NEW YORK, Sept. 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- AIkido Pharma
Inc. (Nasdaq: AIKI) ("AIkido" or the "Company") today released the
following shareholder update:
Dear Shareholder,
September is an opportune time to provide a shareholder and
investor update and we are pleased to report on positive
developments and near-term upcoming potential value creating
catalysts.
To start, we are pleased to announce that last month, DatChat
Inc., (Nasdaq: DATS) went public. AIkido owns 525,000 shares
of DatChat, which it previously purchased for $500,000.00. As of September 13th, DatChat shares closed
at $6.54, well higher than its IPO
price and representing a more than 600% return or an additional
$3,433,500.00 added to AIkido's
balance sheet. We believe that DatChat is a terrific product
and we wish DatChat continued success and growth. This
validating valuation and liquidity event is exciting as it is a
further demonstration of our growth model leading to shareholder
value. We are excited about our current assets and look forward to
additional upcoming milestones and potential catalysts that are on
the near-term horizon.
Moving forward, the Company's strategy will continue its primary
focus on acquiring biotechnology assets which it will operate,
develop, and move towards monetization. This is our primary
business focus and the bulk of our energies are spent pursuing this
objective. Additionally, the Company is also continuing to
opportunistically review smaller acquisitions that are in later
stage companies like DatChat and Convergent, that we hope will
reach further monetization points in the next 6 to 18 months.
These smaller assets have a fixed cost and help diversify risk
while still providing for value enhancing growth
opportunities. Importantly, we are hopeful to have other
opportunities to increase shareholder value by the end of the
year.
In addition to DatChat, other Company assets are advancing in
their respective timelines. Convergent Therapeutics, a
clinical stage pharmaceutical company focused on developing next
generation radiopharmaceutical therapies for prostate and other
cancers, continues to progress and we are looking forward to
additional milestones this year. We are enthused with their recent
announcement that Philip Kantoff,
M.D., a world-renowned medical oncologist, former Chairman of the
Department of Medicine at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
(MSK) and Co-Founder of Convergent, was appointed as Convergent's
Chief Executive Officer. Dr. Kantoff stated, "My decision to
lead Convergent was driven by the opportunity to accelerate the
development of precision radiopharmaceuticals, including CONV 01-α,
with the goal of producing highly transformative treatments for
patients with prostate and other cancers." We believe this is a
high growth opportunity where we have seen numerous monetization
events in the sector at high valuations and multiples and look
forward to further clinical progress this year.
Convergent also announced the appointment of Alexander Brown to the position of Chief
Operating Officer. Prior to joining Convergent, Mr. Brown was
the Head of New Product Planning, Global Oncology, at Sanofi
responsible for the commercial readiness of the company's
early-stage oncology pipeline. Before that, he served in
several positions of increasing responsibility at EMD Serono (a
Merck KGaA subsidiary). Both Dr. Kantoff and Mr. Brown are
clearly first in class professionals and the Company could not be
happier about their addition to Convergent. We believe
Convergent will be a very successful company and produce a great
drug that will help many people.
Moreover, the Company has been notified that its pancreatic
cancer asset, licensed from University of
Texas, has received a Notice of Allowance from the United
States Patent and Trademark Office. This represents another
notable step forward in the development of this cancer asset. Our
robust patent portfolio positions us well and we believe represents
a solid asset for the Company.
I continue to be a strong believer in the Company and its growth
prospects. I have personally purchased stock in the open market
this past year and plan to continue that when appropriate. We have
numerous near-term initiatives in the works that we are extremely
excited about that aim to capitalize on high growth opportunities
in sectors that we believe will be received well by the investment
community. Our focus is on making smart value enhancing
acquisitions and have a strong balance sheet to continue this
strategy for a long time to come. With over $100 million in in the bank, in addition to other
assets such as DatChat, Hoth Therapeutics and Convergent, we have a
market cap significantly below that combined amount, making this an
opportunistic time in our lifecycle. Our burn rate is extremely low
and do not plan on any further equity dilution for the foreseeable
future. Lastly, we will continue to focus on enhancing shareholder
value through our operational and acquisition strategies.
In the meantime, I would like to thank each of the shareholders
for their continued support and look forward to our near-term
catalysts and longer-term overall growth prospects.
Sincerely,
Anthony Hayes
Chief Executive Officer
About AIkido Pharma Inc.
AIkido Pharma Inc. was initially formed in 1967 and is a
biotechnology Company with a diverse portfolio of small-molecule
anti-cancer therapeutics. The Company's platform consists of
patented technology from leading universities and researchers, and
we are currently in the process of developing an innovative
therapeutic drug platform through strong partnerships with world
renowned educational institutions, including The University
of Texas at Austin and University
of Maryland at Baltimore. Our diverse pipeline of
therapeutics includes therapies for pancreatic cancer and prostate
cancer. We are constantly seeking to grow our pipeline to treat
unmet medical needs in oncology. The Company is also
developing a broad-spectrum antiviral platform that may potentially
inhibit replication of multiple viruses including Influenza virus,
SARS-CoV (coronavirus), MERS-CoV, Ebolavirus and Marburg virus.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release constitute
"forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the federal
securities laws. Words such as "may," "might," "will," "should,"
"believe," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "continue,"
"predict," "forecast," "project," "plan," "intend" or similar
expressions, or statements regarding intent, belief, or current
expectations, are forward-looking statements. While the Company
believes these forward-looking statements are reasonable, undue
reliance should not be placed on any such forward-looking
statements, which are based on information available to us on the
date of this release. These forward-looking statements are based
upon current estimates and assumptions and are subject to various
risks and uncertainties, including without limitation those set
forth in the Company's filings with the SEC, not limited to Risk
Factors relating to its business contained therein. Thus, actual
results could be materially different. The Company expressly
disclaims any obligation to update or alter statements whether as a
result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as
required by law.
Contact:
Investor Relations:
Hayden IR
Brett Maas, Managing
Partner
Phone: (646) 536-7331
Email: brett@haydenir.com
www.haydenir.com
AIkido Pharma Inc.:
Phone: 212-745-1373
Email: investorrelations@aikidopharma.com
www.aikidopharma.com
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SOURCE AIkido Pharma Inc.