Ângelo Correia can raise more than 10 million euros with the sale of EMAC Lifesciences

Ângelo Correia can earn more than 10 million euros, with the sale of Emmac Life Sciences to the american company curaleaf holdings for more than 286 million dollars (239,2 million euros). The announcement of the agreement to acquire the English company EMMAC, in which the former PSD deputy has a 4,32% stake, was made last Tuesday, in a communiqué from Curaleaf, and will be finalized within a few months.

In 2019, with the purchase of the Portuguese Terra Verde, the former Minister of Internal Administration was, according to data from Pomanda, with a shareholding of 4,32% in EMMAC, equivalent to 12 million ordinary shares. This position of Ângelo Correia in EMAC has now proved to be quite profitable, and he was able to obtain a revenue from the sale of shares amounting to 11,5 million euros.

In the agreement, it was established that the amount of the acquisition is subscribed through 15% of capital to be paid directly to the shareholders by Curaleaf, with the remaining 85% being subscribed in shares of the North American company. The deal will result in income proportional to the stake, and with the 4,32% stake, Ângelo Correia will receive more than 1,5 million euros in cash and more than 8,78 million euros in shares from the American company Curaleaf.

According to the Curaleaf press release, the agreement to acquire EMMAC has already been signed and the payment will be made as follows: 286 million dollars in advance, with a further 57 million dollars (47,68 million euros) dependent on the fulfillment of specific efficiency targets, suggesting that the supply could reach 343 million dollars. This means that, in addition to the more than 10 million euros, Ângelo Correia may receive another 2 million euros.

The multi-million dollar cannabis business
The journey of acquisitions in the cannabis sector is starting to become more and more evident, with more and more private equity companies being acquired by large multinational companies. Terra Verde Ltd. was the first medical cannabis company to establish itself in Portugal, in 2014, by the hand of the former Minister of Internal Administration, Ângelo Correia, and the Israeli David Yarkoni, who with the sale of the company also held 6,48% from EMMAC.

EMMAC has commercial activity in eight European countries, from the United Kingdom to Germany, through Italy, Portugal and Spain. The company exports cannabis grown in Portugal to other markets, and is also preparing to substantially increase its manufacturing capacity this year, according to a press release.

“The European cannabis market has the potential to go beyond the US market in the long term and will also help sustain our development for many years to come,” Curaleaf President Boris Jordan said in a statement.

Antonio Costanzo, CEO of EMMAC, said that the offer “is not only a considerable milestone for EMMAC, but for the European cannabis market as a whole”.

According to the Financial Times, at the beginning of 2020 Curaleaf earned 90% of its total revenue from medical cannabis, but today that percentage is around 60% of the company's revenue, with the remaining 40% coming from recreational cannabis. .

Antonio Costanzo told the Financial Times that Europe is three to four years behind the US, but “we are anticipating the opening up of adult use in the next few years in Europe. However, in the short term, medical cannabis will certainly drive development,” he said.

“With a European population of nearly 748 million, the potential addressable market is more than double the US market,” the Curaleaf statement noted.

The president of the Luso-Arab Chamber of Commerce, Ângelo Correia, speaks during the 3rd edition of the Arab Conference “Arab-Islamic Memories, Dialogue between Civilizations”, organized by the Arab-Portuguese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, in the Auditorium of the National Archives of Torre do Tombo, in Lisbon, May 17, 2017. JOÃO RELVAS/LUSA