Diego Thomazini
Altamira Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CYTO) shares surged on Friday after the therapeutics developer announced partial spin-off of its subsidiary Altamira Medica for a cash consideration of around $2.3M.
The company entered into a binding deal with a Swiss private equity investor to sell 51% stake in Medica, whose key asset is Bentrio – an FDA-approved drug-free OTC nasal spray used for the treatment of allergic rhinitis.
Subject to customary closing conditions, the transaction is set to close on November 21, 2023. Medica will continue to operate under its current name and with current staff in collaboration with Altamira (CYTO).
Altamira (CYTO) will retain 49% of the company’s share capital and will be entitled to receive 25% of Medica’s future licensing income.
In addition, the transaction includes the sale of Auris Medical Pty Ltd, Melbourne (Australia) and a cash contribution of CHF 1M in total to Medica’s capital by its two shareholders pro rata of their shareholdings following the closing.
Altamira (CYTO) expects to record a financial gain of aorund $5.2M from the transaction. The deal comes as the firm initiates strategic repositioning of its core RNA delivery technology.
CEO Thomas Meyer said, “This marks an important first step in our strategic repositioning of the company. We are looking forward to developing the Bentrio franchise together with the new co-owner of Medica. We expect major growth from 2024 onwards from existing distribution agreements as well as from the expansion into key markets in North America, Europe and other world regions.”
CYTO shares were up above 170% following the news