This report first appeared on News24 on 26 March 2024

Medicinal cannabis group Cilo Cybin said on Tuesday, 24 March 2024 that it managed to close its initial public offering within record time, raising about R7.1 million or 10% of shares, within a week.

The group opened its IPO on 14 March, expecting it to close on 12 April, but it said it "experienced an unprecedented response," leading to oversubscription and its early closure.

A listing date is yet to be announced, but the group has previously said it is eyeing April or May to join the bourse as a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC).

The plan is then for it to acquire its first target asset, namely the business Cilo Cybin Pharmaceutical and its 2 500m2 facility in Midrand. Following this, it would look to graduate to the JSE's main board, which CEO Gabriel Theron has said previously could take later this year.

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The company says it is still the only entity in South Africa that is fully vertically integrated to have both medical cannabis cultivation and manufacturing licenses. The company, achieving profitability in 2024, offers contract manufacturing and packaging services to the cannabis industry both in SA and internationally.

Cilo Cybin had originally eyed a December 2022 listing for its SPAC, but was unable to reach the minimum capital requirement threshold of R50 million, initially raising R20 million by the date in question from about 1 900 investors.

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