Australia's Amrad to spin-out Avexa

Australian biotechnology firm Amrad is planning, later this year, tospin-out its anti-infectives drug portfolio into a new company, Avexa, which will have a market capitalization of A$24 million ($17.6 million), of which the parent will contribute A$12 million. This will permit Avexa to fund its portfolio of research projects, including treatments for HIV/AIDS, hepatitis B and antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections.

Amrad's chief executive, Peter Smith, says the Avexa demerger is a logical split, allowing his firm to focus on its core biological products, while Avexa will have the resources to pursue anti-infectives R&D. Major investors in Amrad include the investment and partnering group Circadian Technologies, Japan's Chugai Pharmaceuticals (now part of Swiss drug major Roche) and local businessman Richard Pratt's private firm, Thorney.