Bacteriophage companies AmpliPhi and SPH to merge

US-based AmpliPhi Biosciences and Australia's Special Phage Holdings (SPH) have revealed plans to merge to create a global bacteriophage-based therapy company.

Under the share swap proposal, which will require shareholder and regulatory approval, AmpliPhi would acquire all of SPH in exchange for 40 million of its shares.

If the merger goes through and some other conditions are met, the combined company would be 47% owned by former SPH shareholders.

At today's stock price of $0.11, 40 million of AmpliPhi's OTCB-listed shares would be worth $4.4 million.

The combined company would be dedicated to developing anti-bacterial treatments based on bacteriophages, which are viruses that infect bacteria. Treatments derived from bacteriophages are sometimes used as an alternative to antibiotics.

Both AmpliPhi and Sydney-based SPH have pipelines of products targeted at the antibiotic resistant bacterial infections market.

Initial targets include infections including the ESKAPE (E.coli staph, klebsiella, acinetobacter, pseudomonas and enterobacter) range of hospital-related “superbugs.”

SPS chairman and managing director Dr Anthony Smithyman endorsed the deal. “This combination makes perfect sense; we expect it to give us access to the larger technology capital markets of the US and Europe at a critical time in our development and commercialization cycle,” he said.

Under the merger proposal, Young would remain CEO of the combined company, while Smithyman and SPH financial adviser Tony Gellert would join the AmpliPhy board.

SPH was formed in 2004, while AmpliPhi Bioscience was created through the merger of Biocontrol and Targeted Genetics in 2011.