ExpressOn BioSystems Ltd.

THE accountants preparing to wind up ExpressOn BioSystems, one of the leading lights of Scotland’s volatile biotech sector, have received an expression of interest in the firm’s intellectual property. The firm will be liquidated following a creditors’ meeting next week unless it has a fresh injection of funds. A rescue now appears increasingly unlikely. The Scottish Enterprise-backed company, based at the Roslin Biocentre in Midlothian, has pioneered research into “blocking” defective human genes. The firm has been developing the technology targeted for use by global pharmaceutical firms. In late-2002 ExpressOn secured second-round funding of £675,000 from a range of stakeholders, including Scottish Enterprise, the Edinburgh Technology Fund, Yorkshire Fund Managers and Generics Asset Management. A £1m package aimed at further commercialising Express- On’s products was close to being signed last month, when the agreement suddenly unravelled. One of the funders – Bioscience VCT, advised by Cambridge-based Medical Marketing International – failed to win board approval for its investment, thus scuppering the whole deal. David Rutherford, of financial adviser Cowan & Partners, said: “We’re in a wait-and-see situation. A creditors’ meeting has been called and it will go ahead if nothing happens. We’ve had an expression of interest but beyond that someone could come along and refinance the company. Otherwise liquidation will follow.”