Co-development Agreement to Advance CHK1 Programme

24 September 2013

SAREUM HOLDINGS PLC

("Sareum" or "the Company")

SAREUM ENTERS AGREEMENT TO ADVANCE CHK1 PROGRAMME

Sareum (AIM: SAR), the specialist cancer drug discovery business, is pleased to announce that it has entered into a co-development agreement with the Cancer Research Technology Pioneer Fund (CPF) and London Stock Exchange-listed investment company, BACIT Ltd, to advance the Checkpoint Kinase 1 (CHK1) inhibitor candidate through pre-clinical development and Phase 1 clinical trials.

Under the agreement, CPF obtains worldwide rights to the preclinical CHK1 inhibitor programme and is responsible for future development and commercialisation, funded by CPF, BACIT and Sareum. Sareum and its original collaboration partners, The Institute of Cancer Research and Cancer Research Technology Ltd, are entitled to an up-front fee plus success milestone and royalty payments. On successful sub-licencing of the programme, Sareum will also be entitled to a share of sub-licence payments proportional to its investment under the agreement. Financial terms of the licence are not disclosed. As part of the agreement, Sareum expects to commit up to £800,000 to the programme in its current financial year.

As outlined in Sareum's Research Update dated 18 February 2013, options for the future development of the CHK1 programme involved, either to continue licence discussions with third parties, or to progress research further before licencing the programme at a later stage. The Company believes that entering into this agreement is likely to provide a greater return to shareholders given the promising pre-clinical results the CHK1 candidate has demonstrated so far, including the compound's potential to be administered orally in future clinical studies.

CHK1 is important in controlling the way many cancer cells respond to DNA damage, which may be a consequence of the cancer itself, or intentionally caused by chemotherapy or radiotherapy. Inhibition of CHK1 affects the ability of the cell to repair this damage and can therefore potentiate the effect of certain chemotherapeutic drugs.  The candidate CHK1 inhibitor to be developed could potentially treat a range of cancers including pancreatic, bowel and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in combination with DNA-damaging chemotherapy drugs and/or radiotherapy. The inhibitor could also potentially treat certain neuroblastoma and acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) types when dosed alone.

Dr Tim Mitchell, CEO of Sareum said:

"The agreement we are announcing today is an important milestone for Sareum as we enter into a new phase with our most advanced programme.  It will enable the programme to move swiftly towards, and potentially into, Phase I clinical trials whilst allowing us to continue to fund other important programmes.  Furthermore, the successful outcome of further development should pave the way for the commercialisation of a novel and broadly applicable cancer treatment.  We look forward to working with our new collaboration partners and updating shareholders on our progress."

Sareum Holdings plc
Tim Mitchell	01223 497 700
Sanlam Securities UK Limited (Nomad)
Simon Clements	020 7628 2200
Hybridan LLP (Broker)
Claire Noyce, William Lynne	020 7947 4350 / 020 7947 4361
Media enquiries:
The Communications Portfolio Ltd
Philip Ranger [e-mail]	020 7536 2026

Notes for editors:

About Sareum Holdings plc

Sareum is a drug discovery company, headquartered in Cambridge UK, that produces targeted small molecule therapeutics, focusing on cancer and auto-immune disease. Sareum aims to successfully deliver drug candidates for licencing to pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies at the pre-clinical or early clinical trials stage.

SKIL® (Sareum Kinase Inhibitor Library) is Sareum's drug discovery technology platform that has so far produced the Company's Aurora+FLT3, Aurora+ALK, VEGFR-3, FLT3 & TYK2 kinase cancer and auto-immune disease research programmes. SKIL can also generate drug research programmes against other kinase targets.

Sareum Holdings plc is listed on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange and trades under the symbol SAR.  For further information, please visit www.sareum.co.uk

About CRT Pioneer Fund

The CRT Pioneer Fund is a £50 million fund that has been established with Cancer Research Technology (CRT) and the European Investment Fund (EIF) to bridge the investment gap between cancer drug discovery and early development. It will take potential cancer drugs, primarily discovered by Cancer Research UK, from discovery through to entry to Phase II clinical trials before partnering with pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. CRT and the EIF are making equal contributions to the CRT Pioneer Fund. The fund is managed by Sixth Element Capital.  For more information please visit www.sixthelementcapital.com.

About BACIT

BACIT Limited is a self-managed, closed-ended investment company listed on the London Stock Exchange (Ticker: BACT.L).  Its investment objective is to deliver superior returns from investments in leading long-only and alternative investment funds with proven managers and across multiple asset classes. Investments are only made where the relevant investment manager provides investment capacity on a "gross return" basis, meaning that BACIT does not bear the impact of management or performance fees on the relevant investment.  Further, BACIT does not charge any fees to its own investors.  BACIT makes an annual donation of 1 % of its net asset value to charity, half of which is donated to the ICR and half to the BACIT Foundation, which grants that half (net of the BACIT Foundation's expenses) to charities in a list proposed annually by the BACIT Foundation (including the ICR) in proportions determined by BACIT's investors. Further, BACIT may invest up to 1% of its net asset value each year to acquire interests in drug development and medical innovation projects undertaken by the ICR.

Taylor Vinters LLP (Solicitors to Sareum)   Patrick Farrant 01223 225181

Taylor Vinters is a successful next-generation law firm with a commitment to being one of the elite law firms operating internationally in the areas of technology, investment and private client. Headquartered in Cambridge UK,  Europe's innovation capital, and operating from its offices in London, Singapore and Cambridge, its team of entrepreneurially minded people serve an international client base of private individuals, fast-growth companies, multinational, investors and non-profits.

www.taylorvinters.com

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