Wrap Text
Cilo Cybin gets green light to list Africa’s first Cannabis focused SPAC on Main
Board of the JSE
CILO CYBIN HOLDINGS LIMITED
(Incorporated in South Africa)
(Registration number 2022/320351/06)
Ordinary Shares Share code: CCC ISIN: ZAE000310397
CILO CYBIN HOLDINGS LIMITED
PRESS RELEASE
IMMEDIATE: Friday, 9 September 2022
Cilo Cybin gets green light to list Africa’s first Cannabis focused SPAC on Main
Board of the JSE
Johannesburg – Friday, 9 September 2022: Cilo Cybin Holdings Limited (Cilo
Cybin) has received the go-ahead to list Africa’s first Cannabis focused Special
Purpose Company (SPAC) on the Main Board of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange
(JSE).
The aim of the SPAC is to acquire and invest in commercial enterprises operating in
the biotech, biohacking or pharmaceutical sectors. The company positions itself as a
disruptive international health solutions company that focuses on an individual’s
wellness, performance, and longevity goals. This is guided by and underpinned by an
Artificial Intelligence (AI) system that will collect, analyse, interpret, and produce
diagnosis and treatment suggestions from all the data generated by the ‘eco system.’
Cilo Cybin’s Initial Public Offering (IPO) opens on Monday, 12 September and closes
on Friday, 4 November. The IPO aims to raise a minimum of R500 million by way of a
public offer for subscription by investors for a minimum of 500 million Offer Shares in
the company at an issue price of R1 per Ordinary Share so as to enable a listing on
the Main Board of the JSE.
Gabriel Theron, Founder and CEO of Cilo Cybin, says he’s delighted with JSE
approval of the company’s listing and confident about raising the required capital to
achieve immediate and long term goals. “We also intend to identify new fringe
technologies and assist the creators of such technologies to take them to market. The
SPAC will allow Cilo Cybin to acquire, partner and deploy these solutions on a global
scale and in a short period of time - an exceptional opportunity for both institutional
and private investors to participate in and benefit from the combined offering of Cilo
Cybin with the goal to improve profitability and thereby maximising shareholder return.”
In terms of the JSE Listings Requirements, the company must complete an
acquisition of Viable Assets within the initial period. The acquisition of Viable Assets
must be approved by a majority of disinterested Directors and by an ordinary
resolution of Shareholders at a general meeting.
Viable Assets that the company intends to acquire, will be selected based on the
following criteria - the assets satisfy any of the pharmaceutical and/or biotech and/or
biohacking investment criteria; the assets can be local or globally positioned; and
the assets have the potential to be cash-generative or improve the service offering of
the company to increase the company’s value.
While Viable Assets are not limited to a particular industry or geographic region, locally
or internationally, the company expects to acquire a controlling interest in the
cannabis industry in South Africa. Gabriel Theron is also the founder and main
shareholder in Cilo Cybin Pharmaceutical Proprietary Limited (CCP). In May 2020 the
cultivation facility received its GACP license from the regulator in South Africa,
SAHPRA. The second license for the manufacturing facility was obtained in the 3rd
quarter of 2021, making CCP the first Company in South Africa to have both GACP
and GMP cannabis licenses in one Company. Theron confirms CCP is a Viable Asset
and will be considered. “The Cilo Cybin board will, however, also consider other assets
that have not been listed in the Prospectus due to the sensitivity of such information.”
Explaining Cilo Cybin’s key sectors of operation, Theron says there is a significant
difference between biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. “Both produce
medicines, but the medicines made by biotechnology companies are derived from
living organisms while those made by pharmaceutical companies generally have a
chemical basis. Biohacking, on the other hand, is the constant pursuit of better health,
performance, and longevity using technologies, apps, devices, and supplementation.”
Cilo Cybin will be participating in various industries that include biotech, cannabis,
psychedelics, biohacking, wearable devices and custom nutrition. Theron refers to
trusted statistics, projections and debates detailed in the Cilo Cybin Prospectus that
highlight the exceptional global growth potential of each of these industries.
Regarding Biotech, Theron refers to a report by Vision Research Reports published in
March 2021 that predicts that the global biotech market will grow at a CAGR of 16.83%
to surpass the USD 1 trillion mark in 2022 – the global biotechnology market was
valued at USD 752.88 billion in 2020 – and expected to reach USD 3.44 trillion in size
by 2030. Theron says the sector also saw double-digit annual growth in fundraising
from Venture Capital and deals such as partnerships, co-developments, and joint
ventures between 2019 and 2020. “Looking forward, the combination of advances in
biological science and accelerating developments in technology and AI has the
potential to take innovation to a new level. A recent report from the McKinsey Global
Institute analysed the profound economic and social impact of biological innovation
and found that biomolecules, biosystems, bio machines, and biocomputing could
collectively produce up to 60 percent of the physical inputs to the global economy.”
Referring to Cannabis, Theron says it is estimated that the global legal cannabis
market size, even with the regulatory constraints, will be $51 billion by 2025. “Medical
cannabis is used for the treatment of various chronic conditions, such as Parkinson’s
disease, Alzheimer’s disease, arthritis, cancer, depression, anxiety, epilepsy, and
other neurological conditions. Thus, a wide application scope has led to an increased
product demand for the treatment of various chronic conditions.” Looking to the future
and the role cannabis will play in the medical and recreational sectors globally, Theron
believes the companies that will survive this incredibly complicated and regulated, yet
lucrative market, will be the ones that established strong brands early in the race.
The global psychedelic drugs market was valued at USD 3.8 billion in the year 2020
and estimated at $4 billion in 2021 and $7.5 billion by 2026. Psychedelic drugs, also
known as hallucinogenic drugs or simply hallucinogens, are a group of substances
that are usually used recreationally to change and enhance sensory perceptions,
thought processes, and energy levels, and to facilitate spiritual experiences. They
include chemicals, such as LSD and plants which include psilocybin, which occurs
naturally in certain wild mushrooms, commonly known as magic mushrooms, or
shrooms, and mescaline, which is found in the peyote cactus in Mexico and the
Southwest United States.
According to Theron, the psychedelic drugs market is growing rapidly due to the
increasing prevalence of depression and other mental disorders worldwide. “The need
for handling environmental stress and enhanced and better quality of lifestyle is acting
as a driver for the psychedelic drugs market. The treatment for drug and alcohol
dependency is expected to boost psychedelic market growth. Currently it is estimated
that 350 million people suffers from PTSD globally, prior Covid, which directly results
in a suicide every 1 minute 40 seconds. It is estimated that Covid increased these
numbers significantly.’
“It was found through clinical studies that the use of Psilocybin and LSD, has long term
effects to reduce depression and anxiety. Ongoing studies on the use of various
psychedelics are being conducted globally, with amazing results.”
Finally with regard to biohacking which uses technologies, apps, devices, and
supplementation in pursuit of better health, performance, and longevity, Theron refers
to the global wearable medical devices market which is expected to grow from $8.35
billion (R125 billion) in 2020 to $10.28 billion (R154 billion) in 2021 at a compound
annual growth rate (CAGR) of 23.1%. “The market is expected to reach $24.38 billion
in 2025 at a CAGR of 24%. These devices range from measuring your sleep, nervous
systems, cellular and artery health to stress and inflammation levels. Over and above
these measuring devices, other devices include light, electric, heat and cold therapy
treatments to name a few.”
Similarly, says Theron, the global personalized nutrition market size is estimated to
reach USD 16.6 billion (R83 billion) in 2027 from USD 3.7 billion (R18 billion) in 2019,
delivering a CAGR of 13.6% through 2027. “The market growth is driven by rising
health awareness, a paradigm shift towards a personalised approach towards
nutrition, and growing demand for customised diet plans specific to personal
requirements.”
In conclusion Theron believes the world is entering a new era of personalised
healthcare, a world in which each person's health and wellbeing will require bespoke,
individualised and intelligently targeted interventions. “We have built ourselves and
our services on the three pillars of Health, Performance and Longevity.”
To participate in the IPO please send an e-mail to ipo@cilocybin.com or visit the Cilo
Cybin website at www.cilocybin.com and register your interest.
END
For further information please contact:
Jacques Verster
Cell: 083 276 9009
Email: jacques@mortimerharvey.com
Date: 09-09-2022 12:00:00
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