Atai Life Sciences: Capital Raise, Share Options, Cathie Wood And More On Biotech Psychedelics Leader

Atai Life Sciences N.V. ATAI recently filed a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission for capital raise of up to $300 million through the issuance of common shares, debt securities, warrants and units.

As explained by Jason Najum on Microdose, by using a shelf registration process the company can sell securities from time to time and in one or more offerings. 

A shelf offering permits the registration of a new batch of shares without having to sell the entire issue at once. And the capital raise may be held for over a three-year period, all of which gives the company the flexibility to act quickly if good opportunities arise.

One of the best-capitalized companies in the psychedelics space, Atai’s Q1 2022 financial results shows the company has cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments at $335 million by the end of the period. 

According to CEO and co-founder Florian Brand, by the end of 2021, the company’s cash runway will enable them to work at full capacity for the next two years, including 2022 and 2023.

This is something to consider, as research accounts for a big part of the biotech budget. While Atai Life Sciences currently has 12 active programs and is planning to add two more, most of them are in preclinical and in advanced (and expensive) phase 2 trials which will start in 2022.  

On the other hand, Cathie Wood’s ARK Genomic Revolution Exchange Traded Fund ARKG has re-invested in Atai, as part of the fund’s investment strategy in the genomics revolution. 

As reported by Benjamin A. Smith in The Dales Report, the fund investing in early-stage emerging biotech drug companies has recently increased its stake in atai to record amounts.

According to the holdings’ updated spreadsheet, it now owns 1,827,047 shares -above the 1.689 million held in March. 

The data also shows that Atai Life Sciences holds a 0.27% weighting in the ARK Genomic Revolution ETF, close to the 0.28% registered in mid-March.

ARKG expects to substantially benefit its investors from incorporating technological and scientific developments and advancements in genomics into their business. 

Atai stands as a disruptive player in a sector seeking to revolutionize psychiatric medicine. With a varied portfolio including most mainline psychedelics such as psilocybin, MDMA & ketamine, the company spreads out trial risk along the curve.

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