Home Investors News Press Releases 2005 Scottish Enterprise Press Release - Scottish Enterprise & Cyclacel in £10 million investment deal

Scottish Enterprise Press Release - Scottish Enterprise & Cyclacel in £10 million investment deal

Scottish Enterprise has invested £5 million in pioneering biopharmaceutical company Cyclacel as the first part of a planned £10 million public private investment in the company for the benefit of both Cyclacel and the Scottish economy.

Cyclacel, initially a spin-out from Dundee University, will use the funding to support its research and development programme into novel drugs for the treatment of cancer and other serious disorders. The funding forms part of Scottish Enterprise’s series of initiatives to encourage the commercialisation of Scotland’s world class science base.

Under the terms of the funding, Scottish Enterprise, with the full support of the Scottish Executive, has already invested £5 million and will make available a further amount of up to £2.5 million to be matched by the private sector. Scottish Enterprise’s investment is being made in the form of a Convertible Loan Note, which is convertible into Cyclacel shares.

Deputy First Minister and Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning Nicol Stephen said:

“Life Sciences will become a huge industry in the 21st century. I welcome the news that Scottish Enterprise has decided to invest in Cyclacel. There could not be a more important company for Scotland’s future. This gives a clear indication of our commitment to support strong Scottish science-based companies. Their potential for future jobs and investment is huge.”

SE Chief Executive Jack Perry said:

“This deal epitomises everything that the Chairman Sir John Ward and I want to see for the commercialisation of world class Scottish science. It is about stimulating private sector investment and about sharing risk for the benefit of the Scottish economy.

“Our aim is to stimulate faster and better economic growth in Scotland and we do this best by working with companies like Cyclacel that have the potential to make a disproportionate impact on the economy.

“We work with them to help improve their growth and productivity and where appropriate by sharing the risk of their investment. In this particular case we will hold our investment in Cyclacel for the long term to ensure that as the company continues its growth into a global business it can keep its roots deeply bedded in Scotland.

“This investment is specifically intended to enable Cyclacel to realise the potential of its extensive drug development pipeline, which in turn will also enhance Scotland’s global reputation for scientific discovery and exploitation. The specialised nature and composition of Cyclacel’s assets makes them difficult if not impossible to replace, and so Scottish Enterprise was proactive in seeking a deal with the company that would bring mutual benefit to the company and the Scottish economy.”

ends

Issued by Kate Friel
Senior Media Relations Executive
Scottish Enterprise
Tel: 0141 228 2978
Mob: 07979706876
E: kate.friel@scotent.co.uk

Notes To Editors

Scottish Enterprise is the main economic development agency for Scotland covering 93% of the population from Grampian to the Borders. The Scottish Enterprise Network consists of Scottish Enterprise and 12 Local Enterprise Companies. Working in partnership with the private and public sectors the Network aims to build more and better businesses, to develop the skills and knowledge of Scottish people, and to encourage innovation to make Scottish business internationally competitive. Further information on Scottish Enterprise is available at www.scottish-enterprise.com..

Scottish Co-investment Fund

The £45 million Scottish Co-investment Fund was announced in August 2002 to support the development of the early stage venture capital market in Scotland. The Fund does not invest directly in companies but co-invests in private sector Venture Capital funds and Business Angel syndicates who then choose to invest in companies looking for up to £500,000 of funding. The aim of the fund is to increase the supply of funding available and also increase more funders to become involved in the early stage investment market.

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