REG - Oxford Cannabinoid - Directorate Change, Renewal of Licence & Update

Oxford Cannabinoid Technologies HoldingsAnnouncement

12/04/2023 07:00

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RNS Number : 8913V  Oxford Cannabinoid Tech.Holdings  12 April 2023

 

Oxford Cannabinoid Technologies Holdings plc

("OCTP" or the "Company")

 

Permanent Appointment of Chief Executive Officer,

Renewal of Home Office Licence & Programmes Update

 

Permanent CEO appointment

OCTP is delighted to confirm the appointment of Clarissa Sowemimo-Coker as
permanent CEO, effective immediately.

 

Clarissa has been with the Company for over four years and was appointed
interim CEO in December 2022. Since then, she has successfully led the Company
to its first submission to the UK Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory
Agency ("MHRA") and the Wales Research Ethics Committee 2 ("REC 2"), whilst
continuing to build stronger relationships with external stakeholders.

 

Renewal of Home Office Licence

The Company is also pleased to announce that its wholly owned subsidiary,
Oxford Cannabinoid Technologies Limited ("OCT"), had its Home Office Licence
renewed for the fifth consecutive year on 29 March 2023. The Licence permits
OCT to possess and supply Schedule 1 drugs (as categorised by the Misuse of
Drugs Act 1971) for research purposes. This renewal is another significant
milestone for the Company, demonstrating OCT's ongoing ability to meet the
strict regulatory and legal requirements set down by the Home Office.

 

Programmes Update

Progress towards the commencement of Phase I clinical trial for its lead drug
candidate, OCT461201, continues. The trial will commence upon receipt of
approval from REC 2 and the MHRA, from which the Company expects to hear
shortly.

 

Meanwhile, OCTP continues to advance its other programmes, with key
developments including completion of the pre-clinical work for the Company's
second programme OCT130401, which is now ready to enter Phase I. Development
work on programmes 3 and 4 has continued and the Company still expects to be
at pre-clinical and lead candidate stage for these programmes during Q2 2023.
Now that Programme 2 is Phase 1 ready further work will be placed on hold as
will work on Programmes 3 and 4 once they have progressed to pre-clinical and
lead stage respectively.

 

Clarissa Sowemimo-Coker, Chief Executive Officer of OCTP, commented:

"I am proud and privileged to be leading the Company and our excellent team at
such a crucial stage in our development. Our aim is to get our new medicines
into the hands of patients who need them as quickly as possible. The team is
working very hard to ensure that we hit the ground running on receipt of
MHRA/REC 2 approval for our Phase I clinical trial, news of which we expect
shortly.

 

"We are also delighted to have received our new licence from the Home Office.
 The licence underpins our ability to conduct research and I'm sure the
significance of this achievement will not be lost on our many stakeholders."

 

Julie Pomeroy, Non-executive Chair of OCTP, commented:

"It is my pleasure, on behalf of the OCTP Board, to congratulate Clarissa on
her appointment as permanent CEO of the Company. Since taking on the role on
an interim basis Clarissa has demonstrated her dedication and ability to lead
the Company as we continue to make significant progress towards our goals."

 

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of
EU Regulation 596/2014 (which forms part of domestic UK law pursuant to the
European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018).

 

The Directors of the Company accept responsibility for the content of this
announcement.

 

  Enquiries:

Oxford Cannabinoid Technologies Holdings plc  +44 (0)20 3034 2820

 Clarissa Sowemimo-Coker (CEO)                 clarissa@oxcantech.com

 Cairn Financial Advisers LLP

 Emily Staples                                 +44 (0)20 7213 0897

 Jo Turner                                     +44 (0) 20 7213 0885

 Axis Capital Markets Limited

 Richard Hutchison                             +44 (0)20 3026 0320

 Walbrook PR Limited                           +44 (0)20 7933 8780

 Paul Vann/Nick Rome                           +44 (0)7768 807631

                                               oxcantech@walbrookpr.com

About Oxford Cannabinoid Technologies Holdings Plc:

Oxford Cannabinoid Technologies Holdings plc ("OCTP") is the holding company
of Oxford Cannabinoid Technologies Ltd (together the "Group"), a
pharmaceutical Group developing prescription cannabinoid medicines targeting
the U$ multi-billion global pain market.

 

OCTP currently has a portfolio of four drug development programmes. Its lead
compound, OCT461201, will initially target neuropathic and visceral pain
(including irritable bowel syndrome ("IBS") and chemotherapy induced
peripheral neuropathy ("CIPN")), with Phase I clinical trials, aimed at
demonstrating safety and tolerability. Trial results are expected in Q2
2023.
(https://www.londonstockexchange.com/news-article/OCTP/updates-on-lead-programme-1-and-programme-2/15391762)
The global market for CIPN alone was valued at US$1.61bn in 2020 and is
forecast to reach US$2.37bn by the year 2027.

 

OCTP's drug development pipeline, comprises both natural and synthetic
compounds, and includes compounds targeting trigeminal neuralgia, a severe
type of face pain, and cannabinoid derivatives targeting pain and potentially
other therapeutic areas. Having established an exclusive license agreement
with Canopy Growth Corporation for their entire pharmaceutical cannabinoid
derivative library, OCTP now has a portfolio of almost 500 derivatives and
intellectual property rights including 14 patent families and associated
research data.

 

OCTP has a clearly defined path to commercialisation, revenues and growth. The
Group is developing drug candidates through clinical trials to gain regulatory
approval (FDA/MHRA/EMA) that will enable medical professionals to prescribe
them with confidence. OCTP's portfolio aims to balance risk, value and time to
market, whilst ensuring market exclusivity around all its key activities.

 

Caution regarding forward looking statements

Certain statements in this announcement, are, or may be deemed to be, forward
looking statements. Forward looking statements are identified by their use of
terms and phrases such as ''believe'', ''could'', "should" ''envisage'',
''estimate'', ''intend'', ''may'', ''plan'', ''potentially'', "expect",
''will'' or the negative of those, variations or comparable expressions,
including references to assumptions. These forward-looking statements are not
based on historical facts but rather on the Directors' current expectations
and assumptions regarding the Company's future growth, results of operations,
performance, future capital and other expenditures (including the amount,
nature and sources of funding thereof), competitive advantages, business
prospects and opportunities. Such forward looking statements reflect the
Directors' current beliefs and assumptions and are based on information
currently available to the Directors.

 

 

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