Business Wire

MICROBA-LIFE-SCIENCES

Share
Sonic Healthcare Acquires Strategic Stake in Microba Life Sciences, Establishes Significant Commercial Partnership

Microba Life Sciences Limited (ASX: MAP) (“Microba” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce that leading medical diagnostics provider Sonic Healthcare Limited (ASX: SHL) (“Sonic”) has agreed to invest $17.8m to acquire a 19.99% shareholding in Microba. In addition, Sonic is seeking to acquire options for an additional 5% equity position, subject to shareholder approval. Exercise of the options by Sonic would result in a further investment of $7.5m in Microba.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221128005863/en/

To view this piece of content from mms.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.

(Photo: Business Wire)

Microba and Sonic have also agreed initial binding terms for a strategic alliance to deliver Microba's microbiome testing technology into Australia, New Zealand, Germany, United Kingdom, Belgium, Switzerland and the United States.

Microba’s Chief Executive Officer, Dr Luke Reid said, “We are excited to have Sonic Healthcare, a global leader in healthcare, become a major strategic shareholder and partner. Sonic is globally respected for its leadership in delivering trusted medical diagnostic services, and our partnership deeply aligns the interests of both companies to bring microbiome testing and therapeutics into the hands of clinicians and patients globally to improve standard of care.

“This strategic partnership with Sonic is set to accelerate international distribution of Microba’s microbiome testing into primary and specialist healthcare, and move our testing deeper into routine patient management.”

Sonic Healthcare’s Chief Executive Officer, Dr Colin Goldschmidt said, “Sonic Healthcare prides itself on delivering accurate, reliable medical diagnostics services using leading laboratory and informatics technologies. Our partnership with Microba exemplifies our commitment to invest in cutting edge developments in laboratory medicine. We see microbiome testing becoming a key part of pathology over coming years and are excited about the potential of this partnership and the opportunities that Microba's technology will provide for Sonic’s global operations, our referring clinicians, and our patients.”

Sonic acquires strategic stake in Microba

Sonic has entered into an equity subscription agreement to acquire a 19.99% stake in Microba, through the issue of new fully paid ordinary shares (Shares), at an issue price of $0.26 per share and representing a 25% premium to the 5-day VWAP of Microba shares ending on the date prior to this announcement, raising $17.8m in new capital for the Company.

The Shares will be issued within Microba's existing placement capacity under ASX Listing Rule 7.1 and 7.1A. Following the issue of these Shares, Sonic will be a substantial shareholder, holding a relevant interest in 19.99% of the issued share capital of Microba.

Furthermore, Sonic seeks to acquire unlisted options exercisable at 33c per share with an expiry of 18 months after the date the Shares are issued. The option exercise price represents a 58% premium to the 5-day VWAP of Microba shares ending on the date prior to this announcement. If exercised, the options would represent a further 5% of the issued share capital in Microba following completion of the share issue and will only be issued subject to receiving shareholder approval for the purpose of ASX Listing Rule 7.1 at a General Meeting, which is expected to be in held in February 2023, the approval of which will be recommended by the Board of Microba. The exercise of the options will be subject to compliance by Sonic with the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth).

Strategic relationship

Microba and Sonic have entered into initial terms of an agreement which enables Sonic Healthcare Limited and its subsidiaries to exclusively distribute Microba’s microbiome testing products to its customers, including general practitioners and specialists, across Germany, Belgium and the United Kingdom for a period of 1 year commencing on 31 January 2023 with the intention to extend subject to finalisation of full license and distribution agreements. The initial agreed terms also provide Sonic Healthcare Limited and its subsidiaries with non-exclusive distribution rights for Switzerland, the United States, Australia and New Zealand.

All license and distribution agreements will accommodate existing Microba service delivery and distribution arrangements. The full license and distribution arrangements are expected to be finalised over the coming months.

Sonic Chief Medical Officer to join Microba’s Medical Advisory Board

With the two companies’ united strategic objectives to bring cutting-edge microbiome testing into routine healthcare, Sonic Healthcare’s Group Chief Medical Officer, Dr Stephen Fairy, will join Microba’s Medical Advisory Board, responsible for governing the medical and scientific direction of Microba’s commercial activities. Dr Fairy will join a high-profile group of medical professionals on Microba’s Medical Advisory Board comprising Prof. Ian Frazer (AC), Prof. Paul Griffin, Prof. Jake Begun and Dr Chris Hogan (OAM). Sonic will not currently seek a position on Microba’s Board of Directors.

About Sonic Healthcare

Sonic Healthcare is one of the world’s leading healthcare providers, with a reputation for excellence in laboratory medicine/pathology, radiology and primary care medical services, across operations in Australasia, Europe and North America. Employing over 41,000 people globally, Sonic is the largest private pathology operator in Australia, Germany, Switzerland and the UK, the second-largest in Belgium and New Zealand and the third-largest in the USA.

About Microba Life Sciences Limited

Microba Life Sciences is a precision microbiome company driven to improve human health. With world-leading technology for measuring the human gut microbiome, Microba is driving the discovery and development of novel therapeutics for major chronic diseases and delivering gut microbiome testing services globally to researchers, clinicians, and consumers. Through partnerships with leading organisations, Microba is powering the discovery of new relationships between the microbiome, health and disease for the development of new health solutions.

www.microba.com

To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221128005863/en/

About Business Wire

Business Wire
Business Wire
101 California Street, 20th Floor
CA 94111 San Francisco

http://businesswire.com
DK

Subscribe to releases from Business Wire

Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Latest releases from Business Wire

MultiBank Group Confirms $MBG Token TGE Set for July 22, 202512.7.2025 11:14:00 CEST | Press release

MultiBank Group, the world’s largest financial derivatives institution has officially announced that the Token Generation Event (TGE) for its highly anticipated $MBG Token will take place on July 22, 2025. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250712404220/en/ MultiBank Group has officially announced that the Token Generation Event (TGE) for its highly anticipated $MBG Token will take place on July 22, 2025. This milestone will mark the full activation of the $MBG Token on the blockchain, enabling holders to view and manage their balances across supported platforms. Following the token minting, users will be able to trade $MBG via MultiBank.io, the Group’s regulated crypto exchange and Uniswap, the world’s leading decentralized platform. The $MBG Token has garnered global attention for its rare combination of real-world utility, institutional backing, and strong deflationary mechanics. It is underpinned by $29 billi

Elegen and Nutcracker Therapeutics to Pilot First Fully Cell-Free Manufacturing Process for RNA-based Personalized Cancer Therapeutics11.7.2025 14:00:00 CEST | Press release

Fully cell-free process aims to further democratize personalized cancer therapeutic manufacturing with shorter turnaround times and negligible bioburden and endotoxin risks. Elegen, a global leader in next-generation DNA manufacturing, and Nutcracker Therapeutics, a global leader in next-generation RNA design and manufacturing, today announced the launch of a pilot program to demonstrate the industry’s first fully synthetic, cell-free manufacturing platform for RNA-based personalized cancer therapeutics (PCTs). The pilot marks another step toward making PCTs more accessible, timely, and scalable. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250711152688/en/ As late-stage PCT clinical trials progress and therapy developers work to create the next generation of PCTs, the speed, reliability, scaling and cost of traditional production methods pose a major challenge. Specifically, the first step of DNA template production is hi

$MBG Token Pre-Sale Set for July 15 — Only 7 Million Tokens Available at $0.3511.7.2025 10:17:00 CEST | Press release

MultiBank Group, the world’s largest financial derivatives institution headquartered in Dubai, has confirmed that its highly anticipated $MBG Token pre-sale will go live on July 15, with demand expected to be intense. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250711737311/en/ With only 7 million $MBG tokens up for grabs at an exclusive entry price of $0.35, this is a rare opportunity to secure early access to what many are calling the year’s most powerful utility asset. With only 7 million tokens up for grabs at an exclusive entry price of $0.35, this is a rare opportunity to secure early access to what many are calling the year’s most powerful utility asset. Early participants can join simultaneously on MultiBank.io, the Group’s regulated crypto exchange, and Uniswap, the world’s leading decentralized platform. Supported by $29 billion in real assets and powered by over $35 billion in daily turnover, $MBG is engineered

Live Story Raises €2.7 Million to Revolutionize the Digital Experience11.7.2025 10:05:00 CEST | Press release

With a round led by Vertis, the next-generation CMS platform accelerates its focus onAI, performance, and European expansion. Target: surpass €10M in recurring revenueby 2027. Live Story, the tech company founded by Stefano Mocellini, has closed a €2.7 million seed round led by Vertis, one of Italy’s leading early-growth venture capital firms. The funding will support the company’s international expansion and technological development, with a clear goal: to exceed €10 million in annual recurringrevenue by 2027. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250711335560/en/ “We invested in Live Story because it addresses one of the major inefficiencies in digital commerce: the slow and rigid management of visual and narrative content,” says Alessandro Pontari, Partner at Vertis SGR. “The platform helps brands drastically reduce their time-to-market through a visual CMS that integrates seamlessly with any tech stack. In a wor

With a Score of 84 out of 100, Sagemcom Is Awarded the EcoVadis Platinum Medal: a Prestigious Recognition of its CSR Commitment11.7.2025 09:00:00 CEST | Press release

Sagemcom Group is proud to announce that it has been awarded, for the third time, the Platinum Medal by EcoVadis, the highest distinction granted by the leading global platform for assessing Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) performance. This medal places Sagemcom in the top 1% of companies evaluated worldwide, across all industries. With a score of 84 out of 100, Sagemcom reaffirms its position as a committed leader in ecological transition, business ethics, sustainable supply chain management, and social responsibility. “The EcoVadis Platinum Medal is more than just an award — it is the recognition of our collective efforts to embed sustainable development principles at the heart of our corporate strategy and culture,” says Sylvaine Couleur, Executive Vice President, CSR & Communication. “Achieving this level demonstrates that our commitments are tangible, impactful, and internationally recognized. This distinction strengthens our determination to further advance and expand our C

In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.

Visit our pressroom
World GlobeA line styled icon from Orion Icon Library.HiddenA line styled icon from Orion Icon Library.Eye