Replies to post #88006 on Biotech Values

[DewDiligence]

Re: Top biotech scams

I believe Stephen Kanzer did not set up Pipex as a scam. He believed that the drug for Wilson's disease would be approved. Unlike the other scams he lost millions of dollars buying the stock on the open market before the NDA filing.

Any ranking of top biotech scams is going to be subjective insofar as the selection of the criteria that define a scam is itself subjective. If you take the time to chase the hyperlinks in #msg-44751578, you’ll see the criteria that I deem paramount:

• A clinical program or programs based on junk science (e.g. rheopheresis in the case of TLCV).

• A series of disingenuous PR’s and CC’s that attempt to make bad data look good.

• The concealment of material negative developments (e.g. HEB’s waiting half a year to admit that the Ampligen NDA was rejected and Biopure’s not telling investors the FDA had demanded new preclinical studies on Hemopure).

Whether insiders end up making money or losing money is not one of my main criteria; my reason is that insiders of scam companies may be inclined to gamble significant amounts of their own money in the hope of making orders of magnitude more money if the scam succeeds. This is what I think happened in the case of Pipex, although I understand and respect your arriving at a different interpretation.