Oxford BioDynamics PLC on Tuesday said it plans to raise £7 million via a placing, subscription and retail offer of new shares in the company.

The Oxford-based biotechnology firm focused on discovering and developing epigenetic biomarkers said it would place a minimum of 43.0 million new shares and direct subscriptions of up to 2.5 million new shares to raise gross proceeds of no less than £5 million at an issue price of 11 pence each.

This is alongside a retail offer of new shares to raise up to £2 million, also at the issue price. Shares in Oxford BioDynamics closed down 3.3% to 10.40 pence each in London on Tuesday.

Oxford BioDynamics said the fundraising will provide working capital to ‘support the commercial development, through continued investment in sales and marketing activities to grow adoption of EpiSwitch and spending to complete the validation, launch and initial sales and marketing support of [prostate screening EpiSwitch]’.

The fundraising is conditional upon shareholder approval at a general meeting on August 18, among other things.

‘We are pleased to announce the proposed fundraising today, securing the group’s runway through and beyond the launch of our eagerly awaited prostate screening EpiSwitch test later in 2023. Both existing and new shareholders intend to participate in the fundraising, alongside directors and senior management from across the group,’ said Chief Executive Officer Jon Burrows.

‘We are also pleased that the primary bid offer will enable new and existing retail shareholders to invest in this next exciting phase of OBD’s development, on the same terms as institutional investors.’

‘With the whole OBD team, I look forward to supporting the continued growth of our flagship EpiSwitch CiRT test in the US and UK and working towards a successful commercial launch of the important PSE test to the market.’

Copyright 2023 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.