Tuesday, June 24, 2008

RXi plans for $8.7M from private stock sale

By Mass High Tech Staff

RXi Pharmaceuticals Corp., a Worcester biopharmaceuticals company focused on RNA interference (RNAi), reports it has entered into a private placement with potential gross proceeds of $8.7 million. The company announced its one million common stock shares available to institutional investors for $8.12 per share.

News of the private placement comes on the heels of RXi’s March welcome to public trading.

RXi Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: RXII) plans to use the funds to grow its rxRNA compound line and to apply to general corporate purposes.

Jefferies & Company acted as the lead placement agent, and Natixis Bleichroeder Inc., Broadpoint Securities Group, Inc. and Griffin Securities Inc. acted as co-placement agents.

RXi is a developer of RNAi drugs designed to block genes linked to disease from producing proteins. The company was launched in January 2007 with a scientific advisory board chaired by Craig Mello, winner of a 2006 Nobel prize for his research of RNAi.