There could be non-disclosure agreements signed by one or more of the entities preventing dissemination of material information as pertains to being released to the public, investing or otherwise. This is a rather common practice. In some(but not all) cases, if parties do not abide by the terms at hand, it can legally be deemed as breach of contract, leading to either penalties, further delays, or termination due to practices involving trust and reputation.
As for the dissimilar way in which the major entities you mentioned operate, take into consideration that they have decades of reputation behind them, as well as massive amounts of funding for legal protection, private verification, and the like. You can have thirty short sellers or impatient shareholders try to destroy a merger with one of those big entities, but it will be to no avail, unless orchestrated by a major hedge fund with inside lines to the transactions. When was the last time a team of shareholders brought down Disney or Comcast? Now when was the last time a team brought down a penny stock start up? Sometimes silence is best for all parties, even if multiple people are eager to spread the good news.
Try Rene by email or via Twitter. Maybe he will be able to give a small confirmation without divulging dates, numbers or anything of the sort that he would be legally or professional asked not to disclose. "Is the deal with InMed still on?" "Are we getting close, or do we still have a bit of a wait?" "Anything else you could share would be great. If you are not comfortable with an email chain with a singular shareholder, a quick statement or two on the Twitter account would go a long way in securing comfort and confidence."
