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TDR’s Top 5 Psychedelic Developments For The Week Of June 14

Welcome to TDR’s review of the Top 5 Psychedelic developments for the week of June 14. Aside from presenting a synopsis of events, we provide market commentary to summarize the week that was for publicly-listed companies. 5. Numinus Wellness Graduates…

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Welcome to TDR’s review of the Top 5 Psychedelic developments for the week of June 14. Aside from presenting a synopsis of events, we provide market commentary to summarize the week that was for publicly-listed companies.

5. Numinus Wellness Graduates to Tier 1 on the TSX Venture Exchange

Numinus Wellness Inc. (CVE:NUMI) has received approval to graduate  to Tier 1 Issuer status on the TSX Venture Exchange, effective June 18, 2021. By qualifying for up-listing to the TSXV’s top tier under the Life Sciences industry segment, Numinus will benefit from improved service standards, reduced compliance obligations and increased access to institutional investors.

This up-listing is another indication that Numinus has effectively advanced its healthcare strategy, met its business objectives and built a rapidly scalable growth platform to lead the emerging sector of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. Going forward, we expect to achieve near-term catalysts across our business including clinic acquisitions, new intellectual property, MDMA and psilocybin compassionate access trials, in-clinic ketamine-assisted therapy and further up-listings in the US and Canada. (emphasis ours)

Payton Nyquvest, President, CEO and Chair, Numinus

The TSXV classifies listed issuers into different tiers based on standards including historical financial performance, stage of development and financial resources. Tier 1 is the TSXV’s premier tier and is reserved for the TSXV’s most advanced issuers with the most significant financial resources.

4. Creso Pharma and Red Light Holland Merge to Introduce The HighBrid Lab (TM), a Leading Global Psychedelics x Cannabis Company

Creso Pharma Ltd. (OTCMKTS: COPHF) and Red Light Holland Corp. (CSE: TRIP) (OTCMKTS: TRUFF) have entered into a definitive scheme implementation deed to combine businesses and create The HighBrid Lab, a global psychedelics and cannabinoid company. The HighBrid Lab is expected to have an implied pro forma equity value of C$347 million based on the closing price of Creso Pharma shares and Red Light Holland on June 15th, 2021, with an implied premium to Red Light Holland Shareholders of 29.9% based on the 30-day VWAP of both companies.

The newly-formed HighBrid Lab will focus on several key growth areas, such as:

● Expanding market and brand leadership in recreational psilocybin, supported by education, telecounseling and technology as new markets open

● Applied science and innovation supporting long-term opportunities in psychedelics with both naturally occurring and pharmaceutical grade drug discovery

● Scaling recreational cannabis offering in North America by focusing on increasing market share in Canada and taking advantage of the Combined Company’s CSE listing to progress the introduction of products into the US, as well as leveraging industry expertise to execute its US cannabis acquisitions

__________

Solid Majority In The United Kingdom Support The Medicalization Of Psilocybin And Associated Policy Changes

__________

3. Mixed Week For Psychedelics Stocks, Though The Sector Outperforms Biotech For The 2nd Consecutive Week

The biggest psychedelic stocks were mixed this week on general declining volume. The Horizon Psychedelic Stock Index ETF (PSYK) outperformed biotech stocks this week, edging ↑0.47% higher versus modest declines in both the Nasdaq Junior Biotechnology Index (↓2.05%) and Nasdaq Biotechnology Ishares ETF (↓2.06%). Obviously, the bullish sentiment surrounding the atai Life Science IPO provided a major tailwind for the sector.

On Friday, the bullish tone in ATAI stock was set from the get-go. With the final IPO price set the day before at $15 per share—at the high end of its initial $13-15 range—atai’s first print was at $21. Despite a steep post-open selloff which saw price dip to a low of $16.50, the stock finished strong to close at $19.45.

The robust investor demand and price action was reminiscent of the COMPASS Pathways IPO last September. Back then, COMPASS raised $128 million by offering 7.5 million ADSs at $17/share—above the initial IPO range of $14 to $16. On IPO day, CMPS went on to open at $23.40/share on the way to rising 163% in price before year’s end. CMPS shares never dipped below $22.51 on its journey to new highs. While atai didn’t gain as sharply on opening day (29.66% vs. 70.58%), it was at a disadvantage being was the 3rd major exchange listed psychedelic company and competing against several more new issues which have come to market since COMPASS listed on September 18, 2020.

Nonetheless, investors should be very satisfied with Friday’s results. With a market cap of US$2.93 billion, atai decisively vaults into a leadership position by market cap. It was great to see investor enthusiasm reinvigorate in advance of the listing, which had been flagging for much of Q2. The question now is whether recent momentum can sustain itself or whether the sector follows the whims of the broader biotech market through the lower volume summer months.

CompanyTickerPrice ($)Weekly Change (%)WoW Volume TrendMarket Cap (s/o)
ATAI LIfe SciencesATAI19.45US$2.95B
Mind MedicineMNMD3.74-4.59US$1.67B
Compass PathwaysCMPS36.34-8.41US$1.49B
Field Trip HealthFTRP7.4717.63US$428.1M
Seelos TherapeuticsSEEL3.02-10.11US$307.5M
Cybin Inc.CYBN2.1416.93C$317.0M
Numinus WellnessNUMI1.03C$208.1M
Small PharmaDMT0.6020.00C$190.1M
Revive TherapeuticsRVV0.482.12C$152.2M
Mydecine InnovationsMYCO0.285-6.55C67.8M

In the news…

Awakn Life Sciences has completed its reverse takeover transaction and that the net proceeds from its previously announced brokered private placement of 3,320,220 subscription receipts for aggregate gross proceeds of $8,300,550 have been released from escrow. The company has also received final approval to list its common shares on the Neo Exchange, which is expected to commence on June 23, 2021 under the stock symbol “AWKN”.

Braxia Scientific announces that Dr. Josh Rosenblat, Braxia Scientific’s Chief Medical and Science Officer, has been awarded and received funding by the Canadian Institute of Health Research (CIHR), of the Government of Canada, to support the first of its kind Ketamine clinical trial for Bipolar Depression. The collaboration with Toronto’s University Health Network will include 100 participants across two sites.

Cybin Inc. has selected social anxiety disorder and generalized anxiety disorder as the initial target indications for its proprietary psychedelic molecule CYB004. The COVID pandemic has greatly increased the potential size of these therapeutic markets, having increased 3-fold according to Dr. Alex Belser, Cybin’s Chief Clinical Officer.

Entheon Biomedical has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire personalized genetics company Lobo Genetics. Under the deal—structured as a three-cornered amalgamation—Lobo will merge with Subco, a newly incorporated and wholly-owned subsidiary of the company.

Field Trip Health has completed initial drug metabolism and pharmacokinetic studies for FT-104, its novel psychedelic compound in development. With synthesis and scale-up now complete, the company is gearing up to submit its applications to commence Phase 1 human trials.

Mind Cure Health has developed two proprietary ketamine-enhanced protocols for psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy – one for treating pain and another for treating depression. MINDCURE will distribute these protocols to therapists through iSTRYM, its digital therapeutics platform, in time for iSTRYM’s clinical MVP launch in Q3 2021.

MindMed announced the addition of Dr. Peter Bergethon to the Company’s Scientific Advisory Board. Dr. Bergethon is the Vice President and Head of Digital and Quantitative Medicine at Biogen Inc., where he leads the effort to transform clinical trials and humanize drug discovery by encouraging the transition of clinical trial measures from a qualitative to a quantitative discipline.

Mydecine Innovations announced the launch of its in-silico drug discovery program in conjunction with researchers at the University of Alberta. The expansion of its R&D efforts and AI/ML drug screening program will allow Mydecine’s research teams to more efficiently expand its knowledge of the pharmacological value of Psilocybe mushrooms in a therapeutic setting.

MYND Life Sciences announces a Letter of Intent with Eyam Vaccines and Immunotherapeutics. The LOI outlines an Exclusive Licensing Agreement with respect to Eyam’s proprietary technologies for applications to Central Nervous System Vaccines. The agreement will allow MYND to access cutting edge technology with the development of vaccines that have the ability to prevent neurological disorders such as Major Depressive Disorder.

Novamind Inc. has made a strategic investment of US$1,000,000 in a stealth mode drug development company based in the United States. The strategic investment leverages Novamind’s expertise in patient recruitment and patient management for the Investee’s development of novel treatments for neuropsychiatric disorders.

PharmaTher Holdings has filed a pre-Investigational New Drug (pre-IND) meeting request and briefing package with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to support the clinical development of KETABET and associated Phase 2 clinical study as a potential treatment for depression, and to discuss the product development plan for its patented hydrogel-forming microneedle patch delivery technology. 

Revive Therapeutics has entered into an agreement with the University of Health Sciences Antigua  to collaborate on utilizing Revive’s novel psychedelic-assisted therapies and pioneering the clinical research and development of psychedelics in Antigua and Barbuda.

Small Pharma was granted UK patent no. GB2585978 on Wednesday, the first patent in awhile to cover a novel composition of matter in the psychedelic field. The claim is expected to cover the drug substance (N,N-dimethyltryptamine or DMT) in the company’s preclinical program SPL028.

Wake Network has entered into an agreement with Santé Cannabis for consultation and clinical research services to support Wake clinical trials in Canada. Under this engagement, in addition to the clinical trials, Santé will also engage with physicians, therapists, and research investigators as partners in psychedelic medicine and research development.

2. California Senator Previews Next Steps For Psychedelics Bill

A California senator sponsoring a bill to legalize possession of psychedelics in the state says the proposal is a step toward eventually decriminalizing all drugs.

Sen. Scott Wiener (D) made the comments last week in a chat hosted by the Psychedelic and Entheogen Academic Council (PEAC), discussing next steps for his psychedelics legislation after it passed in the Senate earlier this month. He said advancing the measure in the Assembly will be “very challenging” due to a number of factors, but he sees progress in the legislature.

As a way to generate support, some psychedelic substances might not make the cut. The senator said one possible amendment that could be expected in the Assembly would be to remove ketamine from the list of psychedelics that would be included in the reform. Mescaline, a psychoactive compound derived from peyote and other cacti, is another controversial psychedelic.

If enacted into law, the bill would remove criminal penalties for possessing or sharing numerous psychedelics—including psilocybin mushrooms, DMT, ibogaine, LSD and MDMA—for adults 21 and older.

1. atai Life Sciences Announces Pricing of Upsized Initial Public Offering—Full Coverage

Atai Life Sciences B.V. (NASDAQ: ATAI), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company aiming to transform the treatment of mental health disorders, announced the pricing of its upsized initial public offering in the United States of 15,000,000 common shares at a price to the public of $15.00 per share. The final IPO pricing was at the upper end of its previously indicated range of $13-15 per share.

The gross proceeds of the offering, before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and other offering expenses payable by atai, are expected to be $225.0 million. In addition, atai has granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 2,250,000 common shares at the initial public offering price, less underwriting discounts and commissions.

The Unofficial Atai Life Sciences Pre-IPO Deep Dive: What Investors Need To Know

atai Life Sciences Founder Christian Angermayer On CNBC

ATAI Life Sciences Rings the Opening Bell

The post TDR’s Top 5 Psychedelic Developments For The Week Of June 14 appeared first on The Dales Report.

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Survey Shows Declining Concerns Among Americans About COVID-19

Survey Shows Declining Concerns Among Americans About COVID-19

A new survey reveals that only 20% of Americans view covid-19 as "a major threat"…

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Survey Shows Declining Concerns Among Americans About COVID-19

A new survey reveals that only 20% of Americans view covid-19 as "a major threat" to the health of the US population - a sharp decline from a high of 67% in July 2020.

(SARMDY/Shutterstock)

What's more, the Pew Research Center survey conducted from Feb. 7 to Feb. 11 showed that just 10% of Americans are concerned that they will  catch the disease and require hospitalization.

"This data represents a low ebb of public concern about the virus that reached its height in the summer and fall of 2020, when as many as two-thirds of Americans viewed COVID-19 as a major threat to public health," reads the report, which was published March 7.

According to the survey, half of the participants understand the significance of researchers and healthcare providers in understanding and treating long COVID - however 27% of participants consider this issue less important, while 22% of Americans are unaware of long COVID.

What's more, while Democrats were far more worried than Republicans in the past, that gap has narrowed significantly.

"In the pandemic’s first year, Democrats were routinely about 40 points more likely than Republicans to view the coronavirus as a major threat to the health of the U.S. population. This gap has waned as overall levels of concern have fallen," reads the report.

More via the Epoch Times;

The survey found that three in ten Democrats under 50 have received an updated COVID-19 vaccine, compared with 66 percent of Democrats ages 65 and older.

Moreover, 66 percent of Democrats ages 65 and older have received the updated COVID-19 vaccine, while only 24 percent of Republicans ages 65 and older have done so.

“This 42-point partisan gap is much wider now than at other points since the start of the outbreak. For instance, in August 2021, 93 percent of older Democrats and 78 percent of older Republicans said they had received all the shots needed to be fully vaccinated (a 15-point gap),” it noted.

COVID-19 No Longer an Emergency

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently issued its updated recommendations for the virus, which no longer require people to stay home for five days after testing positive for COVID-19.

The updated guidance recommends that people who contracted a respiratory virus stay home, and they can resume normal activities when their symptoms improve overall and their fever subsides for 24 hours without medication.

“We still must use the commonsense solutions we know work to protect ourselves and others from serious illness from respiratory viruses, this includes vaccination, treatment, and staying home when we get sick,” CDC director Dr. Mandy Cohen said in a statement.

The CDC said that while the virus remains a threat, it is now less likely to cause severe illness because of widespread immunity and improved tools to prevent and treat the disease.

Importantly, states and countries that have already adjusted recommended isolation times have not seen increased hospitalizations or deaths related to COVID-19,” it stated.

The federal government suspended its free at-home COVID-19 test program on March 8, according to a website set up by the government, following a decrease in COVID-19-related hospitalizations.

According to the CDC, hospitalization rates for COVID-19 and influenza diseases remain “elevated” but are decreasing in some parts of the United States.

Tyler Durden Sun, 03/10/2024 - 22:45

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Rand Paul Teases Senate GOP Leader Run – Musk Says “I Would Support”

Rand Paul Teases Senate GOP Leader Run – Musk Says "I Would Support"

Republican Kentucky Senator Rand Paul on Friday hinted that he may jump…

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Rand Paul Teases Senate GOP Leader Run - Musk Says "I Would Support"

Republican Kentucky Senator Rand Paul on Friday hinted that he may jump into the race to become the next Senate GOP leader, and Elon Musk was quick to support the idea. Republicans must find a successor for periodically malfunctioning Mitch McConnell, who recently announced he'll step down in November, though intending to keep his Senate seat until his term ends in January 2027, when he'd be within weeks of turning 86. 

So far, the announced field consists of two quintessential establishment types: John Cornyn of Texas and John Thune of South Dakota. While John Barrasso's name had been thrown around as one of "The Three Johns" considered top contenders, the Wyoming senator on Tuesday said he'll instead seek the number two slot as party whip. 

Paul used X to tease his potential bid for the position which -- if the GOP takes back the upper chamber in November -- could graduate from Minority Leader to Majority Leader. He started by telling his 5.1 million followers he'd had lots of people asking him about his interest in running...

...then followed up with a poll in which he predictably annihilated Cornyn and Thune, taking a 96% share as of Friday night, with the other two below 2% each. 

Elon Musk was quick to back the idea of Paul as GOP leader, while daring Cornyn and Thune to follow Paul's lead by throwing their names out for consideration by the Twitter-verse X-verse. 

Paul has been a stalwart opponent of security-state mass surveillance, foreign interventionism -- to include shoveling billions of dollars into the proxy war in Ukraine -- and out-of-control spending in general. He demonstrated the latter passion on the Senate floor this week as he ridiculed the latest kick-the-can spending package:   

In February, Paul used Senate rules to force his colleagues into a grueling Super Bowl weekend of votes, as he worked to derail a $95 billion foreign aid bill. "I think we should stay here as long as it takes,” said Paul. “If it takes a week or a month, I’ll force them to stay here to discuss why they think the border of Ukraine is more important than the US border.”

Don't expect a Majority Leader Paul to ditch the filibuster -- he's been a hardy user of the legislative delay tactic. In 2013, he spoke for 13 hours to fight the nomination of John Brennan as CIA director. In 2015, he orated for 10-and-a-half-hours to oppose extension of the Patriot Act

Rand Paul amid his 10 1/2 hour filibuster in 2015

Among the general public, Paul is probably best known as Capitol Hill's chief tormentor of Dr. Anthony Fauci, who was director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease during the Covid-19 pandemic. Paul says the evidence indicates the virus emerged from China's Wuhan Institute of Virology. He's accused Fauci and other members of the US government public health apparatus of evading questions about their funding of the Chinese lab's "gain of function" research, which takes natural viruses and morphs them into something more dangerous. Paul has pointedly said that Fauci committed perjury in congressional hearings and that he belongs in jail "without question."   

Musk is neither the only nor the first noteworthy figure to back Paul for party leader. Just hours after McConnell announced his upcoming step-down from leadership, independent 2024 presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr voiced his support: 

In a testament to the extent to which the establishment recoils at the libertarian-minded Paul, mainstream media outlets -- which have been quick to report on other developments in the majority leader race -- pretended not to notice that Paul had signaled his interest in the job. More than 24 hours after Paul's test-the-waters tweet-fest began, not a single major outlet had brought it to the attention of their audience. 

That may be his strongest endorsement yet. 

Tyler Durden Sun, 03/10/2024 - 20:25

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The Great Replacement Loophole: Illegal Immigrants Score 5-Year Work Benefit While “Waiting” For Deporation, Asylum

The Great Replacement Loophole: Illegal Immigrants Score 5-Year Work Benefit While "Waiting" For Deporation, Asylum

Over the past several…

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The Great Replacement Loophole: Illegal Immigrants Score 5-Year Work Benefit While "Waiting" For Deporation, Asylum

Over the past several months we've pointed out that there has  been zero job creation for native-born workers since the summer of 2018...

... and that since Joe Biden was sworn into office, most of the post-pandemic job gains the administration continuously brags about have gone foreign-born (read immigrants, mostly illegal ones) workers.

And while the left might find this data almost as verboten as FBI crime statistics - as it directly supports the so-called "great replacement theory" we're not supposed to discuss - it also coincides with record numbers of illegal crossings into the United States under Biden.

In short, the Biden administration opened the floodgates, 10 million illegal immigrants poured into the country, and most of the post-pandemic "jobs recovery" went to foreign-born workers, of which illegal immigrants represent the largest chunk.

Asylum seekers from Venezuela await work permits on June 28, 2023 (via the Chicago Tribune)

'But Tyler, illegal immigrants can't possibly work in the United States whilst awaiting their asylum hearings,' one might hear from the peanut gallery. On the contrary: ever since Biden reversed a key aspect of Trump's labor policies, all illegal immigrants - even those awaiting deportation proceedings - have been given carte blanche to work while awaiting said proceedings for up to five years...

... something which even Elon Musk was shocked to learn.

Which leads us to another question: recall that the primary concern for the Biden admin for much of 2022 and 2023 was soaring prices, i.e., relentless inflation in general, and rising wages in particular, which in turn prompted even Goldman to admit two years ago that the diabolical wage-price spiral had been unleashed in the US (diabolical, because nothing absent a major economic shock, read recession or depression, can short-circuit it once it is in place).

Well, there is one other thing that can break the wage-price spiral loop: a flood of ultra-cheap illegal immigrant workers. But don't take our word for it: here is Fed Chair Jerome Powell himself during his February 60 Minutes interview:

PELLEY: Why was immigration important?

POWELL: Because, you know, immigrants come in, and they tend to work at a rate that is at or above that for non-immigrants. Immigrants who come to the country tend to be in the workforce at a slightly higher level than native Americans do. But that's largely because of the age difference. They tend to skew younger.

PELLEY: Why is immigration so important to the economy?

POWELL: Well, first of all, immigration policy is not the Fed's job. The immigration policy of the United States is really important and really much under discussion right now, and that's none of our business. We don't set immigration policy. We don't comment on it.

I will say, over time, though, the U.S. economy has benefited from immigration. And, frankly, just in the last, year a big part of the story of the labor market coming back into better balance is immigration returning to levels that were more typical of the pre-pandemic era.

PELLEY: The country needed the workers.

POWELL: It did. And so, that's what's been happening.

Translation: Immigrants work hard, and Americans are lazy. But much more importantly, since illegal immigrants will work for any pay, and since Biden's Department of Homeland Security, via its Citizenship and Immigration Services Agency, has made it so illegal immigrants can work in the US perfectly legally for up to 5 years (if not more), one can argue that the flood of illegals through the southern border has been the primary reason why inflation - or rather mostly wage inflation, that all too critical component of the wage-price spiral  - has moderated in in the past year, when the US labor market suddenly found itself flooded with millions of perfectly eligible workers, who just also happen to be illegal immigrants and thus have zero wage bargaining options.

None of this is to suggest that the relentless flood of immigrants into the US is not also driven by voting and census concerns - something Elon Musk has been pounding the table on in recent weeks, and has gone so far to call it "the biggest corruption of American democracy in the 21st century", but in retrospect, one can also argue that the only modest success the Biden admin has had in the past year - namely bringing inflation down from a torrid 9% annual rate to "only" 3% - has also been due to the millions of illegals he's imported into the country.

We would be remiss if we didn't also note that this so often carries catastrophic short-term consequences for the social fabric of the country (the Laken Riley fiasco being only the latest example), not to mention the far more dire long-term consequences for the future of the US - chief among them the trillions of dollars in debt the US will need to incur to pay for all those new illegal immigrants Democrat voters and low-paid workers. This is on top of the labor revolution that will kick in once AI leads to mass layoffs among high-paying, white-collar jobs, after which all those newly laid off native-born workers hoping to trade down to lower paying (if available) jobs will discover that hardened criminals from Honduras or Guatemala have already taken them, all thanks to Joe Biden.

Tyler Durden Sun, 03/10/2024 - 19:15

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