The Nasdaq Stock Market has suspended trading of the shares of Poniard Pharmaceuticals, a move that comes about two weeks after the biotech company terminated a merger with Allozyne of Seattle.

The companies killed the merger after determining that the common stock of the combined company would not qualify for listing on the Nasdaq Capital Market, a condition of the merger.

With Nasdaq’s decision today, Poniard’s stock will shift to the OTCQB Marketplace, with plans to eventually list on the OTC Bulletin Board.

In addition to the Nasdaq delisting, the company announced that Ronald A. Martell is replacing Jerry McMahon as Chaiman. McMahon also resigned from the board and as CEO, a position that will remain vacant. Board member Fred Craves will lead the management team.

“The executive committee is actively exploring alternatives for Poniard’s business and assets,” the company wrote in a press release. In addition, board members E. Rolland Dickson, Gary Lyons and Nicholas Simon resigned from the board.

Formerly known as NeoRx, the company changed its name to Poniard in 2006 and moved its headquarters to San Francisco where McMahon resided. Most of the employees remained in Seattle, and even at that time of the headquarters move the struggling cancer research company was facing possible delisting from Nasdaq.

Allozyne, a six-year-old biotech upstart backed by OVP Venture Partners, Arch Venture Partners and others, had hoped to use the assets of Poniard to go public. The companies entered into a merger agreement on June 22, one which called for the combined company to be renamed Allozyne and be based in Seattle under the direction of CEO Meenu Chhabra.

Allozyne investors were to hold 65 percent of the combined stock of the company.

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