Access Pharmaceuticals and Somanta Pharmaceuticals sign merger agreement

Access Pharmaceuticals and Somanta Pharmaceuticals have announced that they have signed a definitive merger agreement by which Access will acquire Somanta.

The companies had previously announced the execution of a non-binding Letter of Intent regarding the merger.

Under the terms of the merger agreement, Access will issue 1.5 million shares of common stock to Somanta stockholders in exchange for all the outstanding capital stock of Somanta. The merger agreement has been approved by the boards of both companies. In addition, Access has received voting agreements from certain Somanta shareholders representing approximately 81% of Somanta's outstanding common shares and approximately 60% of its outstanding preferred shares under which the parties, subject to certain limited exceptions, have granted an irrevocable proxy to vote their Somanta shares in favor of the merger. The closing of the merger is subject to the fulfillment of certain conditions contained in the merger agreement. The parties expect the transaction to be completed during the summer.

With the proposed acquisition of Somanta, Access will acquire four novel anti-cancer compounds in development, one of which is currently in Phase 2 clinical trials. Each of the drug candidates acts by a unique mechanism of action and has the potential to target a wide range of cancer types.

"We believe this transaction will immediately strengthen our drug pipeline, enhancing Access' franchise value within the oncology space," commented Stephen R. Seiler, Access' President and CEO. "In addition to offering a clinical-stage drugcandidate, Somanta's pre-clinical pipeline is highly diversified with each anti-cancer compound having its own novel mode of action, which can be applied to a wide range of cancer types."

http://www.accesspharma.com/ and http://www.somanta.com/