Evolva bags struggling Arpida in merger pact

The private Swiss developer Evolva has swooped in to merge with the troubled biotech Arpida, which saw its share price all but erased after its lead drug program--for intravenous antibiotic iclaprim--failed to gain regulatory approval.

At the end of the merger Evolva shareholders will have about two thirds of the stock in the combined outfit with Arpida investors holding the rest. Evolva's CEO says that the merger will give it access to public markets to raise fresh capital. And Evolva's management team comes out on top after the merger. Reuters reports that Evolva, which has 75 employees, has drugs for renal disease and arterial thrombosis in early-stage development with another therapy for influenza and Ebola entering Phase I next year alongside a program for fungal infections. 

"Over the past five years Evolva has quickly grown into a mature company with both a diversified pipeline and a strong revenue base," says Evolva CEO Neil Goldsmith. "The intended merger with Arpida gives us access to the public capital market and thereby achieves a fundamental step for our future growth."

- check out the Evolva release
- check out the report from Reuters

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