Manchester-based molecular diagnostics firm Yourgene Health plc said on Monday it has agreed to a £16.7 million cash takeover by French company Novacyt.

The proposed acquisition price of 0.522 pence per share represents a premium of approximately 167.7 % to the closing price of 0.195 pence per Yourgene share on June 30, 2023.

Yourgene CEO Lyn Rees said: “The board of Yourgene welcome the offer from Novacyt UK.

“The prospect and scale of what the new enlarged group could bring to our customers, employees and other stakeholders is exciting given the complimentary fit of both businesses.

“Whilst the two companies work within the same molecular diagnostic space, they both bring distinctive strengths and are focused in different market segments, which opens up further opportunities for growth.”

Novacyt CEO James McCarthy said: “We are delighted to announce this recommended offer for Yourgene.

“We regard Yourgene as a highly respected company with a world class team of employees that offers differentiated solutions to customers.

“We consider Novacyt and Yourgene to be highly complementary and expect the combination of the two businesses to benefit stakeholders of both Novacyt and Yourgene.”