Nasdaq to Delist Karyopharm After Bankruptcy Filing as Company Expects Total Loss for Shareholders
Key Facts
Nasdaq has decided to delist Karyopharm Therapeutics’ securities after the company sought Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, according to a notice it received on November 4 and disclosed to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The company said the decision was directly tied to the bankruptcy petitions filed with the court, putting the stock’s exchange listing on a path to termination. It said Nasdaq also cited public-interest concerns and the remaining equity rights of current shareholders. The reasons also included doubts about the company’s ability to continue complying with listing requirements. Karyopharm said it would not appeal the decision, leaving the court to determine the fate of its proposed restructuring plan under Chapter 11.
The plan the company filed with the court on November 2 provides that holders of common stock or 0% Series A convertible preferred stock will receive no payment or distribution. Accordingly, the company expects its outstanding shares to become worthless and current shareholders to incur a total loss. The disclosure statement says trading in the company’s securities during the bankruptcy proceedings “involves highly significant speculation and risks.” It also warned that trading prices may not reflect any amount shareholders could recover at the end of the proceedings. These terms leave shareholders with no return under the filed plan, while the restructuring remains subject to judicial review.
Trading in the stock on Nasdaq is scheduled to be suspended at the opening of trading on November 11. The company expects the stock to begin trading in the over-the-counter market on or after that date under the ticker KPTIQ, but it cannot guarantee that trading will begin or continue. It confirmed that trading in the stock during bankruptcy is highly speculative and that the price does not necessarily represent value shareholders could recover. The move to over-the-counter trading, if it occurs, would follow the end of the Nasdaq listing, as the company expects current shares to be worthless under the plan. The stock closed at $0.0549 on November 6, compared with a close of $0.0601 on November 5.
Karyopharm and its subsidiary KPT Texas LLC filed voluntary Chapter 11 petitions on November 2 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division. The restructuring plan includes a proposed merger between Ayrmid and the reorganized entity, with Ayrmid acting as the initial bidder in a court-supervised sale process. Competing bids may be submitted as part of the process, according to the company’s statement. The disclosure statement proposes distributing 55.0% of the new entity’s common shares to the financing creditors, while current Ayrmid shareholders would receive the remaining 45.0%. The filed plan allocates no distribution to current Karyopharm shareholders.
The company said it had secured commitments for up to $55 million in debtor-in-possession financing from its existing secured lenders, with the financing still subject to court approval. The proposed financing is intended to support the company during the restructuring proceedings, while the proposed transaction with Ayrmid depends on completion of the plan’s conditions. Karyopharm expects to complete the transaction in the first quarter of 2027, subject to those conditions. In its second-quarter financial disclosure, the company said substantial doubt existed about its ability to continue as a going concern for one year from the issuance of the financial statements. It said at the time that continued operations depended on additional financing or strategic alternatives and sales of the drug XPOVIO.
Cash, cash equivalents and investments totaled $65.1 million on June 30, 2026, while the accumulated deficit reached $1.8 billion, according to the company’s disclosure. In the first half of 2026, net product revenue, which includes XPOVIO, rose to $59.939 million from $50.735 million in the corresponding period of 2025. But licensing and other revenue fell to $8.559 million from $17.209 million. The company said in August that its liquidity and expected cash flows would fund operating plans through September 2026. These figures provide financial context for the liquidity crisis that preceded the protection filing, while the company’s proposed plan for shareholders has now been set out in the court filing.
On November 2, the company began soliciting votes on the plan from eligible creditor classes and set November 30 as the voting deadline. It asked the court to hold a hearing on final approval of the disclosure statement and confirmation of the plan around January 11, 2027, subject to court availability. Current common shareholders are not entitled to vote on the plan; under its terms, they are deemed to reject it. The transaction, financing and court timetable remain subject to the relevant procedures and approvals. The process to suspend the stock on Nasdaq is expected to begin on November 11, the same date over-the-counter trading is expected to start if it proceeds.