CDXS - Codexis Secures $40 Million in Strategic Financing Deal with Innovatus Capital Partners to Further Strengthen Cash Position Ahead of Key Milestones | Benzinga
Term loan agreement enables Company to accelerate development and enhance commercialization of ECO Synthesis™ manufacturing platform for RNAi therapeutics
Financing bolsters cash position and provides additional flexibility on projected runway through positive cash-flow around end of 2026
Codexis management to host conference call today at 4:30 pm ET
REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Feb. 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Codexis, Inc. (NASDAQ:CDXS), a leading enzyme engineering company, today announced it has entered into a loan facility agreement with an affiliate of Innovatus Capital Partners, LLC (Innovatus) for up to $40 million, including $30 million upfront and access to an additional $10 million upon achieving certain prespecified revenue thresholds. This loan facility reinforces the strength of Codexis' cash position, provides additional flexibility to its projected runway through cash-flow positive around the end of 2026 and will support the ongoing development and commercialization of the Company's Enzyme-Catalyzed Oligonucleotide (ECO) Synthesis™ manufacturing platform.
"The rapid technical progress we have made with our ECO Synthesis™ manufacturing platform has exceeded our expectations and opened the door for us to make targeted investments in accelerating our technology's value creation. After a competitive process, we are excited to partner with a leading financier like Innovatus, who truly understand the incredible opportunity that RNAi therapeutics represents," said Stephen Dilly, MBBS, PhD, Chief Executive Officer of Codexis. "By opening this line of non-dilutive capital, we can prudently deploy a portion of the funds to support our ambitions of growing up the value chain by building out a small-scale facility for making siRNA at the lab level—our planned ECO Synthesis™ Innovation Lab. This financing, combined with the anticipated return to growth of our Pharmaceutical Manufacturing business this year, gives Codexis the time and financial cushion to realize the full potential of our ECO Synthesis™ manufacturing platform."
The planned ECO Synthesis™ Innovation Lab will support both technical advancement and commercialization efforts related to the Company's ECO Synthesis™ manufacturing platform. Notably, in addition to providing a strong basis for partnering discussions and early access customer testing, this facility will enable the Company to develop new RNAi constructs, test new nucleotide modifications and conjugation modalities, develop tech transfer protocols and ensure flexibility with a small-scale footprint before potentially embarking on a full-scale GMP facility.
"Upon examining the forecasted demand for RNAi therapeutics, we see strong potential upside to supporting the development of Codexis' ECO Synthesis™ manufacturing platform," said Claes Ekstrom, Managing Director and Head of Life Sciences at Innovatus. "Between the Company's innovative technology, foundational revenue-generating business, and highly experienced leadership team, we're confident in the growth potential of Codexis and are excited to be a part of their story moving forward."
Following the closing of the term loan agreement, Codexis retained approximately $29 million in net proceeds from the first tranche. The loan carries an interest-only period of 36 months and a total term of 60 months. Additional details regarding the ...