- Proposed merger will create a public company focused on the clinical development program of a cytokine-based product for the treatment of cancer
- Combined company expected to trade on the NYSE American under a new ticker symbol
- Brooklyn already has $10 million of funding committed for post-merger activities
NTN Buzztime, Inc. (NYSE American: NTN) and Brooklyn ImmunoTherapeutics LLC (“Brooklyn”), a privately-held biopharmaceutical company focused on exploring the role that cytokine-based therapy can have in treating patients with cancer, today announced that the companies have entered into a definitive merger agreement. If approved by the stockholders of NTN Buzztime and the beneficial holders of the Class A membership interests of Brooklyn, Brooklyn will merge with a wholly-owned subsidiary of NTN Buzztime in an all-stock transaction. Following closing, which the parties expect will occur in the fourth quarter of 2020, the combined company will continue under the Brooklyn ImmunoTherapeutics name and will focus on the advancement of Brooklyn’s program to further develop its cytokine-based drug for the treatment of various cancers.
Brooklyn’s chief executive officer Ron Guido, MS, MS Pharm. Med., stated, “We are pleased to reach an agreement with NTN Buzztime for the proposed merger. This provides us with the opportunity, once the merger is completed, to have our shares traded in the public market and to expand our investor base, which we believe will increase our ability to advance our clinical development program exploring the treatment of certain cancers using derived cytokines. We expect this merger will also enable us to expand our resources and expertise to build momentum in our drug development program. We believe that the merger will provide benefit to both the members of Brooklyn and the stockholders of NTN Buzztime.”
Mr. Guido continued: “Brooklyn is focused on exploring the role that IRX-2, a cytokine-based investigational therapy, can have on the immune system in treating patients with cancer. IRX-2’s active constituents, namely Interleukin-2 (IL-2) and other key cytokines, are postulated to signal, enhance and restore immune function suppressed by the tumor, thus enabling the immune system to attack cancer cells. Unlike existing recombinant IL-2 therapies, IRX-2 is naturally derived from human blood cells. This may potentially promote better tolerance, broader targeting, and natural molecular conformation leading to greater activity, and permit low physiologic dosing rather than high doses needed in existing IL-2 therapies. Our ongoing development program is specifically investigating use of IRX-2 in neoadjuvant (pre-surgical) and adjuvant (post-operative) treatment for advanced head and neck squamous cell cancer. IRX-2 has received both fast track designation and orphan drug designation from the FDA for this indication. Potential use of our product candidate in other cancer indications is also being evaluated in several investigator-sponsored trials. Finally, we are currently modifying our manufacturing process to allow us to develop additional drugs with a variety of cytokine mixtures to expand our product offerings.”
Allen Wolff, chief executive officer of NTN Buzztime, stated, “This transaction reflects the continuing commitment of our management team and board of directors to deliver value to our stockholders. Following a thorough review of strategic alternatives, we determined that the proposed merger with Brooklyn is in the best interest of our stockholders. We are also continuing to explore the sale of substantially all of the assets of our current business to provide additional capital and to allow the combined company to focus exclusively on Brooklyn’s business following the merger. While we are in discussions with multiple parties who are interested in purchasing those assets, no definitive agreement has been entered into to date.”
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Source: Biospace
