Shares of Cardax Pharmaceuticals rose sharply on the first day of public trading for the Honolulu-based biotech firm.

Cardax opened at $1.50 a share and rose as high as $3.25 a share before closing at $3.05 in the over-the-counter market. Trading volume was 5,200 shares.

Cardax finalized its move to become a publicly traded company on Friday when it completed a reverse merger with Houston-based Koffee Korner Inc.

The procedure used by Cardax was a simpler way of taking a company public than with a standard initial public offering because Koffee Korner had already met shareholder requirements for publicly traded companies.

Koffee Corner shares closed at 50 cents on Friday before the reverse merger was completed. Cardax has applied to trade under the ticker symbol CDXI. Shares will continue to trade under Koffee Korner’s existing symbol, KOFF, for about a week until the change is approved.