NeutralGlobeNewsWire
1 month ago
COSCIENS Biopharma Inc. Announces Possible Delay in Filing Year-End Reporting Documents
TORONTO, ONTARIO, March 19, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- COSCIENS Biopharma Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCI) (TSX: CSCI) (“COSCIENS” or the “Company”), a life science company which develops and commercializes a diversified portfolio of cosmeceutical, nutraceutical and pharmaceutical products, today announced that there is a potential for delay in the filing of: (a) its annual financial statements as of December 31, 2024 and 2023 and for the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023 and 2022, and its related management's discussion and analysis (collectively, the “Financial Statements”); (b) the CEO and CFO certificates relating to the Financial Statements; and (c) the Company's annual information form (in the form of an annual report on Form 20-F) (collectively, the “Required Filings”), beyond the prescribed filing deadline, being March 31, 2025. The potential delay in filing of the Required Filings is a result of additional time that may be required to address certain matters related to the 2024 all stock merger transaction (the “Transaction”) between the Company and Ceapro Inc. (“Ceapro”). In connection with the Transaction, Ceapro, which was formerly listed on the TSX Venture Exchange, was required to undergo a conversion of its accounting procedures to ensure compliance with the Company's existing SEC reporting obligations and internal control requirements. This is first audit of the combined entity that has been required since the Transaction, which has not only added additional complexity to the audit process but also required additional time to complete the review of Ceapro's internal controls. As a result, there has been an unexpected volume of matters necessary to address in order for the Company's auditors to complete the audit. Relatedly, the Issuer's management has determined that material weaknesses in the Issuer's financial controls existed as of the year ended December 31, 2024. Specifically, based on the criteria established by the COSO framework, the Issuer's management identified deficiencies in the COSO framework principles associated with the control environment, control activities, information and communication and monitoring components of internal control, that constitute material weaknesses, either individually or in the aggregate. Separately, the Company's auditors have undertaken a review of the impact of the prospective U.S. tariffs on the Issuer, which introduced an additional layer of review.