Israeli minimally invasive cryoablation breast cancer therapy company IceCure Ltd. (TASE: ICCM) has announced the signing of a marketing agreement for the distribution of its products in Japan and Singapore. The agreement was signed with Japanese company Terumo, listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange at a market cap of over $22 billion. Terumo specializes in marketing medical equipment. IceCure's share price jumped 5.9% following the announcement, after having dropped 35% since the beginning of the year.
IceCure has developed and markets a cryoablation therapy for freezing and eliminating benign and malignant tumors.
Under the agreement, IceCure will receive $2.5 million within 30 days of the signing of the agreement, plus $1.5 million upon initial supply of the first products, which the company says will happen in the first quarter of 2020. The Japanese company is committed to a minimum of $13.2 million in orders. The agreement is for five years. The minimum quantities are contingent on obtaining marketing approval and insurance reimbursement. Terumo will be responsible for obtaining these approvals.
If the agreement goes through as planned, it will substantially boost IceCure's revenue, which stood at NIS 2 million in the first half of 2019, 15% more than in the corresponding period last year. IceCure currently markets its products mainly in the US, and has focused primarily on the benign breast tumors market, but its business did not develop as planned, and the company's reports currently bear a going concern warning.
Chinese businessman Dr. Haixiang Lee became the controlling shareholder in IceCure in March 2015, when the company began looking to Asia and focusing its efforts on treatment of malignant tumors. Meanwhile, the US market still accounts for most of the company's revenue. The company recently obtained insurance reimbursement for its treatment for malignant tumors. IceCure is managed by CEO Eyal Shamir.
IceCure currently has NIS 11 million in cash, and used NIS 7.3 million for its routine needs in the first half of 2019.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on September 1, 2019
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