Latest News by Industry
By Ishika Dangayach, 2:04 PM ET
Shares of Atai Life Sciences B.V., funded by billionaire investor Peter Thiel, soared 40 % on their first day on the New York Stock Exchange on Friday, giving the German psychedelics firm a market capitalization of $3.19 billion.
The German biotech's initial public offering was priced at $15 a share on Thursday night, at the upper end of the projected range. The business, which plans to develop psychedelic medicines to treat mental health issues, received $225 million at a $2.3 billion value.
Atai was co-founded in 2018 by Christian Angermayer, a German investor who believes in the benefits of utilizing psychedelics like psilocybin to treat depression, anxiety, and drug use problems. Several businesses exploring such medicines have received funding from German startups.
The company is the third psychedelic biotech to go public in the United States, following MindMed, which went public on the Nasdaq in April, and Compass Pathways, which was funded by Founders Fund and listed in September.
Atai founder and Chairman Christian Angermayer said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Friday, “The world we’re building is a bad place for our brain, so mental health issues will go up. But I do think we have some real shots in our portfolio to end the mental health crisis.”
Investor interest in psychedelic medicines has increased in tandem with the medical community's growing interest in these therapies.
Angermayer has invested in about 30 biotech businesses, including immunotherapies firm Sensei Biotherapeutics, mental healthcare firm Compass Pathways, and artificial intelligence-powered drug discovery platform AbCellera Biologics, all of them have recently gone public in the United States.
Apart from Theil, Mike Novogratz's Galaxy Investments and Angermayer's own Apeiron Investment Group, are among those who have invested in Atai Life Sciences.
The biotech which employs around 50 people in offices across Berlin, New York, and San Diego, is presently collaborating with 14 businesses focused on medication research and other technologies.
Atai assists scientists with raising funds, working with regulators, and conducting clinical trials in exchange for a majority interest in the medicines and technology they are creating. To yet, authorities have not formally authorized any of Atai's medicines.
The offering's main underwriters were Credit Suisse, Citigroup, Cowen, and Berenberg.
With inputs from CNBC
Picture Credits: Nasdaq