Illumina’s board has decided to spin out Grail into its own company this month, the DNA sequencing company announced Monday.
Since Illumina announced in December that it would unwind its $8 billion Grail deal, the company has put forth two potential scenarios: a spin-out, or a sale of the cancer testing company. Last month, Illumina suggested it was leaning toward a spinoff, and it’s unclear if it ever received any significant acquisition offers.
“Today’s announcement marks a milestone for Illumina and signals an important step forward for the company, since the divestiture of Grail is one of our 2024 priorities,” said Jacob Thaysen, CEO of Illumina, in a statement.
According to the announcement, Grail will begin trading toward the end of this month.
Under the plan, Illumina shareholders will retain their current shares of Illumina common stock and will also receive one share of Grail common stock for every six shares of Illumina stock.
The company will hold on to a 14.5% stake in Grail.