Rafael Holdings acquires majority stake in pharma firm

Rafael Holdings Inc., a Newark-based holder of commercial real estate assets and interests in two clinical stage pharmaceutical companies, announced Wednesday it has acquired a majority stake in Rafael Pharmaceuticals Inc.

Rafael Pharma is a clinical-stage metabolic oncology therapeutics company developing anti-cancer agents.

Rafael Holdings and its subsidiaries will now hold 51 percent of the outstanding stock of Rafael Pharma. The total investment to date from Rafael Holdings into Rafael Pharma has hit $66.7 million, it said.

“We very much appreciate the continuing investment by Rafael Holdings,” Sanjeev Luther, CEO and president of Rafael Pharma. “With this support, we believe we are well positioned to advance our clinical program and products in our development pipeline.”