A roundup of which pharma and biotech companies are grabbing cash before the 2020 calendar closes.
Here is a roundup of which pharma and biotech companies are grabbing cash before the 2020 calendar closes.
Boston Scientific Corp
Talk about a return on investment. Since acquiring BTG in 2019, Boston Scientific has turned around and divested two of the non-medical device portions of the business – Pharmaceutical Licensing royalties last year and Specialty Pharmaceuticals this week – for more than $1.0 billion in net proceeds. The BTG Specialty Pharmaceuticals was sold to SERB SAS and Stark International Lux for $800 million in cash. SERB owns a portfolio of prescription drugs focused on rare and life-threatening diseases. Boston Scientific held onto the Interventional Medicines portion of their BTG acquisition with expectations to exceed their original goal of $175 million in synergies.
Tallac Therapeutics
Harnessing the power of the immune system in the fight against cancer, Tallac Therapeutics completed a $62 million Series A backed by leading venture firms. Tallac’s focus is on novel immunotherapies known as Toll-like receptor agonists (TLR). TLRs are a class of immunotherapy that is able to generate both an innate and adaptive immune response to produce a more robust and durable anti-cancer immunity, overcoming the resistance checkpoint inhibitors and adoptive CAR-T therapies are facing. “We believe targeting innate immunity represents a transformative approach to creating the next-generation of breakthrough therapeutics in cancer immunotherapy,” said Dr. Hong I. Wan, president, CEO and co-founder of Tallac Therapeutics. The Series A funds will be used to advance the discovery and development of TLR immunotherapy candidates for multiple solid tumor malignancies.
Noema Pharmaceuticals
Roche’s former head of neuroscience product development licensed four of the company’s shelved psychiatry pipeline and launched his own company, Noema Pharma. George Garibaldi’s startup launched with a $59 million Series A led by Sofinnova and Polaris Partners. The assets from Roche were already in clinical studies with two Phase II-ready candidates. With an aim at seizures in tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC), trigeminal neuralgia, Tourette syndrome and other rare neurological disorders, Noema will use the financing to reach value-creating development milestones with all four products. “Our analyses, based on new scientific evidence, have led us to indications upon which we have been building new intellectual property and efficient development and regulatory strategies. Across all our clinical initiatives, we focus on partnering with patients and patient associations to gather their input on what matters to them,” Garibaldi said.
Kinaset Therapeutics
Closing the gap in asthma treatments, Kinaset launched with a pan-JAK inhibitor candidate aimed to control asthma symptoms regardless of underlying cause. With $40 million in the pocket, Kinaset will push their lead program KN-002 into the clinic in 2021. KN-002 is an inhalable small molecule, much easier to use than injectable only antibody treatments. Robert Clarke, Ph.D., CEO and co-founder of Kinaset said, “Severe asthmatics continue to suffer from the limited availability of safe and effective treatment options. We believe that our inhaled pan-JAK inhibitor, KN-002, has the potential to be a best-in-class therapeutic for this population. In addition, KN-002 could be a less-invasive and more cost-effective alternative to currently approved parenteral biologicals used in the treatment of severe asthma.”
Spotlight Therapeutics
Shining brightly enough to catch the eye of top-tier investor GV (formerly Google Ventures) Spotlight Therapeutics closed a $30 million dollar Series A this week. Launched in 2018, the California-based biotech focuses on in vivo CRISPR editing, which holds great potential for expanding applications and democratizing access to gene editing for patients. Spotlight’s proprietary TAGE (Targeted Active Gene Editor) platform facilitates the advancement of modular and programmable CRISPR ribonucleoproteins, which are optimized for in vivo cell-targeted delivery, towards research in hemoglobinopathies and immuno-oncology. This modular approach avoids the complexities and toxicities associated with standard viral, cell and nanoparticle delivery methods.
Endomag
Looking to expand access to new advanced techniques for breast cancer patients, Endomag secured $20 million in a Series D funding round. Labeled as one of the UK’s fastest growing private technology businesses, Endomag’s technologies help women with breast cancer avoid surgery when it isn’t needed, and experience better outcomes when it is. Over 130,000 women worldwide have experienced more precise and less invasive breast cancer care. Endomag’s Sentimag localization system uses non-invasive magnetic sensing to locate and stage breast cancer. Similar to a metal detector, surgeons can accurately locate a breast tumor during surgery with Magseed and determine if the cancer has spread using Magtrace (its liquid tracer), minimizing the invasiveness of the surgeries. The company plans to launch its next generation Sentimag platform and new Magseed products in 2021, using the funding to scale its product offering, market reach and employees.
