Oramed and Lifeward Announce Strategic Merger Creating Diversified Biomedical Platform
核心洞察
Oramed Pharmaceuticals will transfer its proprietary POD™ oral drug delivery technology to Lifeward (搜索) in exchange for a 49.9% ownership stake in the medical robotics company.
The transaction includes up to $47 million in strategic investment designed to bring Lifeward (搜索) to profitability while expanding into biotechnology through the oral insulin platform.
Lifeward (搜索)'s existing FDA-approved ReWalk® and AlterG® products generated $26 million in revenue over the last four quarters, providing a foundation for the combined entity.
Oramed Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ORMP) and Lifeward (搜索) Ltd. (NASDAQ: LFWD) announced a transformative strategic transaction that will transfer Oramed's proprietary Protein Oral Drug (POD™) delivery technology to Lifeward while positioning Oramed as a significant shareholder with 49.9% beneficial ownership interest in the medical robotics company.
The transaction, which has received unanimous approval from Lifeward (搜索)'s board of directors and is subject to shareholder approval, provides Lifeward with access to up to approximately $47 million of capital through equity, convertible notes, milestone-based funding, and warrant coverage. This capital framework is designed to support Lifeward's path to profitability while enabling selective investment in high-value innovation.
Strategic Vision and Leadership
Under the leadership of President and CEO Mark Grant, who brings over 25 years of healthcare and medical technology experience including serving as Vice President of the Americas with full P&L responsibility for Medtronic's diabetes business exceeding $1.5 billion in annual revenue, Lifeward (搜索) will operate as a disciplined biomedical portfolio company focused on achieving sustainable profitability from existing FDA-approved MedTech products while building exposure to biotechnology innovation.
"Oramed is the ideal strategic partner for Lifeward (搜索) at this pivotal moment in our company's evolution," stated Mark Grant. "This transaction, if approved, is expected to provide us with the financial resources to reach profitability with our proven ReWalk® and AlterG® product lines while simultaneously unlocking significant growth opportunities through the integration of Oramed's POD™ technology."
Nadav Kidron, CEO of Oramed, commented: "We believe this transaction represents an important strategic milestone for Oramed. By transferring our POD™ technology to Lifeward (搜索) with a significant ownership stake, Oramed shareholders retain substantial exposure to the oral delivery platform while simultaneously gaining meaningful participation in a proven revenue-generating medical robotics business and revenue streams."
Financial Structure and Revenue Foundation
Lifeward (搜索)'s existing FDA-approved ReWalk® and AlterG® products generated $26 million in revenue over the last four quarters, providing a solid foundation for the combined entity. The investment structure includes:
- Convertible Note A: Oramed and another investor to invest an aggregate of $10 million in convertible notes with 8% annual interest and 100% warrant coverage
- Convertible Note B: An additional $10 million in convertible notes automatically triggered upon achieving certain revenue or share price milestones, with 8% annual interest and 100% warrant coverage
- Revenue sharing: Oramed will receive 4% of net sales of the ReWalk franchise for up to 10 years
POD™ Technology and Market Opportunity
The POD™ technology represents years of research and development in transforming injectable biological therapies into oral medications. This breakthrough platform delivers injectable drugs orally by enabling proteins, such as insulin, to travel through the gastrointestinal tract and into the bloodstream, potentially eliminating many of the negative side-effects of injection delivery.
The technology addresses the $634 billion global injectable drug delivery market, including diabetes where $19 billion of insulin and $52 billion of GLP-1 analogs were sold globally in 2024. The addressable opportunity for oral delivery can be expanded to multiple peptide and protein-based therapies across metabolic, endocrine, and inflammatory diseases, representing a global market valued at tens of billions.
Clinical Development Program
ORMD-0801, the POD™ technology's lead drug candidate, has the potential to create a new paradigm in the treatment of type 2 diabetes by orally delivering insulin at an earlier stage of treatment. Oramed successfully completed a U.S. FDA Phase 2b, 90-day HbA1c trial of ORMD-0801, which met its primary endpoint achieving a statistically significant reduction of HbA1c.
While a subsequent Phase 3 study did not meet its primary endpoint, it provided valuable data on high-responder subgroups that demonstrated particularly encouraging results. Based on an extensive analysis of Phase 2 and Phase 3 data, Oramed plans to initiate a 60-patient U.S.-based clinical trial.
Under a clinical trial management agreement, Oramed will retain responsibility for managing and funding the anticipated POD™ clinical program, allowing Lifeward (搜索) to maintain operational focus on profitability and cash generation while retaining exposure to the potential upside of the biotech opportunity.
Strategic Portfolio Approach
Upon consummation of the transaction, Lifeward (搜索) will operate with a three-pronged strategy: achieving sustainable profitability from existing FDA-approved MedTech products such as the ReWalk® and AlterG® product lines, deploying capital selectively towards assets with defined milestones and risk-adjusted returns, and building a balanced, diversified biomedical portfolio that combines near-term revenue with longer-term biotech innovation.
The transaction is contingent upon certain customary closing conditions, including the receipt of requisite approval of Lifeward (搜索)'s shareholders, and with respect to additional notes, the achievement of certain revenue-based or share price-based milestones.