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The founder of 23andMe asked a federal bankruptcy court judge to resume auctions for genetic testing companies, saying they received fresh financial support from the Fortune 500 company.
Anne Wojcicki said in a court filing Saturday that it secured support for “Fortune 500 companies with current market capitalization of over $400 million and $17 billion in cash.”
Last month, 23Andme announced that upstate New York biotechnology company Regeneron had won a company bid on a $256 million cash transaction. In her court documents, Wojcicki alleged that the debtor and his advisor had unfairly leaned the auction to Regeneron.
However, 23Andme said they have filed that both Wojcicki and Regeneron would seek court approval to allow additional bids by June 12th. The procedure can include the right to receive the “last appearance” where Regeneron will be top of the offer from Wojcicki. Regeneron’s market capitalization is over $50 billion.
The filing gusts posted over the weekend provided details of competing bids made against 23andMe during auctions held between May 14th and May 16th. Wojcicki pursues acquisitions through the TTAM Institute, which she founded and described as a “california’s non-profit public benefits organization.”
23AndMe’s lawyers were raising questions during an auction on the value and liquidity of TTAM’s equity portfolio. TTAM said it sold the shares in cash.
At the auction, TTAM had officially bid about $150 million, but 23andMe’s financial and legal advisors said they had improperly restricted their maximum bid to $250 million.
23Andme filed for bankruptcy protection in March after refusing to acquire the $40 million GO Private from Wojcicki, who was once married to Google co-founder Sergey Brin. Wojcicki started 23andme in 1998 with her younger sister Menlo Park Garage. Bryn introduced Wojcicki to Linda Avie, a scientist who was developing plans for a direct genetics business for consumers, and they launched the business together.
The company has been suffering from a long-standing decline in revenue as it has failed to grow beyond its genetic testing business, with customers sending back saliva samples to analyze medical conditions and family genealogies. Purchasers of the assets of the bankrupt company are not liable to assume any liability from ongoing lawsuits from the 2023 data breach.
An independent consumer data privacy “Ombudsman” is the creation of a report to the Bankruptcy Court on a buyer’s plan to protect customer data.
23Andme was released in 2021 with a merger with a blank check vehicle sponsored by Richard Branson. The company once reached a market capitalization of nearly $600 million. The company’s shares jumped to more than $3 from around 55 cents before the announcement of Regeneron Sale, with a market capitalization of $83 million now.
Attorneys for 23andme and Wojcicki did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
