Finance, Grants, Deals

Switzerland-based Vaderis Therapeutics AG has raised $152 million from a Series B financing round to support development of a small molecule drug, engasertib, for a rare vascular disease for which no treatments are currently approved. The disease is hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT), a genetic disorder affecting the vasculature, which manifests in nose bleeds, anaemia, and visceral arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) AVMs are tangles of blood vessels that can cause internal bleeding and organ damage.

On 4 August, the European Commission completed the final legal steps for the launch of the Scaleup Europe Fund, a public-private partnership that will invest in European companies with potential to compete globally in advanced technologies. The fund is being launched with a target capital of €5 billion. The fund’s first investment, a day after launch, was in the Finnish space technology company ICEYE. 

Ireland-based Jazz Pharmaceuticals Plc is to expand its presence in the epilepsy field with the acquisition of privately-held Actio Biosciences of San Diego, US, which has a clinical-stage product for a rare genetic epilepsy. In parallel, Jazz will take a minority stake in a spin-out of Actio, which will develop a cluster of rare disease products.

argenx SE is to expand its immunology portfolio with the acquisition of Forte Biosciences Inc of Dallas, Texas, US, whose lead product is being investigated in two autoimmune diseases. The Netherlands-based company is to pay $77 per share in cash for the company, representing an equity value of about $2.2 billion – it’s largest deal to date. Both companies are listed on the US Nasdaq exchange.

Scribe Therapeutics Inc, a company co-founded by the Nobel laureate Jennifer Doudna, has raised $128.7 million in an initial public offering on the US Nasdaq market – one of a growing number of biotech companies to go public this year. The funds will be used to advance the company’s lead programme for patients with elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) through Phase 1, and to develop two preclinical projects for cardiovascular and metabolic disorders.

Venture-capital backed Mission Therapeutics Ltd is to divest a clinical asset for the treatment of acute kidney injury to Australia-based Dimerix Ltd providing it with $292 million in non-dilutive capital. This will enable it to pursue its priority treatment for Parkinson’s disease and other possible central nervous system disorders. Announced on 17 July, the deal will also deliver up to double-digit tiered royalties to Mission should the kidney product, MTX652, reach the market. It is currently poised to enter Phase 2. The small molecule drug, MTX325, for Parkinson’s is in Phase 1.

Eli Lilly and Co is to enter the therapeutic arena for psychedelic medicines with the acquisition of AtaiBeckley Inc of New York City, US, giving it ownership of clinical-stage products for treatment-resistant depression and social anxiety disorder. Announced on 16 July, the deal involves an upfront cash payment of $2.8 billion. There would also be an additional $1 billion due by Lilly to the seller if certain development and regulatory milestones are met.

A two-year old biotech company based in San Francisco, US, completed a $400 million Series C financing round on 14 July to support the use of AI in discovering new molecules for drugs. Chai Discovery Inc is a private company which has been given a valuation of $3.8 billion by its investors which included Index Ventures, Kleiner Parkins, Sequoia Capital and Dimension Capital. The round was additionally supported by 15 other firms. 

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc, well-know for its cystic fibrosis therapies, has turned to endocrinology as a strategy for growth with the acquisition of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals Inc of San Diego, US. Announced on 6 July, the deal is valued at $10 billion, or about $8.8 billion net of the estimated cash on Crinetics’ balance sheet.

On 6 July, Novartis announced a new acquisition – this time potentially leading to a novel class of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs). The company is Myricx Pharma Ltd (Myricx Bio), located in Canary Wharf in London, UK and a spin-out of Imperial College London and the Francis Crick Institute. It has a preclinical portfolio led by two ADCs with novel payloads – small molecule inhibitors of the N-myristoyltransferase (NMTi) enzyme.