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January 2006

Intercytex seeks £15m on AIM to combat baldness

Jan 2006

A Cambridge biotech with potential cures for baldness, wrinkles and chronic wounds all in clinical trials, is to raise £15 million through a float on the London Stock Exchange’s AIM list at the beginning of February.

Based at St John’s Innovation Centre, Intercytex will attempt to raise the money through a subscription of approximately £4.2m from existing shareholders and a placing of approximately £10.8m with new shareholders.

The company will use the funds to progress its pipeline of woundcare and aesthetic products through clinical trials and into the commercial arena.

The shares due to be issued have been set at a price of 108 pence per share, which would give the firm, on admission, a market capitalisation of approximately £60.2m and values it at £45m currently.

Piper Jaffray Ltd is acting as nominated adviser and sole broker to the firm.

An aggregate of 13,888,889 shares will be issued in two stages. The first is expected on 1 February 2006 and relates to dealings in the existing ordinary shares, the shares issued in the subscription, and the 1,064,814 ordinary shares that are being placed with certain VCTs.

It is expected that dealings in the remaining ordinary shares to be issued, the second admission, will commence on AIM on 2 February 2006.

Intercytex works on the development of cell therapy products for the woundcare and aesthetic medicine markets. Its proprietary expertise is in cell therapy, which is being applied to create products that harness the innate ability of human cells to regenerate and repair the body.

The firm has three products in clinical development and a fourth product in pre-clinical studies. These products are:

• ICX-PRO, the lead product for the treatment of leg ulcers, currently in a multi-centre Phase III trial in the US, UK and Canada and expected to be completed in the first half of 2007. The results of the Phase II trial indicated good efficacy and beneficial performance characteristics;

• ICX-TRC, for hair regeneration in male-pattern baldness, has completed a Phase I safety trial and applications are being prepared to commence a Phase II efficacy trial in mid-2006;

• ICX-RHY, for the treatment of wrinkles, is currently in a Phase I trial in the UK and it is expected that a Phase II trial will commence here in mid-2006.

• ICX-SKN, in development as a living skin substitute, is expected to commence a Phase I trial in the second half of 2006.

Nick Higgins, chief executive of Intercytex, said: “We are pleased by the demonstration of strong support for the company by both existing and new investors. The woundcare and aesthetic medicine markets are underserved and there is a real need for new products with high levels of efficacy which are simple to manufacture and store, and easy to use.

“We believe that the products being developed within Intercytex can satisfy these market needs and we plan to use the funds raised in the IPO to develop and commercialise our pipeline products, to create a broad-based, novel woundcare and aesthetic medicine business.”

Intercytex was incorporated in 2000, employs around 65 staff and also has offices in Manchester and Boston, USA. It has raised £28m since its original seed funding of £1.4m, invested by Avlar BioVentures and Johnson & Johnson Development.

Other existing investors include: Merlin Biosciences, Cambridge Gateway, 3i, Temasek V Sciences Investments, NIF Ventures and Scottish Equity Partners.