Relay Medical’s COVID-19 test to be deployed across Canada via LifeLabs

Relay Medical (Relay Medical Stock Quote, Chart, News, Analysts, Financials CSE:RELA) is about to deploy its COVID-19 testing technology across Canada, with the rapid testing and real time tracking Fionet platform to be used in community-based settings. CEO Yoav Raiter says the rapid testing will help Canadians return to daily life during the ongoing pandemic.

Toronto-headquartered Relay Medical has a joint venture with diagnostics and case management IT company Fio Corporation on the Fionet, first launched as a mobile COVID-19 testing and tracking platform in August 2020.

Fionet, which combines a handheld device with cloud-based and AI-powered real time and remote tracking, has been deployed in over a dozen countries in tests for high-consequence infectious diseases including HIV, Ebola, malaria and dengue fever. Relay Medical started its joint venture with Fio Corp last summer to adapt the Fionet as a COVID testing, data collection and reporting platform.

By the newly announced agreement, specialty lab testing services company LifeLabs will make Fionet available in settings such as airports, pop-up labs and installations for small businesses.

“With this engagement, we are privileged to make available the Fionet Platform nationwide to bring Canadians a testing solution to give the country the confidence and support to begin a safe return to daily life,” said Raiter in an April 14 press release.

“We’ve made rapid testing accessible for travelers, consumers, and employees across Canada and we look forward to doing the same for other countries and communities around the world as the Fionet Platform is ready to be widely deployed. This is a proud moment for Relay as we provide the new standard for rapid COVID screening,” Raiter said.

Relay Medical’s share price started to spike late last year after the company through its JV secured a manufacturing partner for Fionet and announced a sales agreement with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to deploy the Fionet Pandemic Platform to over 100 community-based healthcare sites in Africa, supporting widespread rapid testing, triage and real time tracking of infectious disease in a contract valued at $330,000.

RELA was almost a double in 2020 when its share price went from $0.18 to $0.30 by the year’s end. So far in 2021, the stock closed at $0.76 on March 2 before falling back to now the $0.60 range.

Last month, Fionet started testing US-departing passengers at Toronto’s Pearson Airport, with passengers getting tested after check-in.

“COVID-19’s threat to personal and economic well-being across the country created a need for innovation in technology and service,” said Dr. Michael Greenberg, CEO of Fio Corporation and the Fionet Rapid Response Group (FRR), in the April 14 press release.

“Through this alliance, LifeLabs and FRR are bringing into any community setting the caliber of automated, quality- controlled testing and tracking that previously was available only in centralized lab facilities. FRR expects the Fionet Platform to deliver hundreds of thousands of tests per month through this agreement,” Greenberg said.

In other Relay news, the company last month acquired IoT cybersecurity company Cybeats for an aggregate price of $7.18 million. Toronto-based Cybeats has a platform to aid in the secure communication between devices with continuous monitoring for threats.

Relay said the acquisition helps in the company’s goal of providing reliable data-driven medical devices and technologies.

“While consumers, patients, manufacturers, companies and the world at large rapidly adopt and recognize the benefits of connected solutions, the potential consequences of data breaches and cybersecurity failures become increasingly more catastrophic,” said W. Clark Kent, President of Relay Medical, in a March 3 press release.

“The value in bridging this gap is well illustrated by the flurry of activity in the global cybersecurity industry and we have experienced the power of the Cybeats solution firsthand. This is a very exciting development for the Company and we look forward to capitalizing on this opportunity and recognizing further synergies as the transaction progresses,” Kent said.

Earlier this year, Relay upped its investment in recently-public Glow LifeTech (CSE:GLOW), a biotech firm in the nutraceutical and cannabinoid-based products field which has developed the MyCell drug delivery system.

Glow LifeTech and Relay announced in January successful results from their Phase II clinical trial with Swiss Pharmacan AG and MGC Pharma for a natural anti-inflammatory treatment of COVID-19 called ArtemiC, which is powered by the MyCell delivery system. The trial featured 50 COVID-19 patients across three hospital sites in Israel, with the positive results opening up potential marketing opportunities for ArtemiC. MGC is planning a Phase III trial over the first half of 2021.

“Relay and Glow are critical partners of ours in commercializing MyCell Technology in North America and beyond. We look forward to building on our relationship as we roll-out breakthrough innovations like ArtemiC. With Glow preparing to list on the CSE, they will positioned well to support our mission of bringing innovative health products to the market,” said Michel Fässler, Managing Director, Swiss PharmaCan AG, in a January 14 press release.