Sareum Regulatory News (SAR)

22 Dec 2008 07:29

22 December 2008

Sareum Holdings Plc

("Sareum" or the "Company")

Restoration of Trading on AIM and Change of Adviser

Restoration of Trading on AIM

Sareum (AIM: SAR), the specialist cancer drug discovery business, is pleased to announce that trading in the Company's shares on AIM will be restored at 7.30am today.

On 9 July 2008, the Company announced that it had requested a suspension of trading of its shares on AIM, in light of uncertainty over it having sufficient cash resources to continue trading in its then current form.

On 26 August 2008, the Company announced that it had disposed of substantially all of its equipment assets but retained the intellectual property of its cancer drug discovery programmes. The Company's shares remained suspended at that time pending clarification of its financial and business strategy.

On 27 November 2008, the Company announced its preliminary results for the year ended 30 June 2008. In the Chairman's statement that accompanied those results, the Company confirmed that upon receipt of the R&D tax credit relating to the year ended 30 June 2008 the Company would have the necessary resources to fund the business and its research plan for at least the next 12 months. Following the announcement of those results, the Company's shares remained suspended pending the receipt of the R&D tax credit and the finalisation of the Company's longer term financial strategy.

The Company is pleased to announce that it has received the R&D tax credit of approximately £325,000 in full and its longer term strategy will be the development of its in-house cancer drug discovery programme using an outsourced research model. The Company will actively concentrate on the three most advanced research programmes out of its six cancer research programmes and aims to commercialise at least one drug discovery programme by the end of 2009. 

In view of these developments, the Company has applied for the suspension of trading on AIM in its shares to be lifted with effect from 7.30am today.

Tim Mitchell, Chief Executive Officer, commented;

Sareum now has cash resources for its foreseeable future in order to concentrate on the advancement and commercialisation of its cancer drug discovery programmes. We look forward to making good progress in this important and exciting research throughout 2009.

Change of Adviser

The Company also announces that it has appointed John East & Partners Limited as its Nominated Adviser with immediate effect.