NEW YORK – Agbio gene editing firm Cibus and plant synthetic biology company Calyxt said on Tuesday that they have signed a definitive agreement to merge in an all-stock transaction.
The deal will bring together Cibus' Rapid Trait Development System, a gene-editing platform designed for introducing productivity traits into crop plant seeds, with Calyxt's PlantSpring technology for plant metabolism engineering and proprietary Plant Cell Matrix biomass, the companies said.
"Consolidating our innovative platforms into one entity brings a myriad of opportunities for step change innovations in the areas of productivity and low-carbon ingredients," Calyxt Chief Technology Officer Travis Frey said in a statement.
Under the terms of the merger, Roseville, Minnesota-based Calyxt will issue shares of its common stock to Cibus shareholders in an exchange ratio that would give Calyxt shareholders approximately 5 percent of the shares of the combined company.
The newly merged company will retain the San Diego-based Cibus name and trade on the Nasdaq Capital Market, where Calyxt — formerly a subsidiary of Cellectis that went public in mid-2017 — is currently listed. The current Cibus management team will lead the new company.
Additional terms were not disclosed. The merger is expected to close in the second quarter.