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Genovis Exercises Call Option to Acquire Remaining Shares in SEQURNA, a fast-growing next-generation RNase inhibitors company
Prenumeration
Beskrivning
| Land | Sverige |
|---|---|
| Lista | First North Stockholm |
| Sektor | Hälsovård |
| Industri | Bioteknik |
Genovis AB (publ) (“Genovis”) today announces that it has exercised its call option to acquire the remaining 75% of SEQURNA AB (“SEQURNA” or “Company”), a strategic move that accelerates Genovis’ expansion into the fast-growing genomics sector. This acquisition unlocks new product offerings for Genovis to both existing and new customers and further paves the way for the expansion into new application areas within genomics and transcriptomics. The purchase price, of MSEK 52.5 is settled partly in cash and partly through newly issued shares to SEQURNA’s founders, in accordance with the board authorization granted by the Annual General Meeting held on 21 May 2025. The shares were issued at a subscription price of SEK 25.59 corresponding to Genovis’ volume-weighted average share price over the 30-day period ending 27 June 2025.
In July 2024, Genovis made a strategic investment in SEQURNA and acquired 25% of SEQURNA. This investment came with a call option to purchase the remaining shares in the Company. Since then, SEQURNA has demonstrated impressive commercial progress, with clear strong sales growth, high gross margins, and a scalable business model. The Company’s strong commercial development underscores the value of its unique technology platform and the capabilities of its founding team. This performance has validated Genovis’ belief in the Company’s potential, prompting Genovis to exercise the call option at the earliest possible time permitted under the agreement.
The transaction, carried out under pre-defined terms of the original option agreement, reflects a valuation of SEQURNA of SEK 55 million for 100% of the shares on a cash- and debt-free basis, corresponding to approximately 8.6 times SEQURNA’s sales over the last 12 months. The aggregate purchase price for the remaining 75% of the shares in SEQURNA, incl. adjustments for net cash and working capital (SEK 15.0 million) amounts to SEK 52.5 million, and is paid partly in cash using cash at hand and partly by issuing 597,078 new shares (“Consideration Shares”) as authorized by the Annual General Meeting held on 21 May 2025. The subscription price for the Consideration Shares amounted to approx. SEK 25.59 per share, which corresponded to Genovis’ volume-weighted average price of Genovis’s shares on Nasdaq First North Growth Market during the 30-day period ending and including 27 June 2025. The Consideration Shares will be subscribed by SEQURNA’s co-founders and largest shareholders, Dr. Björn Reinius[1] and Dr. Joyce Noble, who have chosen to receive a portion of their consideration in Genovis shares, demonstrating strong alignment and belief in Genovis’ long-term growth strategy. Reinius stakes 40% of the transaction payment in Genovis shares (462,367 Consideration Shares), while Noble stakes 30% (134,711 Consideration Shares). Both co-founders have committed to a minimum lock-up period of 18-months for their respective holding of shares in Genovis. The aggregate 597,078 Consideration Shares corresponds to a dilution of approximately 0.91%.
SEQURNA will continue to operate as a separate business unit under Genovis, with Dr. Björn Reinius leading the unit and furthermore joining the Genovis management team. Dr. Joyce Noble will lead the R&D operations of SEQURNA’s advancing product pipeline. SEQURNA’s facility will remain based in the Karolinska Institutet Science Park in Stockholm—an environment teeming with cutting-edge innovation and scientific collaboration. While maintaining its innovation and development focus, SEQURNA’s products will be fully integrated into Genovis’ global commercial platform. Genovis will leverage its established sales and distribution network to market and sell SEQURNA’s RNase inhibitors alongside its own portfolio of advanced tools for the biopharmaceutical and research industries. Genovis is also pleased to welcome both SEQURNA founders as new shareholders, reinforcing their commitment to Genovis’ long-term growth journey.
Genovis CEO Fredrik Olsson commented:
“Our early investment gave us a front-row seat to SEQURNA’s impressive development. Their performance has confirmed the strength of their technology and team. By acquiring SEQURNA fully, and furthermore strengthening the Genovis team with two of its founders, we secure access to critical innovation and a promising pipeline to further expand our footprint in the high-growth genomics space.”
CEO and Co-founder of SEQURNA, Björn Reinius (PhD), commented:
”It has been a pleasure working closely with Genovis over the past year. While I have had full confidence in SEQURNA’s products from the beginning, the pace at which sales have taken off has exceeded expectations. I am now excited to scale the business even more ambitiously as part of the Genovis family. I am also thrilled to join the management team and help drive forward innovation in the genomics and transcriptomics space.”
SEQURNA’s proprietary RNase inhibitors meet a critical need in modern life science research, where maintaining RNA integrity is essential for accurate and reproducible results. RNA is highly prone to degradation, and even minimal RNase contamination can compromise workflows such as RT-PCR, RNA sequencing, gene expression analysis, and mRNA manufacturing. SEQURNA has developed a new class of synthetic, thermostable RNase inhibitors that overcome limitations of conventional protein-based products, offering improved stability, consistency, and compatibility with advanced RNA-detection applications. Moreover, SEQURNA has several additional products in advanced stages of development, both within the RNA protection segment and in other related areas.
The demand for reliable RNA protection is growing rapidly, driven by the global expansion of genomics and transcriptomics, including single-cell and in situ RNA sequencing, multiomics platforms, and clinical RNA-based technologies. SEQURNA’s innovative inhibitors are well-positioned to capture this growth, offering a differentiated solution to a broadening base of academic, biotech, and pharmaceutical customers seeking robust and scalable RNA workflows.
SEB Corporate Finance acted as Sole Financial Advisor on the transaction.
Important information
This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements that reflect Genovis’ current views of future events and financial and operational performance. Words such as "intends", "anticipates", "expects", "may", "plan " or similar expressions regarding indications or predictions of future developments or trends, and are not based on historical facts, constitute forward-looking information. Forward-looking information is inherently associated with both known and unknown risks and uncertainties because it is dependent on future events and circumstances. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees regarding future results or developments and actual results may differ materially from those set forth in forward-looking information.
ABOUT SEQURNA
SEQURNA was founded in 2022 out of the Karolinska Institute, Stockholm Sweden. SEQURNA develops and markets proprietary next-generation RNase inhibitors, which makes RNA work and sequencing pipelines more accessible, affordable, and sustainable. The SEQURNA RNase inhibitor is thermostable and can be shipped and stored at room temperature without affecting its performance. SEQURNA’s inhibitor stands out as the first non-protein-based alternative on the market to match or exceed the performance of conventional recombinant RNase inhibitors in demanding single-cell transcriptomics applications, thereby advancing the RNA protection market.
[1] Through Dr. Reinius’ wholly owned company Startplattan 199962 AB (pending name change to Breinius Holding AB).