Biotalys NV reduces capital, but continues operating

The extraordinary meeting of shareholders of the Biotalys NV, which took place today (27/12/22) in the morning, ended with the approval of the measures proposed by the board of directors.

The meeting was held because Belgian legislation provides for it when the value of a company's net assets falls below its share capital (art. 7:228 of the Code of sociétés et des associations et portant des dispositions diverses).

The board of directors' proposal was to absorb losses in excess of EUR 58 million.

Among the likely reasons for the decision is the company's progress in registering biological fungicides based on the active ingredient Evoca. The company says it expects approval for use in the United States in 2023.

In Brazil, Biotalys NV submitted a request for license for antifungal polypeptides. According to the description presented for the invention: these are "polypeptides with surprisingly high specificity, affinity and potency against pest targets, in particular plant, animal or human pathogenic pests, such as, but not limited to, plant pathogenic fungi, animals or humans. The polypeptide may bind to a specific lipid fraction of the cell membrane of a fungal spore. Mere binding of the polypeptide may be sufficient for fungicidal activity through growth retardation and/or lysis and explosion of spores, thus preventing the formation of mycelium. The polypeptide may therefore have fungicidal or fungistatic activity."

Still in Brazil, the company requested and obtained registration for the brands Biotalys (NCL 1, 5, 9, 31 and 42), Evoca (NCL 1 and 5) and Agrobody (NCL 1, 5 and 42). In a brief summary, these registration classes comprise:

• 1 - chemical products intended for industry, science and agriculture;

• 5 - pharmaceutical and other preparations for medicinal or veterinary use;

• 9 - apparatus and instruments for scientific or research purposes, audiovisual and information technology equipment, as well as safety and rescue equipment;

• 31 - land and sea products that have not received any preparation for consumption, live animals and live plants;

• 42 - services related to theoretical and practical aspects of complex fields of activities.

Furthermore, Biotalys informed shareholders that:

(a)  in January 2022, it signed an agreement with People (bioactive manufacturing) and with the Kwizda Agro (formulator of protein-based biocontrols);

(B)  in June 2022, it signed an agreement with Novozymes to explore additional routes for scaling up and producing Evoca's bioactive protein;

(C) in the first quarter of 2022, it started a fungicide program financed by Gates Foundation (BioFun-7) to develop new biological solutions for chickpeas and other legumes.

Biotalys NV is comprised of 30.949.454 common shares. There are no other classes. Each confers the right to one vote.