Vela Technologies shares jump 43.24% to 0.03p on Conduit Pharmaceuticals' reverse merger with Murphy Cannon Acquisition Corp
Vela Technologies said Conduit Pharmaceuticals would join the NASDAQ through a reverse merger with Murphy Cannon Acquisition Corp. Murphy is a NASDAQ-listed special purpose acquisition company.
The deal is expected to close in 1Q23 and generate US$150m for Conduit. Vela has an economic interest in Conduit's AZD1656, a potential Covid-19 treatment.
PCF Group shares plummet 68.89% to 0.35p on proposed cancellation of AIM listing
PCF Group said its Bank unit will not recommence lending and will look to sell all or part of its loan portfolio.
"The Board will continue to explore strategic transactions with bona fide interested third parties, however the directors have now concluded that it is in the best interest of all stakeholders for PCF Bank to commence a process of withdrawing from the UK banking market." PCF said in a statement.
PCF also announced it would cancel the admission to trading on AIM of its ordinary shares in order to reduce costs, subject to shareholder approval.
Sareum Holdings shares fall 25% to 105p after SDC-1801 was not approved for clinical trials by MHRA
Sareum Holdings announced yesterday that the UK Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) had not approved the Clinical Trial Authorisation (CTA) to evaluate the safety and tolerability of Sareum's lead SDC-1801 drug.
Sareum said it was seeking additional clarification from the MHRA and would provide an update on next steps for resubmission "as soon as possible".
Due to uncertainties around the timeline for resubmission, Sareum said it no longer expected a trial for SDC-1801 to commence before the end of 2022.
Dr Tim Mitchell, CEO of Sareum, commented:
"We are surprised and disappointed by this response. We believe Sareum made a compelling case to the regulatory authority with a robust non-clinical data package, generated in collaboration with world-leading, internationally recognised CROs, to support our application. We are committed to getting clarification on next steps."
The Gym Group shares fall 17.31% to 102.2p on rising utility costs
The Gym Group expressed fears of rising costs in a trading update this morning. The company warned its utility costs would increase in 2023:
"Looking forward, energy volumes are 100% hedged up to the end of Q1 2023; overall 63% are hedged for 2023 and our current expectation is that utility costs will rise by GBP8-10 million in 2023 compared to 2022."
The company reported membership numbers and revenue up so far in 2022. In the ten months to October 31, revenue jumped 78% year-on-year to £143m, and membership numbers were up 17% year-on-year to 838,000.