TORONTO, Jan. 2, 2019 /PRNewswire/ - SOL Global Investments Corp. is pleased to announce an investment in and strategic partnership with European medical cannabis company, GreenLight Pharmaceuticals Ltd.
GreenLight, which was founded in 2014 and is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, is a vertically-integrated medical cannabis company with a clinical research and development operation led by Dr. James Linden, a seed genetics program, cultivation operations, and CBD brand and distribution operations.
Under the terms of the transaction, SOL Global will acquire a 25-percent stake in the equity of GreenLight for €1.8 million, with an option to increase its stake to 51 percent.
In addition, SOL Global has also acquired an option to acquire a 75-percent stake in a future GreenLight subsidiary that successfully obtains a cannabis cultivation license in Ireland or Northern Ireland for an aggregate exercise price of approximately €1 million. SOL Global director Rob Reid and Chief Medical Officer Michael Barnes will join the board of GreenLight Pharmaceuticals.
"SOL Global is excited to partner with the clinical research team at GreenLight as they continue to develop R&D programs throughout Europe. As society continues to delve into the future of using cannabis medicinally, GreenLight plans to be instrumental in forming industry-leading solutions and therapies. With members of SOL Global's team joining GreenLight's board, we look forward to working together to further develop and enhance GreenLight's leadership position in Europe's nascent medical cannabis industry," stated Brady Cobb, SOL Global CEO.
"This latest partnership provides us with the funding to take GreenLight to a wider international audience," GreenLight CEO James Linden said. "In 2019 we expect to see the roll out of full medicinal cannabis markets in Ireland and the UK. GreenLight is primed to perform well in these developing markets with our top quality and affordable plant medicines. The expansion of our food supplements range, and the research and development of our pharmaceutical products, will enable GreenLight to have a greater profile on the international scene as a major player in medical cannabis."
Since its founding, GreenLight has focused its research on some of the pharmaceutical industry's most popular therapy areas, including in anti-rheumatics, oncology, bronchodilators, and immunosuppressants. GreenLight's R&D operations feature the participation of 13 international academic institutes and the development of dedicated GreenLight laboratories in various universities, including investments in medical equipment and the hiring of highly trained clinicians and staff members.
GreenLight's distribution operations include its proprietary 'GreenLight Food Supplements' subsidiary and other plant extract-based products currently in development. The company's food supplements operations provide products in Ireland and the UK, with development underway in Spain, France, Russia, Poland, and the United States. GreenLight currently holds distribution agreements with 1,000 pharmacies across Ireland and the UK.
