Rising High: Clearmind granted patent approval for binge behavior treatment

In this week’s “Rising High,” The Fly’s recurring series focused on cannabis and psychedelic stock news, The Fly looks back on a patent approval, a CEO succession plan and an acquisition closing.

CLEARMIND GRANTED U.S. PATENT APPROVAL: Clearmind Medicine (CMND) announced Wednesday it has received a new patent approval from the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The approved patent claims cover, among other things, a method of regulating the consumption of alcoholic beverages and a method of controlling binge behavior through the administration of an amine aminoindane, including 5-methoxy-2-aminoindan, the company’s psychedelic molecule. This patent further bolsters Clearmind’s intellectual property portfolio in the psychedelic sector, which now includes 29 granted patents across 19 patent families. Adi Zuloff-Shani, CEO, said, “We are proud to continue leading the way in IP protection within this space. Expanding and maintaining our patent portfolio, particularly in the U.S., remains a key objective for us. We believe that we hold one of the largest portfolios in the market, covering our core areas: MEAI, binge behavior, addictions, mental disorders, as well as new psychedelic compounds and combinations identified and researched by our team.”

Additionally on Friday, Clearmind announced the submission of a patent application under the international Patent Cooperation Treaty as part of the company’s ongoing collaboration with the with Yissum Research Development Company of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The patent application refers to generation 3.0 of psychedelic compounds, methods of their preparation and uses thereof in the treatment of mental disorders and was developed by Prof. Dmitry Tsvelikhovsky of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The PCT submission will allow the company to proceed to the national phase, which involves submitting applications to regional offices in various countries to seek patent protection in major jurisdictions like the US, Europe, China and India.

CANOPY GROWTH CEO TO RETIRE: Canopy Growth Corporation (CGC) announced Friday that David Klein, CEO, will be retiring at the conclusion of the company’s current fiscal year ending March 31, 2025. Until this date or such time that a successor is named, Klein will continue in his role as CEO and as a member of the company’s Board of Directors to advance Canopy Growth’s strategic objectives including profitability and ensure an effective transition. The Board is in the process of securing a search firm to initiate a comprehensive CEO selection process focused on identifying a candidate with the right mix of skills, experience, and expertise to lead the company in its next chapter of growth. “Over the past four years, we have transformed Canopy Growth into a focused, asset-light, and financially disciplined organization that is well-positioned for sustainable growth. It has been an honor to lead Canopy Growth through this critical chapter in our evolution, and I am deeply thankful to all our team members for their dedication, and to our shareholders for their support,” said Klein. “As we look to the next six months and beyond, I remain focused on driving Canopy Growth to profitability while supporting the smooth onboarding of a new CEO to lead the Company forward in its next phase of growth.”

VERANO CLOSES ACQUISITION OF CANNABIST SUBSIDIARIES: Verano Holdings (VRNOF) announced Wednesday the closing of acquisitions pursuant to agreements previously announced on July 29 and acquired all of the ownership interests of three subsidiaries of The Cannabist Company Holdings (CBSTF). Two subsidiaries, 203 Organix and Salubrious Wellness Center operate in Arizona, and the third subsidiary, Columbia Care Eastern Virginia operates in Virginia. In Virginia, Verano will be the sole vertical cannabis operator in HSA 5 in Eastern Virginia and gains an active cultivation and production facility and six operational dispensaries in Hampton, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Virginia Beach and Williamsburg. In Arizona, Verano gains an active cultivation and production facility and raises the company’s retail footprint to eight locations with the addition of stores in Tempe and Prescott, complementing its existing six Zen Leaf dispensaries and multiple cultivation and processing facilities in the state.

The Cannabist Company will maintain its Virginia operations in the Richmond region, with approximately 80,000 square feet of cultivation and manufacturing capacity, five retail locations in operation and one in development. With the close of the Arizona transaction, The Cannabist Company now operates in 14 markets, which will be reduced to 12 markets once the exits in Florida and Washington, DC are finalized. Total consideration for the Arizona operations was $15M in the aggregate paid in cash upon signing. Total consideration for the Virginia operations was $90M, which was paid upon closing and consisted of $20M in cash, $40M in Class A subordinate voting shares, and the issuance of a $30M promissory note.

On Friday, TYSON 2.0 announced its further expansion into Florida and Illinois with Verano. The company said, “TYSON 2.0 will leverage Verano’s extensive network and operational expertise to broaden its saturation of Florida and Illinois markets. Verano’s state-of-the-art cultivation facilities and well-established dispensaries will play a crucial role in scaling TYSON 2.0’s impact, ensuring that cannabis enthusiasts in these key markets can access the premium products that define the brand.” TYSON 2.0’s Mike Bites edibles are now available in both markets. Additionally, vape cartridges are currently available in Illinois with plans to launch in Florida later this year.

Additionally on Friday, The Cannabist Company announced the latest development in its collaboration with minority-owned baked goods and infused edibles company, ButACake, with its launch in the Maryland market. The partnership expansion into Maryland includes the launch of ButACake’s oral dissolvable strips. The 10mg strips are available in 2-packs of Ginger Peach, Chocolate Mint and Blue Blizzard. All products are on shelves at gLeaf locations in Frederick and Rockville, in addition to the Columbia Care location in Chevy Chase. Additional ButACake products will be available in the coming months, pending regulatory approvals.

RIV CAPITAL, CANSORTIUM PROVIDE INTEGRATION UPDATE: RIV Capital (CNPOF) and Cansortium (CNTMF) provided a Monday update on the integration activities currently underway, in preparation for the completion of the previously announced business combination. “As we work to complete this transaction, we are taking immediate action by commencing integration activities that will best position the combined company for long-term success across our respective markets,” said Mike Totzke, COO and interim CEO of RIV Capital. “The steps we are taking now will streamline our processes, improve our operational efficiency, and importantly, broaden our product and brand portfolio.”

Since announcing the business combination in May, RIV Capital and Cansortium have completed several integration activities. A comprehensive review of the company’s Chestertown facility has been completed and RIV Capital has begun implementing Cansortium’s best practices and standard operating procedures, which is intended to enhance operational efficiency and improve quality standards. The integration team has aligned sales and operations planning meetings to facilitate strategic production planning and ensure that both sales forecasts and production capabilities are considered in decision-making, optimizing inventory levels and ensuring timely delivery of products. Plans are underway to combine the brands of both businesses, including a near-term introduction of Fluent’s brands into the burgeoning New York market. The combination is expected to broaden the consumer reach in current geographies and enhance national brand recognition as the combined company expands into new geographies. Leveraging Cansortium’s SKU portfolio, RIV Capital is also expanding its product assortment for the New York market. Plans are in place to launch a series of new items in the coming months, including, and not limited to vaporizer innovation, concentrates, edibles, and infused pre-rolls.

PHARMALA APPOINTS CFO: PharmAla Biotech Holdings (MDXXF) announced Thursday that it will be engaging William Avery as CFO, effective October 1st. Avery has been acting as financial advisor for PharmAla Biotech for over a month and is a former partner at MNP, focusing on publicly traded companies in innovative fields.

The company also announced it has created a new tool for researchers, providing direct access to its Chemistry, Manufacturing and Control data, as well as its investigator’s brochure, to qualified researchers. “Over the past number of weeks we have seen a massive influx of requests for documentation for research materials for MDMA. One of the unlooked-for effects of the FDA’s decision on the Lykos New Drug Application for MDMA has been a dramatic increase in clinical researchers looking for information about our products. Clearly, MDMA is still of significant interest to the global research community,” said Nicholas Kadysh, CEO. “Following the successful rollout of PharmAla’s prescriber’s portal for our Canadian prescriber population, we’re pleased to offer this new tool to the global clinical researcher community. We hope it will save them time and energy as they apply for grant funding, and is a testament to PharmAla’s unmatched regulatory transparency and sophistication.”

The new tool offers researchers direct access to drug product quality information, which researchers can examine directly. PharmAla expects that the tool will ease the process for those researchers who wish to apply for trials with MDMA, and help continue to grow PharmAla’s sales pipeline for clinical trials using LaNeo MDMA. Dozens of researchers are already using LaNeo MDMA for clinical research all over the world.

CANNABIS/PSYCHEDELIC STOCKS: Publicly-traded companies in the space include Acreage (ACRHF), Ascend Wellness (AAWH), Atai Life Sciences (ATAI), Aurora Cannabis (ACB), Ayr Wellness (AYRWF), Avant Brands (AVTBF), BZAM (BZAMF), Cannara Biotech (LOVFF), Chicago Atlantic (REFI), Clever Leaves (CLVR), Compass Pathways (CMPS), CordovaCann (LVRLF), Cresco Labs (CRLBF), Cronos Group (CRON), Curaleaf (CURLF), CURE Pharmaceutical (CURR), CV Sciences (CVSI), Cybin (CYBN), Entourage Health (ETRGF), Enveric (ENVB), Flora Growth (FLGC), Trees Corporation (CANN), Greenlane (GNLN), Green Thumb (GTBIF), GrowGeneration (GRWG), Hemp (HEMP), Heritage Cannabis (HERTF), High Tide (HITI), IGC Pharma (IGC), IM Cannabis (IMCC), Innovative Industrial Properties (IIPR), InterCure (INCR), Lowell Farms (LOWLF), Lucy Scientific Discovery (LSDI), MediPharm (MEDIF), MindMed (MNMD), NewLake Capital (NLCP), Numinus (NUMIF), Optimi Health (OPTHF), Organigram (OGI), Planet 13 (PLNHF), Psyence Biomedical (PBM), Red White & Bloom (RWBYF), Relmada Therapeutics (RLMD), Reunion Neuroscience (REUN), Safe Harbor Financial (SHFS), SNDL (SNDL), Skye Biosciences (SKYE), Stem Holdings (STMH), TerrAscend (TRSSF), Tilray (TLRY), Trulieve (TCNNF), Tryp Therapeutics (TRYPF), Village Farms (VFF), Vireo Health (VREOF), Zynerba (ZYNE) and 4Front Ventures (FFNTF).