Shares in British specialist pharmaceutical group Bioglan slumped 84 per cent in early trading today after the collapse of a deal to secure a range of skin care products from Bristol Myers Squibb.
Bioglan shares fell to just £1.11, pushing the group's market value down to just £11 million sterling. Shares in the group were changing hands at more than £400 three months ago.
Bioglan’s chairman and chief executive Mr Terry Sadler said his efforts to secure the deal had been undone by the collapse in the share price.
And he blamed a series of leaks about the negotiations going on behind the scenes for sparking the fall and hampering the talks.
"There were a number of unfortunate leaks about what was going on. The markets turned against us and it made life very difficult," Mr Sadler said.
"Then September 11th happened and that put the tin hat on it. Debt and equity markets shut up shop and we were not able to get the deal done."
He added that despite the setback he was confident Bioglan could bounce back through a focus on its core dermatology products and new Biosphere technology.
Mr Sadler also said the group felt the generics business, which makes copies of previously patented drugs, was no longer a core operation.
Generics made up a third of product sales in the half-year, which totalled £36.1 million. Dermatology products accounted for 50 per cent.
Costs relating to the collapsed deal totalled £691,000 in the first half and contributed to exceptional and goodwill costs of £27.7 million.
Bioglan also wrote down a series of licences and trademarks and its investment in CeNeS Pharmaceutical. Bottom-line pre-tax losses were £35.7 million, compared to the £700,000 loss recorded the same period last year.