13 May, 2021
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Final Results for the Year Ended 31 January 2021

e-therapeutics plc announces its final audited results for the year ended 31 January 2021.

Operational Highlights

Management and Board restructure

  • On 11 February 2020, Ali Mortazavi was appointed Executive Chairman in a management restructure that saw Ray Barlow stepping down as Chief Executive Officer and Steve Medlicott stepping down as Chief Financial Officer
  • From 12 October 2020, Ali Mortazavi was appointed as Chief Executive Officer
  • Post year end, Trevor Jones, who has been an independent Non-Executive Director since 2015, was appointed Non-Executive Chairman and post period, Karl Keegan was appointed Chief Financial Officer in March 2021

Expansion into RNA interference (RNAi)

  • In May 2020, the Company announced expansion into RNAi as a therapeutic modality having designed a novel GalNAc small interfering RNA (siRNA) that will leverage expertise in network biology and, post period, filed a patent application and commenced experiments to characterise the platform. The Company expects to offer this proprietary platform to potential partners in 2021-22

Collaboration with Galapagos NV ("Galapagos")

  • In June 2020, the Company announced a collaboration with Galapagos to identify new therapeutic approaches to modulate a specific mechanism involved in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis ("IPF"). Significant progression has been made on this collaboration during the year and post period, this collaboration has achieved two success-based milestones. The Company remains in business development discussions for both network-driven and functional genomics technologies with multiple potential partners

Scientific Advisory Board ("SAB") launched

  • During the year, a SAB was created. Headed by Dr Paul Burke, with members Dr Bill Harte and Professor John Mattick, who all have considerable industry experience and will provide strategic advice and insight on transforming the drug discovery process

COVID-19 project

  • In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Company initiated a project to identify approved and known drugs, both alone and as synergistic combinations, that could rapidly be repositioned for the treatment of COVID-19
  • Compounds identified through the Company's network-driven discovery platform have been tested by Wuxi App Tec in cell-based assays and show potent anti-inflammatory and antiviral activity. This activity is expected to be generically applicable, raising the prospect of utility against both existing and new emergent strains of coronavirus

Financial highlights

During the year the Company strengthened its financial position raising total gross funds of £13.2m.

  • Completed equity fundraises of £1.6m and £11.6m in February and July 2020 respectively to scale the Group's business model with focus on further developing the Group's informatics platform capabilities, building and populating an internal pipeline of high conviction early assets and expanding the team to support the scale-up
  • Revenues of £0.3m (FY20: £0.5m)
  • Cash at 31 January 2021 of £13.0m (FY20: £3.8m)
  • Cash increase in the year of £9.2m (FY20: £(2.1)m)
  • R&D spend £2.7m (FY20: £2.1m)
  • Operating loss of £4.5m (FY20: loss of £2.9m)
  • R&D tax credit of £0.8m (FY20: £0.6m)

Our ambition is to transform the drug discovery process. The successful fundraises during the year enable the next stage of growth and value creation for the Company. We have begun to build momentum as we move forward with our strategy delivering scientific progress as well as current and prospective partnerships.

Ali Mortazavi

Chief Executive Officer