XWELL Reaffirms Commitment to Biosecurity, Appoints Former CDC Senior Advisor

Rhea-AI Summary

XWELL (Nasdaq: XWEL) reaffirmed its biosecurity focus and named Cindy Friedman, M.D., former CDC senior advisor and founding director of CDC’s Traveler-based Genomic Surveillance program, as senior advisor effective Jan 8, 2026. The company said it will leverage traveler-based pathogen surveillance used across seven major U.S. airports to expand internationally into Europe and the Middle East, targeting travel hubs and large-scale mass gatherings including Turkey, Dubai, and Saudi Arabia. Dr. Friedman will advise on design and deployment of traveler-based surveillance adapted to complex event and travel settings.

Key Figures

U.S. airports covered 7 airports Current wellness and biosecurity programs across major U.S. airports

CDC collaboration period 3 years Duration supporting CDC’s Traveler-based Genomic Surveillance program

Experience in surveillance 30+ years Dr. Cindy Friedman’s experience in disease surveillance programs

Current share price $0.4571 Pre-news trading level on publication date

52-week high $1.62 Upper end of 52-week trading range before this news

52-week low $0.43 Lower end of 52-week trading range before this news

Registered resale shares 30,440,060 shares Shares registered on S-3/A shelf for prior investors

Registered vs outstanding 557% Registered amount vs common stock outstanding on Jun 18, 2025

Market Reality Check

$0.4467 Last Close

Volume Volume 31,234 is at a relative level of 0.76x the 20-day average, indicating subdued trading interest ahead of this announcement. normal

Technical Shares at 0.4571 are trading below the 200-day MA of 0.93, and remain far under the 52-week high of 1.62 and close to the 52-week low of 0.43.

Peers on Argus

XWEL showed a modest gain while sector peers were mixed: BIAF down 1.53%, MYNZ down 9.35%, and ADVB, CHEK, ISPC posting small gains between 0.31% and 2.57%. This pattern points to a stock-specific reaction rather than a coordinated sector move.

Historical Context

Date	Event	Sentiment	Move	Catalyst
Dec 18	Transit hub expansion	Positive	-2.3%	Opened new wellness retail site in New York Penn Station transit hub.
Nov 14	Quarterly earnings	Neutral	+0.1%	Reported Q3 2025 results with modest loss and cost-reduction initiatives.
Nov 05	Product launch	Positive	-1.1%	Introduced co-branded Blue Breeze Eye Mask across airport locations.
Oct 30	Partnership expansion	Positive	-2.3%	Expanded Priority Pass partnership to additional international airports.
Sep 12	Center opening	Positive	+4.8%	Opened new Florida wellness center with medical services and NP on staff.

Pattern Detected

Recent history shows several instances where operational expansion news was followed by negative price reactions, suggesting a tendency toward selling into positive strategic announcements.

Recent Company History

Over the last few months, XWEL has focused on expanding its wellness and travel-focused footprint, opening new brick‑and‑mortar locations in Florida and New York’s Penn Station and broadening its Priority Pass partnership across the Middle East and Europe. An earnings update on Nov 14, 2025 highlighted revenue of $7.3M and ongoing cost actions. Today’s biosecurity-focused advisory appointment builds on this trajectory of scaling traveler-centric wellness and surveillance offerings across key transit hubs.

Regulatory & Risk Context

Active S-3 Shelf Registration 2025-06-20

An effective S-3/A shelf dated Jun 20, 2025 registers 30,440,060 common shares for resale tied to Series G preferred, warrants, and dividend shares. The registered amount equals about 557% of common stock outstanding as of Jun 18, 2025, highlighting potential substantial dilution if fully issued. Proceeds from resales go to selling stockholders; XWELL would receive cash only upon warrant exercises.

Market Pulse Summary

This announcement strengthens XWEL’s traveler-based biosecurity strategy by adding the architect of CDC’s TGS program as a senior advisor, reinforcing its role across seven major U.S. airports and planned expansion into Europe and the Middle East. Context from recent filings shows tight liquidity and a shelf registering 30,440,060 resale shares, about 557% of earlier common stock, so investors may monitor execution in new biosecurity markets alongside balance sheet and dilution dynamics.

Key Terms

biosecurity medical

"XWELL has long been committed to advancing biosecurity at scale"

Biosecurity is the set of practices, physical safeguards and rules designed to prevent accidental or intentional release, theft or misuse of biological agents and to keep supply chains, workplaces and communities safe—like locks, alarms and hygiene rules for anything involving microbes or biological materials. It matters to investors because weak biosecurity can lead to costly shutdowns, regulatory fines, damaged reputation and disrupted products or services, while strong biosecurity protects business continuity and reduces legal and financial risk.

pathogen surveillance medical

"advance Pathogen Surveillance InternationallyNEW YORK, Jan. 08, 2026 -- XWELL"

Monitoring and tracking disease-causing organisms—like bacteria, viruses and their mutations—across populations, environments or products to detect outbreaks and trends early. Think of it as a neighborhood watch for germs: timely data helps public health officials, hospitals and companies decide when to act, which can affect consumer behavior, supply chains, regulatory responses and demand for medical products, making it a material signal for investors evaluating health, operational and market risks.

traveler-based pathogen surveillance medical

"leveraging its traveler-based pathogen surveillance capabilities to support international"

Monitoring infectious agents by testing or tracking people who travel between regions to spot new or spreading pathogens early. Like a weather station at a highway checkpoint that detects storms before they hit a city, this approach can give public health officials and businesses advance warning of outbreaks, affecting travel demand, supply chains, and demand for diagnostics or treatments—information investors use to assess near-term risks and opportunities.

traveler-based genomic surveillance (tgs) medical

"founding director of CDC’s Traveler-based Genomic Surveillance (TGS) program"

Traveler-based genomic surveillance collects and analyzes biological samples from people who travel between regions to identify which strains or variants of a pathogen are present and how they are spreading. For investors, it acts like an early-warning system or smoke detector for disease movement: timely detection can influence travel policies, consumer behavior, supply chains and healthcare demand, and therefore can affect company revenues, stock prices and market risk.

infectious disease medical

"Dr. Cindy Friedman is an infectious disease physician and public health leader"

An infectious disease is an illness caused by germs—such as bacteria, viruses or other microbes—that can spread from person to person or between animals and people, like a small fire that can jump from one object to another. Investors care because outbreaks can change consumer behavior, disrupt workforces and supply chains, shift demand for products and services, and trigger government action or regulatory scrutiny that affects company revenues and costs.

mass gathering events medical

"large-scale mass gathering events, including major religious and sporting events"

Mass gathering events are occasions that bring together large numbers of people in one place — such as concerts, sports matches, conferences, or festivals — typically exceeding the capacity of normal daily activity. For investors, they matter because changes in attendance, health rules, or restrictions can quickly affect revenue and costs for venues, travel, hospitality, and consumer-facing companies; think of them as demand spikes or shutdown switches that can swing earnings and supply chains.

AI-generated analysis. Not financial advice.

Company Builds on U.S Biosecurity Leadership to Advance Pathogen Surveillance Internationally

NEW YORK, Jan. 08, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- XWELL, Inc. (Nasdaq: XWEL) ("XWELL" or the "Company"), a leading provider of wellness solutions for people on the go, today announced the continued expansion of its global biosecurity strategy, leveraging its traveler-based pathogen surveillance capabilities to support international travel hubs and large-scale mass gathering events worldwide.

To support this next phase of growth, XWELL announced today that Cindy Friedman, M.D., former CDC senior advisor and the founding director of CDC’s Traveler-based Genomic Surveillance (TGS) program, will serve as a senior advisor to the Company. In this role, Dr. Friedman will provide strategic guidance on the design and adaptation of traveler-based surveillance approaches for select international biosecurity initiatives.

“XWELL has long been committed to advancing biosecurity at scale,” said Ezra Ernst, CEO of XWELL. “Our team already works closely with public health authorities in major travel hubs around the world, and having Dr. Friedman’s expertise, leadership and global network will allow us to move faster as we expand globally.”

Over the past three years, XWELL has supported the CDC’s TGS program in association with Ginkgo Bioworks, contributing to one of the largest traveler-based pathogen surveillance initiatives ever implemented in the United States. This work has enabled early detection and monitoring of emerging infectious diseases at international points of entry.

Building on its U.S. foundation, XWELL is now expanding its biosecurity strategy internationally, focusing on applying proven surveillance models to global travel hubs and large-scale mass gatherings, including major religious and sporting events. The company currently operates wellness and biosecurity programs across seven major U.S. airports and works closely with public health stakeholders in major international travel corridors.

Dr. Cindy Friedman is an infectious disease physician and public health leader with more than 30 years of experience building and scaling disease surveillance programs. She was the architect of CDC’s Traveler-based Genomic Surveillance (TGS) program, a landmark initiative designed to monitor emerging pathogens at international points of entry.

Through the TGS program, XWELL collaborated with the CDC and Ginkgo Bioworks to support sample collection and analysis across multiple U.S. airports. As part of its global expansion strategy, XWELL is actively exploring opportunities to extend its biosecurity footprint into Europe and the Middle East, including Turkey, Dubai, and Saudi Arabia—regions that host some of the world’s most complex and high-impact mass gathering events. Dr. Friedman will provide strategic guidance to XWELL on the design and deployment of surveillance programs tailored to these environments.

“I’ve spent much of my career building large-scale public health surveillance programs that work in complex real-world settings. I’m looking forward to advising XWELL as it expands its biosecurity efforts into select international markets,” said Dr. Friedman.

With a strong track record in large-scale surveillance and experience operating in complex travel environments, XWELL is positioned to play an increasingly important role in shaping how biosecurity programs are designed and implemented in global travel and mass gathering event settings.

For more information about XWELL and its biosecurity initiatives, visit www.xwell.com.

About XWELL, Inc.

XWELL, Inc. (Nasdaq: XWEL) is redefining the modern wellness experience. Through its portfolio of brands — XpresSpa^®, Naples Wax Center^®, XpresCheck^®, and HyperPointe™ — XWELL makes self-care accessible, elevated and entirely on your terms. With locations in airports and metropolitan areas worldwide, XWELL helps people feel their best wherever life takes them.

Forward-Looking Statements  
This press release may contain "forward-looking" statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These include statements preceded by, followed by or that otherwise include the words "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "estimates," "projects," "intends," "should," "seeks," "future," "continue," or the negative of such terms, or other comparable terminology. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements include, without limitation: the anticipated use of proceeds from the private placement. Forward-looking statements relating to expectations about future results or events are based upon information available to XWELL as of the date of this press release, and are not guarantees of the future performance of the Company, and actual results may vary materially from the results and expectations discussed. Additional information concerning these and other risks is contained in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K, as amended, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K, and other Securities and Exchange Commission filings. All subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements concerning XWELL, or other matters and attributable to XWELL or any person acting on its behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements above. XWELL does not undertake any obligation to publicly update any of these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date hereof.  

Valentina Marmolejo (vmarmolejo@mww.com)

FAQ

Who did XWELL (XWEL) appoint as a senior advisor on January 8, 2026?

XWELL appointed Cindy Friedman, M.D., former CDC senior advisor and founding director of CDC’s Traveler-based Genomic Surveillance program, as senior advisor.

What experience will Dr. Cindy Friedman bring to XWELL's biosecurity efforts (XWEL)?

Dr. Friedman brings over 30 years of infectious disease and public health surveillance experience and led the CDC Traveler-based Genomic Surveillance program.

Which regions is XWELL (XWEL) targeting for international expansion of its traveler-based surveillance?

XWELL is exploring expansion into Europe and the Middle East, including Turkey, Dubai, and Saudi Arabia, focusing on travel hubs and mass gatherings.

How many U.S. airports does XWELL currently operate wellness and biosecurity programs in?

XWELL currently operates programs across seven major U.S. airports.

What types of events will XWELL's expanded surveillance target as part of its global biosecurity strategy?

The company plans to target large-scale mass gatherings, including major religious and sporting events at international travel hubs.