Dentons advises atai Life Sciences on US$ 175 million venture debt financing

Berlin —Global law firm Dentons, together with Latham & Watkins US, has advised clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company atai Life Sciences (“atai”) on the closing of a venture debt loan facility of up to US$175 million with Hercules Capital. Under the terms of the agreement, US$15 million was drawn at closing, with an additional US$20 million available to be drawn at atai’s option by March 15, 2023, and thereafter, an additional US$25 million available to be drawn by December 15, 2023. The remaining US$115 million becomes available in tranches through March 31, 2025, subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions.

Founded in 2018, atai is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company which aims to transform and innovate the treatment of mental health disorders. The company has been listed on the US technology exchange NASDAQ since June 2021 and is headquartered in Berlin, with offices in New York and London.

A cross-border Dentons team led by Thomas Schubert (Berlin) advised atai on the transaction. The team included senior associates Max Purnhagen and Matthias Hause in Berlin; partner Axel Schlieter and senior associate Julia Heitmann in Düsseldorf; partner Marcel Janssen and associates Vivienne de Jong and Karsten Hovinga in Amsterdam; partner William Turner and associate Imogen Beaver in London; and relationship partner Kristina Beirne in New York.

Dentons previously advised the company on the preparation for its IPO on NASDAQ in June 2021 and on the closing of its US$157 million and US$125 million Series D and Series C financing rounds.