Welcome to the News You Might Have Missed, a weekly roundup of psychedelic medicine headlines to help you catch up and stay informed. It was a busy week with lots of news, have a look and see you next week for another update.
Bull runs: MindMed Stock Jumps Over 60%
There was a buzz this week that reminded us of the glory days of 2021 as MindMed Stock Jumped Over 60%. This seems to be caused by an activist and meme-stock investor taking a serious interest in MindMed. In related news, BrightMinds Bioscience (ticker: DRUG) went on a temporary 400% run, perhaps having to do with the recent rule changes by IIROC on naked short selling, causing traders to cover their current short positions.
Hanging On or Closing Shop? Mydecine Announces $245K Financing
Mydecine investors are asking what’s going on as key members of the company’s board resign and cash is dwindling. Things are looking dire, but Mydecine announces $245K in financing and press releases say they’re not done yet.
From CEO and Chairman Josh Bartch: “Mydecine is in the process of several internal changes that we believe will be vital to the future success of the Company,” adding “the Company has made several positive changes to narrow focus, reduce cash burn, increase efficiency to ensure future success. We expect to make several positive updates to the market in near term.”
atai Life Sciences Releases Results and Secures $175 Million Loan
Atai Life Sciences announced financial results, dropping some of their pipeline and securing $175 million loan, giving atai access to up to $487M in capital.
“The non-dilutive capital from this term loan facility combined with the cash already on our balance sheet further reinforces atai’s financial strength, providing us with strategic flexibility as we build a leading mental health company committed to addressing the significant unmet patient needs in neuropsychiatry,” said Florian Brand, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of atai. “While we continue to execute on our diversified pipeline of differentiated drug candidates, we look forward to several anticipated near-term catalysts across our key programs, including Phase 2a data of PCN-101 in treatment-resistant depression towards the end of this year.”
Health Canada Grants MDMA Production and Distribution Amendment to Optimi Health
Optimi CEO, Bill Ciprick, says the Company’s in-house capacity to produce a wide range of scalable formulations puts Optimi at the forefront of the commercial manufacturing and supply of psychedelics.
“From lab to market, Optimi has taken every step necessary to build its competitive position as a global leader in the manufacturing of EU-GMP compliant MDMA in North America, and we’ve done that through operational transparency and investing in smart infrastructure.”
Filament Health Receives Eights Patent Issuance
“Filament’s 100% pending application to issued patent success rate demonstrates our team’s talent given that the industry average is less than 50%,” said Taran Grey, Director of Intellectual Property. “Before Filament, shelf stable psilocin was seen as an impossibility. We have created psilocin as a revenue generating reality, and we continue to lock down the intellectual property to produce it. From multi-solvent extraction to purification to controlled dephosphorylation to standardization and delivery methods, I am deeply proud of our research department’s work product; IP and otherwise.”
