Immunovant to be brought back by Roivant Sciences

Roivant Sciences signed a SPAC contract to go public earlier this month, but the company isn’t abandoning the SPAC route just yet. Immunovant, one of the company’s subsidiaries, went public in late 2019 through a separate SPAC, and the company intends to repurchase it.

SPACs, or special purpose acquisition firms, go public to acquire or combine with another corporation. Health Sciences Acquisition Corporation developed Immunovant (HSAC), a SPAC backed by RTW Investments, in December of this year. It received $100 million from the SPAC and $35 million in private equity as part of the contract, which will fund its work through the second half of 2021.

HSAC purchased Immunovant, as is customary in SPAC transactions, but the resulting organization retained Immunovant’s brand, management team, and strategic focus. In the meantime, Roivant Sciences, Immunovant’s former and soon-to-be parent, will go public on the Nasdaq in the third quarter after merging with Montes Archimedes Acquisition Corp. The SPAC would receive $411 million in proceeds, with another $200 million coming from a private round.

Roivant plans to repurchase Immunovant after that transaction is completed by providing a combination of cash and equity for the stock it does not own, according to a March securities filing. Roivant Sciences owns 57.5 percent of Immunovant and stated in the filing that it would pay a “premium to current trading levels” for the company.

Roivant’s motivation for bringing Immunovant back into the fold is unclear. Roivant sold some more Vants to Sumitomo Dainippon in a $3 billion deal two months after selling the autoimmune player to HSAC. The Japanese pharmaceutical company acquired a 10% stake in Roivant and the option to purchase six more Vants before 2024.