LONDON (Alliance News) - NetScientific PLC Friday said that its subsidiary NetScientific UK Ltd is selling its 49.9% holding in Frontier BioSciences Ltd to Zahra Holdings Ltd for GBP24,999 in cash, as part of its ongoing portfolio review.
The biomedical and healthcare technology group said that FrontierBio will repay GBP725,001 of the GBP875,001 loan it received from NetScientific, and that NetScientific will write off the remaining GBP150,000. FrontierBio will also pay NetScientific GBP450,000 on completion.
The company said that the divestment is part of its plan to realign its portfolio to focus on the three core areas of digital health, diagnostics and therapeutics, and that the funds will be redirected to its primary portfolio to accelerate growth.
"We are committed to having a smaller, focused healthcare portfolio of breakthrough technologies that have the potential to shift the paradigm of care in chronic diseases. These funds will help accelerate our five primary portfolio companies - Wanda, Vortex, ProAxsis, Glucosense and Glycotest towards commercialisation and delivery on value adding milestones," Chief Executive Francois Martelet said in a statement.
Zahra is wholly-owned by the family trusts of NetScientific's former CEO Farad Azima. Through Zahra and two other companies controlled by the trusts, the trusts now hold 29.8% of NetScientific's shares.
FrontierBio has made GBP884,000 in losses since it commenced business in March.
Shares in NetScientific were untraded early Friday, having last traded at 154.00 pence.
By Karolina Kaminska; karolinakaminska@alliancenews.com @KarolinaAllNews
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Netscientific (NSCI)