Australian diagnostics firm Healthlinx said last week that its deal to sell intellectual property related to its OvPlex ovarian cancer diagnostic to San Diego-based start-up Mane Cancer Diagnostics has expired.
In a letter to investors, the company said that the deal, which called for Mane to receive Healthlinx's OvPlex assets in exchange for a cash payment of $250,000 and Mane common stock representing 30 percent of the outstanding common stock on the closing of Mane's planned initial public offering, expired after Mane was unable to satisfy certain conditions of the agreement.
Mane was to raise at least $5.5 million in capital and achieve before Dec. 24 of last year either a listing on the Nasdaq or the sale of 100 percent of the raised capital in exchange for ordinary common stock in a Nasdaq-listed "blank check" company.
In an address to investors in November, Healthlinx chairman Gregory Rice noted that it was "unlikely" that the Dec. 24 deadline "would be realized," and that Mane had requested an extension to the end of March 2013 (PM 12/7/2012).
Healthlinx said that Mane would continue to pursue investor support for the transaction in the US and that the company intended to continue negotiations with Mane, but that the expiration of the deal would also allow it to pursue other similar opportunities that have arisen since the two firms entered their agreement.