Canadian Biotech Under Fire: How Stock Spoofing Tactics Derailed Quantum BioPharma's Multiple Sclerosis Breakthrough

When Quantum BioPharma’s Lucid-MS research showed remarkable promise in reversing nerve damage associated with multiple sclerosis, hope surged among investors and patients alike. Yet instead of soaring, QNTM stock plummeted from $7.39 to below $2.76 between 2020 and 2021—a gut-wrenching 63% decline that left backers devastated and the company struggling to fund critical trials.

The Science Showed Promise. The Markets Showed Sabotage.

Multiple sclerosis affects nearly 90,000 Canadians, progressively destroying nerve cells and crippling mobility. Quantum’s preclinical trials delivered stunning results: mice treated with Lucid-MS regained mobility after experiencing MS-like nerve damage. The regulatory pathway opened. The science was solid. Yet the capital markets told a different story.

Atul Dhadwal, an investor who poured $300,000 into Quantum BioPharma, watched his stake evaporate—down 98% in value. Others suffered similarly. The disconnect was so stark that it caught the attention of media outlets including CTV’s flagship investigative program W5, which launched a three-part examination into what happened. Part 2 aired as scheduled, continuing to expose the mechanisms behind Quantum’s stock collapse.

Alleged Spoofing on Canadian Exchanges: The $700 Million Case

Quantum BioPharma didn’t accept the narrative of market forces. Instead, the Toronto-based biotech firm filed a USD $700 million lawsuit alleging systematic stock market manipulation through “spoofing”—a tactic where traders place and instantly cancel massive orders to artificially suppress or inflate prices, creating false price signals that mislead the market.

The company’s investigation uncovered what it describes as at least 16 million illegal and fictitious orders originating from Canadian banking platforms. Two major financial institutions stand accused: CIBC and RBC, identified as defendants in claims that they either enabled the manipulation or failed in their gatekeeping responsibilities.

“The Canadian exchange trading data clearly show stock spoofing on a massive scale,” explained Quantum BioPharma Co-Executive Chair Anthony Durkacz. “Banks and brokers must act as gatekeepers to prevent clients and traders from breaching regulations or engaging in illegal activity. That obligation was not met.”

When Capital Markets Failure Becomes a Patient Crisis

For those living with MS, the stakes transcend courtrooms. Alexander Bar, a Quantum board member and MS patient, articulated the human toll plainly: “Without funding, they can’t run the trials. Without trials, the research never reaches patients who need it. That drug will never become accessible to people like me.”

This reality underscores a critical vulnerability in biotech financing. When stock prices are manipulated lower, companies lose access to capital markets—precisely when they need funding most to advance promising treatments toward completion.

Prosecution and Price Recovery

The lawsuit, formally submitted in late 2025, seeks damages not just for shareholders but to restore market confidence in the company’s ability to raise funds for Lucid-MS advancement. Broader regulatory scrutiny of Canadian exchanges may follow as this case illuminates systemic weaknesses in biotech market protections.

Quantum continues pursuing clinical development of Lucid-MS despite financial headwinds. Recent trading signals some recovery: QNTM closed Wednesday at $11.41, up 41.92%, and extended gains in overnight trading to $12.98, up an additional 13.76% as of 2:41:50 AM EST. Yet even this rebound cannot erase years of lost momentum and missed funding opportunities for trials.

The company has made clear that litigation funding and favorable lawsuit outcomes will be essential to sustaining Lucid-MS development and ultimately delivering treatments to the nearly 90,000 Canadians living with multiple sclerosis.