NEW YORK – Centogene disclosed in a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday that it plans further general and administrative as well as R&D cost-cutting measures to lower its cash burn rate. The firm did not provide any specifics on the size of the planned cuts.
As of June 30, the German molecular diagnostics and rare disease company held €14.2 million ($15.2 million) in cash and cash equivalents. In June, the company struck a $30 million loan agreement with biopharma firm Lifera, which is wholly owned by the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund. The agreement is part of a deal to form a joint venture in Saudi Arabia that involves about $50 million in upfront payments and performance-related milestones. Centogene said it expects to receive the loan funding by the second half of September.
"Lifera's investment secures Centogene a committed strategic partner for the future, and the overall partnership forms a pathway to achieving sustainable growth and profitability for Centogene," CEO Kim Stratton said in a statement.
In addition, the firm said it is in discussions with several private equity parties "aiming to explore a potential transaction with a suitable strategic fit for the company" and "has a reasonable level of confidence" that one or more of those transactions will materialize in the next few months.
Further, the company is "seeking strategic collaborations and marketing, distribution, or licensing arrangements, business and asset divestitures, and grant funding among other things," according to the filing.
For the first half of 2023, Centogene reported a 15 percent year-over-year increase in revenues, driven by both its pharma and diagnostics business segments.
The firm booked €24.6 million in revenues in H1, up from €21.4 million in H1 of 2022. Diagnostics revenues increased 13 percent to €16.3 million, while pharma revenues grew 20 percent to €8.3 million.
Net loss for the period was €24.6 million, or €.88 per share, compared to a net loss of €16.9 million, or €.88, in H1 of 2022.
Centogene's general and administrative expenses shrank a fraction of 1 percent in H1 to €17.2 million from €17.3 million in H1 of 2022, while R&D costs decreased 25 percent to €6.9 million from €9.1 million.
For full-year 2023, Centogene continues to expect revenue growth between 10 percent and 15 percent.