Psych Capital PLC - AUDITED RESULTS TO 30 APRIL 2022

31 October 2022

PSYCH CAPITAL PLC

AQSE: PSY

("Psych" or "the Company")

AUDITED RESULTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 APRIL 2022

Psych Capital plc, the AQSE traded psychedelic healthcare incubation company, is pleased to announce its audited results for the year ended 30 April 2022.

The information set out below has been extracted from the Company's annual report and accounts for the year ended 30 April 2022 and the full report will shortly be available on the Company's website at https://psych.capital

"CHAIRMAN'S STATEMENT

We are pleased to present the results for Psych Capital Plc for the year ended 30 April 2022.  The Company was admitted to the AQSE Growth market on 9 June 2022 and is the first pure-play psychedelic company to list in London. 

The nascent and growing medical psychedelic industry has attracted a significant base of investors seeking to establish and scale businesses in a landscape showing scientific and commercial promise. The Company seeks to uncover opportunities at the forefront of the rapidly evolving regulatory landscape, developments in healthcare delivery frameworks, and scientific and clinical research, to address the unmet needs of patients in the UK and other markets, in the context of an escalating mental health crisis.

The Company is pursuing two core strategies:

·    Identify, fund and support the building of future companies conducting clinical research programs to develop psychedelic drug development and therapeutic treatments; and

·    Scaling and growing its business-to-business ("B2B") media and content platform (PSYCH) for the psychedelic science and healthcare industry. 

Overview 

During 2021, the Company invested in Awakn Life Sciences Corp. ("Awakn"), acquiring approximately 2% per cent of Awakn's issued share capital at the time of the investment. Awakn is a clinical biotech company researching, developing and delivering evidence-based psychedelic medicine to treat addiction and other mental health conditions.  The team at Awakn have delivered progress on a number of fronts in 2022, including the successful completion of Phase One of its Drug Discovery Program, and the approval of Phase III of its Ketamine assisted therapy for alcohol use disorder program, with the National Institute for Health and Care Research ("NIHR"), a UK government agency who provided funding of CA$2.5m, which covers 66% of the costs. 

The Company also acquired the PSYCH platform from Prohibition Holdings Limited. The platform is a business-to-business media and content platform for the psychedelic science and healthcare industry, and provides a resource for networking, intelligence and insights, servicing the industry through publications, newsletters and engaging events. The PSYCH Platform is revenue generative, with £62,228 of sponsorship revenue recognised during the year ended 30 April 2022. 

PSYCH has amassed a significant global B2B audience, with subscribers to the platform growing by 38% since acquisition, to 37,000 readers. This is particularly impressive given the Company's lack of marketing activity. The platform also produces "The Psychedelics as a Medicine Report" series, now in its 3rd Edition, which has become one of the leading resources for the global industry, with over 2,000 downloads per edition, and which is recording record revenue in sponsorship from premium psychedelic companies, including Beckley Psytech, Atai, Braxia, Filament Health and Diamond. 

Post year-end

The inaugural PSYCH Symposium was held in The National Gallery on 11 May 2022 in London with over 350 delegates in attendance and generated revenues of over £150,000 from client sponsorship and ticket sales. The symposium attracted over 35 global thought leaders from science, advocacy, regulation and finance, to participate in a full day programme sharing insights, research and inspiration for the future of the industry.

In June 2022, we listed on the Aquis Exchange, making Psych Capital Plc the first pure play psychedelic focused company to list on UK Capital markets. A successful capital raise was achieved as part of our Initial Public Offering, raising gross proceeds of £810,000. 

We are committed to advancing the case for regulatory reform in the UK and beyond, to improve patient access to innovative drugs and therapy treatments.  The Company welcomed the appointment of the Conservative Party Drug Reform Group, represented by Crispin Blunt, a pioneering politician leading regulatory reform, to the Company's Psychedelic Medicines Technical Advisory Board.

While most of the attention in the industry is focused on R&D and drug development, Psych Capital has conducted a full analysis of potential healthcare delivery frameworks to identify early-stage opportunities related to the implementation of psychedelics as medicine. This included a full mapping of companies, initiatives and projects that could impact the development of the sector. Alongside market analysis, Psych Capital explored investment opportunities into several companies and while no investment has been finalised to date, we have identified potential investments that could make a positive impact to the group in the future.

The management team and board has been strengthened by the appointment of an independent non-executive director upon admission to the AQSE, and subsequently a CFO, both of whom are seasoned finance professionals, with public markets, and regulatory expertise.

Outlook and prospects

Whilst macroeconomic pressure stemming from the conflict in Ukraine, concerns regarding inflationary pressures, and political uncertainty have led to market volatility, the nascent psychedelic industry continues to develop rapidly.  The publication of potentially transformative clinical trial results expected in late 2022/ early 2023 are eagerly anticipated by the market, with MDMA and psilocybin-assisted therapy expected to be regulated by the FDA.

Our latest PSYCH reports forecast that the European economies stand to save over US$60 billion each year through innovations in psychedelic healthcare, with the market for psychedelic-assisted therapies expected to be worth US$1.5 billion by 2030. In the United States, where healthcare costs are far greater, the economy stands to save US$270 billion. Across the Atlantic the market could exceed US$4 billion by 2030, driven by the regulation of MDMA and psilocybin.

Psych Capital, with our network of experts, proprietary market intelligence, and access to deal flow, is in a strong position to invest in early-stage opportunities in the medical psychedelic industry.  We have been exploring several potential M&A transactions which have come to us at preferential valuations compared to the prior six months, and we look forward to updating the market on developments. 

Joseph Colliver

Non-Executive Chairman

The Directors of the Company accept responsibility for the contents of this announcement.

ENQUIRIES:

Company:

Psych Capital plc

https://psych.capital

AQSE Corporate Adviser:

Peterhouse Capital Limited

Statement of Comprehensive Income

Statement of Financial Position

Statement of Changes in Equity

Statement of Cash Flows

Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) Disclosure

The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information. Upon the publication of this announcement via a Regulatory Information Service, this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain.