Aphria, Tilray in Talks to Merge: Report

Aphria Inc. (NASDAQ: APHA) and From Tilray Inc. (NASDAQ: TLRY) are considering merger.

The two companies started negotiations this week, and an official announcement could be released before Friday, according to BNN Bloomberg.

The resulting company would retain the Tilray name and appoint Irwin Simon, Aphria’s current CEO, as Chief Executive Officer.

Aphria would emerge as the majority shareholder, with the largest number of seats on the board, the report continued, citing an unnamed source.

The merger would save the companies up to CA $ 100 million ($ 78.7 million) in annual costs, while generating annual sales of more than CA $ 930 million ($ 732 million).

Cannabis M&A deals have swept the industry for the past two years. Should this deal be struck, two of Canada’s biggest players would merge into a massive marijuana juggernaut with a combined market cap of $ 3.3 billion.

Both stocks were trading more than 15% higher during Tuesday’s session after closing time.

Main image by Ilona Szentivanyi. Copyright: Benzinga.

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