Compass Pathways, the U.K.-based, Peter Thiel-backed medical psilocybin company soared in its NASDAQ IPO inaugurating psychedelics as the next big psychoactive business opportunity.
WeedWeek
- After opening Wednesday at $17 per share the stock closed the day at $36.75 and the week at $43.17.
- Compass’ first backer, a German biotech entrepreneur named Christian Angermayer saw his 22% stake in the company climb to more than $300M.
Bloomberg - Other companies to watch include Mind Medicine and Champignon Brands both of which trade for less than a buck in Canada.
- Like cannabis, psilocybin and MDMA are schedule 1 drugs, but for reasons that aren’t entirely clear, the FDA seems much more interested in advancing therapies derived from those drugs.
- Just like with cannabis, the industry is promoting its own euphemisms. So instead of “hallucinogens,” executives call them “functional mushrooms.”
- The Washington Post asks who benefits from the mainstreaming of psychedelic medicine.
- The FDA, however, is showing a new openness to MED research.
Cannabis Wire
Quick Hit
- Discover looks at Delta8-THC the dubiously legal cannabinoid said to get you high without anxiety or paranoia.
- A massive new survey aims to learn how Americans used CBD to combat anxiety during the pandemic.
WeedWeek
