-6: Prescribed information

Type of agreement International Prime Brokerage Agreement
Parties to
agreement
Merrill Lynch International, Merrill Lynch Markets (Australia) Pty Limited and
Susquehanna Pacific Pty Ltd
Holder of voting
rights
Securities borrower. Securities lender may instruct the registered holder to vote
on securities.
Are there any
restrictions on
voting rights?
No
If yes, detail N/A
Scheduled return
date (if any)
On recall of the securities loan by the securities lender.
Does the borrower
have the right to
return early?
Yes
If yes, detail Securities borrower will have right to return assets at any time.
Does the lender
have the right to
recall early?
Yes
If yes, detail Securities lender will have right to recall assets at any time.
Will the securities
be returned on
settlement?
Yes
If yes, detail any
exceptions
N/A

Appendix B-7: Prescribed information

Type of agreement International Prime Brokerage Agreement
Parties to
agreement
Merrill Lynch International, Merrill Lynch Markets (Australia) Pty Limited and
Amazon Market Neutral Fund (GCM)
Holder of voting
rights
Securities borrower. Securities lender may instruct the registered holder to vote
on securities.
Are there any
restrictions on
voting rights?
No
If yes, detail N/A
Scheduled return
date (if any)
On recall of the securities loan by the securities lender.
Does the borrower
have the right to
return early?
Yes
If yes, detail Securities borrower will have right to return assets at any time.
Does the lender
have the right to
recall early?
Yes
If yes, detail Securities lender will have right to recall assets at any time.
Will the securities
be returned on
settlement?
Yes
If yes, detail any
exceptions
N/A

Appendix B-8: Prescribed information

Type of agreement International Prime Brokerage Agreement
Parties to
agreement
Merrill Lynch International, Merrill Lynch Markets (Australia) Pty Limited and
Zambezi Absolute Return Fund (GCM)
Holder of voting
rights
Securities borrower. Securities lender may instruct the registered holder to vote
on securities.
Are there any
restrictions on
voting rights?
No
If yes, detail N/A
Scheduled return
date (if any)
On recall of the securities loan by the securities lender.
Does the borrower
have the right to
return early?
Yes
If yes, detail Securities borrower will have right to return assets at any time.
Does the lender
have the right to
recall early?
Yes
If yes, detail Securities lender will have right to recall assets at any time.
Will the securities
be returned on
settlement?
Yes
If yes, detail any
exceptions
N/A

Appendix C

Appendix C
Related bodies corporate Incorporated **ACN/Registration/Incorporation Number **
Merrill Lynch International UnitedKingdom 2312079
MLUKCapital HoldingsLimited UnitedKingdom 4971231
BofAML EMEA Holdings2 Limited United States 119605
Merrill Lynch(Australia)FuturesLimited Australia 003639674
Merrill Lynch Markets (Australia) Pty. Limited Australia 075587816
Merrill Lynch(Australasia)Pty. Ltd Australia 075923894
Bankof America Global Holdings,LLC United States 5169939
BofAML Jersey Holdings Limited Jersey 115831
BofASecurities,Inc. United States 5793661
NB Holdings Corporation United States 2361372
Bankof America Corporation United States N/A628