Berkeley Lights, a life sciences tools company, and IsoPlexis, a company empowering labs to leverage the cells and proteome changing the course of human health, announced a definitive agreement under which Berkeley Lights will acquire IsoPlexis in an all-stock transaction valued at $57.8 million.
The combined company, which will be named PhenomeX (Nasdaq: CELL), will be a premier functional cell biology company that provides live cell biology research tools which deliver deep insights into cellular function and new perspectives on phenomes. Under the terms of the agreement, which was unanimously approved by the Boards of Directors of both companies, IsoPlexis shareholders will receive 0.612 shares of Berkeley Lights stock for each IsoPlexis share they hold. Following the close of the transaction, Berkeley Lights shareholders will own approximately 75.2 percent of the combined company, and IsoPlexis shareholders will own approximately 24.8 percent of the combined company.
“The combination of Berkeley Lights and IsoPlexis represents an important milestone and fuels our transformation into a growing, profitable, and sustainable life sciences company,” said Siddhartha Kadia, Ph.D., chief executive officer of Berkeley Lights. “This transaction accelerates our progress across every core pillar of our strategic plan and creates a path to achieving positive operating cash flow earlier than we expected to as a standalone company. We look forward to joining forces with the IsoPlexis team as we embark on this next chapter and create value for our shareholders, employees, and customers.”
Sean Mackay, co-founder and chief executive officer of IsoPlexis, said, “This transaction brings together two companies whose innovative solutions will help establish a technology leader in functional cell biology. The combined company will have a world-class team with complementary cultures and competencies to drive outcomes for customers and shareholders. We look forward to working together with the wonderful team at Berkeley Lights.”