SpheriCann™: the unique cannabinoid capsule developed by 113 Botanicals
Medical cannabis firm 113 Botanicals has launched a £2 million fund-raising drive to bring new products to market which will ‘revolutionise’ how the drug is legally prescribed by doctors.
The firm – with a production facility based on the South Coast and with a research laboratory at the University of Sussex – plans to bring their ground-breaking products to patients next year.
113 Botanicals has a pre-money valuation of £33 million and the new Crowdcube funding will be used to support the launch of their first product to market, the SpheriCann™ capsule, and for the development of their other patent protected technologies – all with the aim for more patient-friendly formats and designed to offer consistent absorption and precise dosing of cannabinoid medicines.
Les Maguire, 113 Botanicals co-founder and CEO, said: “This crowd-fund is the final piece in the jigsaw after six years of ground-breaking research with the University of Sussex.
“We see 113 Botanicals as an innovator above all – one that harnesses exemplary research and development to create products that revolutionise the way patients take medical cannabis.”
113 Botanicals already holds Home Office Controlled Drugs Licences at both its R&D laboratory and its 7,000 sq. ft production facility.
The team is now in the product validation phase prior to final approval for their Manufacturers’ Specials (MS) licence from the Government’s Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency (MHRA), awaiting final inspection in 2026.
Once licensed, their first product to market – SpheriCann™ – will be a controlled-release cannabinoid capsule – designed to improve dosing consistency and expand options for patients and prescribers whilst also being discrete and easy to take.
As a company whose focus is on creating innovative new formats for medical cannabis that focus on patient ease-of-use and increasing prescriber confidence, 113 Botanicals is also developing a patch – VectiCann™ – worn on the arm like a nicotine patch, which could prove ground-breaking for whole new patient groups where vaping or oral administration would be either undesirable or difficult to administer, such as paediatrics and geriatrics.
The products will initially be aimed at the UK market, where it is predicted that around 80,000 patients will receive prescribed cannabis medicines via private prescription in 2025.
Going forward, the company aims to expand into other important global markets, including Germany (with nearly 900,000 patients accessing such products) and Australia (more than one million patients prescribed since legalisation changed).
Maguire added: “Subject to MHRA approval, our GMP-manufactured cannabis-based medicines will represent one of the most advanced prescription options available to UK patients and prescribers.
“Obtaining final MHRA approval will represent a major de-risking milestone. It provides an independent regulatory validation of a product’s quality and safety which is widely regarded by investors, strategic partners, and acquirers as one of the most important value-inflection points in the sector.”
Dr Barnaby Greenland, from the University of Sussex, said: “With the help of Sussex Innovations, we have been able to maintain a productive relationship with 113 Botanicals over many years, which has underpinned the success of the project.
“I am excited to be able to continue our involvement during the next phase where we move towards scale-up and manufacturing of the products first developed in our labs at the University of Sussex.”
In development for over two years, the SpheriCann™ capsule uses patent-protected technology to deliver a controlled and sustained release effect, which is designed to allow for more consistent absorption and precise dosing of cannabinoid medicines, avoiding the need for multiple doses throughout the day.
With MHRA approval, 113 Botanicals will be one of only a handful of UK medical cannabis companies with an MS licence and the only one to have a licence for a ‘defined novel finished product’.
Earlier funding rounds totalling more than £2.8 million completed manufacturing site, funded research and product development work and helped the team prepare for licensing.
