Cresswell Advisors

YM was the first biotechnology company in North America to list on the London Stock Exchange (Aim) with its IPO in 2002 – one of only six biotechnology companies in the world to IPO in that year and the first company with joint ventures with Cuba to list in the United States (American Stock Exchange – 2004). In total YM raised ~US$235 million in the US, C$36 million in Europe and C$17 million in Canada through private placements, its IPO, PIPES, follow-on financings (see below) and a “controlled equity”/”at-the-market” offering in the US though which YM became the first Canadian life-sciences company to utilize such a mechanism. In addition David Allan negotiated and concluded three acquisitions – $17 million for the 2005 acquisition of Delex Therapeutics in Canada, $32 million for Eximias in the US and $12 million for the 2009 acquisition of Cytopia in Australia. YM BioSciences was itself acquired by Gilead Sciences in 2013 for US$510 million.  The principals of the investment banking firm Bloom Burton featured centrally in many of the public financings concluded by YM, were invaluable in the M&A projects and provided the definitive fairness opinion to the YM Board on the Gilead acquisition.
 

In June 2011 David Allan was appointed as executive chairman of TSX-V-listed Stem Cell Therapeutics Corp.(STC)  in order to rebuild and re-establish it as a viable company following the clinical failure of its lead product. He established a board of exceptional recognition, secured the necessary financing for continuing operations, in-licensed a novel stem cell therapeutic from UHN/Mars Innovation/Dr. Aaron Schimmer in 2012, and acquired Trillium Therapeutics in February 2013 for $1.2 million in cash and $1.65 million in STC shares. STC’s name was changed to Trillium Therapeutics, listed on NASDAQ and the Toronto Stock Exchange, and was acquired by Pfizer in August 2021 for $2.26 billion.