Check out where the money went in the life sciences industry this week.
Money, money, money. Check out where the money went in the life sciences industry this week.
Increasing equitable access to medicines, EQRx took the shortcut to going public via a merger with a Special Purpose Acquisition Corp (SPAC). The financing from the merger will give the company access to a massive $1.8 billion in cash to advance the development of the company’s drug pipeline, while giving a pre-transaction enterprise value of $3.65 billion. That pipeline includes more than ten programs with promising Phase III data showing in its oncology candidates. In the last two months, the company has announced partnerships with Exscientia and AbCellera Biologics Inc.
Hitting the gas to list on the Nasdaq, GreenLight is going public via a SPAC deal worth $1.5 billion. Its proprietary manufacturing process removes the bottlenecks of scaling up mRNA products. The company is working on a COVID-19 vaccine, which it hopes to have in clinical trials in Africa by the end of the year. GreenLight is also working on a mRNA flu vaccine alongside an RNA-based product portfolio to save bees from the parasitic Varroa mite and crops from the Colorado potato beetles. This merger snags the company $385 million in cash.
Restoring the balance of the immune system through T cells, Sonoma raised a hefty $265 million in its recent Series B round. The cash infusion will be funneled into scaling up manufacturing operations to support supply for upcoming clinical studies. Sonoma’s two most advanced programs are a novel CAR-based Treg cell therapy for refractory rheumatoid arthritis and a Teff conditioning biologic to clear the inflammatory environment and improve Treg cell therapies’ effectiveness. Sonoma was recently named as one of BioSpace’s “Top Life Sciences Startups to Watch in 2021.” Since its launch in 2020, it has raised over $335 million.
PepGen
Neuro-focused PepGen raked in $112.5 million last week in a crossover financing round. In addition to expanding the team in Boston, the company is focused on advancing its lead programs. ED051 for Duchenne muscular dystrophy is entering the clinic in 2022, while PepGen’s candidate for myotonic dystrophy type 1 is shooting for 2023. This raise is a substantial bump from last December’s Series A of $45 million.
XinThera
Having just launched in February 2021, this San Diego-biotech scooped up a $50 million Series B for its recruiting efforts and to build its product pipeline. With oncology and immunology experts on board, the goal is for a best-in-class pipeline of oncology and inflammation small molecule drugs. This raise brings XinThera’s total raise thus far to $80 million.
Aardvark Therapeutics
With three Phase II trials slated for this year, Aardvark rounded up $29 million in Series B dollars to fund the effort. The trials will be in the biopharma’s lead compound, ARD-101, a first-in-class small molecule TAS2R (bitter taste receptor) pan-agonist. A gut-restricted molecule, the candidate has the potential to be used in a spectrum of indications: lowering of LDL cholesterol, reduction of glucose, insulin and hemoglobin A1C, appetite suppression and anti-inflammatory effect. Funds will also advance several other formulations for major indications. The Phase II trials will be conducted in patients with Prader-Willi Syndrome, a genetic disorder in which patients are constantly hungry, often leading to obesity and Type 2 diabetes.
Visus Therapeutics
On a mission to develop ophthalmic therapies for people across the globe, Seattle-based Visus scored $20 million this week in fresh funds. The company is currently in a Phase II trial of its lead candidate Brimochol for prebyopia, the loss of near vision associated with aging. A topical ophthalmic solution, it’s a pupil-modulating product that combines two FDA-approved drugs. Topline readouts are anticipated soon. Financing will support further drug development and commercialization efforts.
