Antara Lifesciences raises $7m in IPO

Antara Lifesciences has raised $7 million through an oversubscribed IPO to help fund the commercialisation of lead product Detach.

The company issued 14 million shares at $0.50 per share, giving it a market capitalisation at listing of $18.875 million. Antara will commence trading on the ASX under the ticker code ANR at the start of next week.

Proceeds from the IPO will be used to further the commercial development of Detach, a non-antibiotic therapy for diarrhoea.

Antara plans to commercialise the product in pigs first, before extending it to other livestock animals and then developing a version for humans.

Detach can potentially fulfil the need for non-antibiotic therapies for diarrhoea for livestock animals, in light of efforts by health authorities around the world to limit the use of antibiotics in animal production to stem the rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

Antara chairman and co-founder Dr Mel Bridges suggested that this fact could have contributed to the strong interest in the company’s IPO.

“The fact that the lead compound is derived from pineapple stems, a natural and safe resource, and addresses a significant area of unmet medical need, seems to have resonated with investors,” he said.