Ananda Pharma PLC - US Cannabis Rescheduling

 19 December 2025

ANANDA PHARMA PLC 

("Ananda" or the "Company") 

President Trumps announces the Rescheduling of Cannabis 

INCREASING MEDICAL MARIJUANA AND CANNABIDIOL RESEARCH

Ananda Pharma plc (AQSE: ANA, OTC: ANANF), a UK-based biopharmaceutical company developing regulatory approved, cannabidiol medicines to treat complex, chronic conditions, welcomes and applauds the signing of an Executive Order by President Trump to reschedule cannabis in the USA from Schedule 1 to Schedule 3 under the Controlled Substances Act.

Ananda's CEO, Melissa Sturgess commented: "We welcome this decisive move from President Trump to formally recognise the medicinal benefit of cannabis.  The proposed changes will improve Ananda's access to capital and provide a smoother FDA regulatory pathway for our MRX1 CBD formulation. We believe we are one of few companies globally who have a formulation which meets the FDA requirements and will continue our work apace."

Rescheduling will advantage Ananda through:

·    Enhancing the Company's access to institutional capital from entities which cannot invest in companies which handle Schedule 1 drugs, but which are able to invest in Schedule 3 drug development companies

·    Enabling accelerated clinical trials of MRX1 in the US and a smoother regulatory pathway through the FDA

·    Significantly reducing the stigma associated with cannabinoids

·    Ease the transport of MRX1 from the UK to the US and across state borders in the US when conducting clinical trials

·    Open the potential of NIH funding for Ananda's clinical trial programme

It is the Board's belief that this act by President Trump is a common sense and tangible recognition of the potential medical benefits of cannabis and CBD and strengthens Ananda's position at the forefront of CBD clinical research and development.  Ananda has a compliant, formulated and manufactured CBD formulation ready for delivery to its two Phase 2 clinical trials for endometriosis and chemotherapy induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN); both of which are chronic pain conditions with unmet medical needs.

President Trump's Executive Order supports Ananda's commitment to deliver regulatory approved, safe and consistent products for areas of high unmet medical need. The Company's decision to work with a naturally derived CBD formulation bodes well for expedited, low-cost clinical trials and subsequent FDA authorisation and commercial rollout, benefiting patients and shareholders.

Ananda is currently preparing for pre-IND meetings with the FDA to commence decentralised Phase 2 trials in the USA.  The trials will include the longer-term collection of real-world evidence for the ongoing use of MRX1.

Moving cannabis from Schedule 1 to Schedule 3 under the Controlled Substances Act is a US Federal acknowledgement it has accepted medical use and lower abuse potential than previously classified. Schedule 1 substances are considered by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to have no currently accepted medical use and high abuse potential, making them illegal to prescribe and extremely difficult to research, while Schedule 3 substances can be legally prescribed by healthcare providers, investigated in clinical research and manufactured commercially.

About Ananda Pharma

Ananda Pharma is a UK-based biopharmaceutical company developing regulatory approved, cannabidiol medicines to treat complex, chronic conditions, including endometriosis (funded by NHS Scotland) and chemotherapy pain (funded by NIHR).  The Company is led by successful entrepreneurs and is working with a team of world-class scientists, including globally respected Key Opinion Leaders at the University of Edinburgh.

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-Ends-

For the purposes of UK MAR, the Directors of the Company accept responsibility for the contents of this announcement.  

https://investors.anandapharma.co.uk/link/eX2WXP