Funds Advancement of Boltbody™ Immune-Stimulating Antibody Conjugate (ISAC) Technology
REDWOOD CITY, CA, February 5, 2019 – Bolt Biotherapeutics, Inc., a biotechnology company focused on unleashing the power of the immune system to achieve anti-tumor immunity in patients, today announced the completion of a $54M Series B financing led by Pivotal bioVenture Partners with additional participation from Nan Fung Life Sciences. Existing investors Novo Holdings and Vivo Capital also participated in the financing. The funds will be used to advance the company’s lead Boltbody™ Immune-Stimulating Antibody Conjugate (ISAC) into the clinic as well as to build the company’s pipeline and further develop its technology platform.
“We have made significant progress with our Boltbody™ ISAC platform that harnesses the ability of toll-like receptor (TLR) agonists to convert cold tumors into immunologically hot tumors following systemic administration. We are well positioned to bring this novel technology into clinical development and look forward to sharing more about our lead program, pipeline and platform in the months ahead,” stated Peter Moldt, Ph.D., of Novo Ventures and executive chairman of the board of Bolt Biotherapeutics. “We are pleased that this group of world-class biotech investors has chosen to join us on this important mission of developing a unique class of cancer immunotherapies.”
“The rapid development of Bolt’s promising targeted therapeutic platform has been very impressive,” noted Ash Khanna, Ph.D., venture partner at Pivotal bioVenture Partners. “Bolt’s proprietary ISAC technology is differentiated from other immuno-oncology approaches as evidenced by the strength of the preclinical safety and efficacy data, including durable systemic anti-tumor immunity and I look forward to working with the experienced team and investors to advance the company’s programs into the clinic.”
About Bolt Biotherapeutics
Bolt Biotherapeutics, Inc., based in the San Francisco Bay Area, is a private biotechnology company developing Boltbody™ Immune-stimulating Antibody Conjugates (ISAC), a new class of cancer therapeutics. These systemically-administered, tumor-targeted Boltbody™ therapeutics unleash the immune system to induce anti-tumor immunity. The company is led by a team with extensive oncology drug discovery and development experience. Bolt was founded by Dr. Ed Engleman, professor of pathology and medicine, Stanford Medicine, and its platform is based on technology exclusively licensed from Stanford University. Novo Holdings and Vivo Capital led the company’s $17M Series A round. For more information about Bolt Biotherapeutics, please visit www.boltbio.com.
About Pivotal bioVenture Partners
Pivotal bioVenture Partners is a $300 million life sciences venture capital fund investing in privately held North American and European companies focused on innovative therapeutic products and platforms to address major unmet medical needs. The fund invests at all stages in a company’s evolution, from company creation through mid and late stage clinical development. The team brings diverse experience in venture capital, company building, and drug discovery and development to the table in working with entrepreneurs to advance their businesses.
About Novo Holdings
Working out of Copenhagen, with affiliates in San Francisco and Boston, Novo Holdings is a world-leading life science investor with a focus on creating long-term value. Novo Holdings is the holding company of the Novo Group and manages the investment assets of the Novo Nordisk Foundation. The company invests in life science companies at all stages of development and in a broad portfolio of equity and fixed income securities.
About Vivo Capital
Vivo Capital is a healthcare focused investment firm formed in 1996 with over $3 billion under management. Vivo employs a unique multi-pronged strategy of identifying and working with companies with promising therapeutic products at all stages in the U.S. and revenue stage companies in Greater China. Vivo’s current portfolio includes more than 80 private and public biotechnology companies in the areas of biopharmaceuticals, specialty pharmaceuticals, and medical devices. Vivo Capital has offices in Palo Alto, California, Beijing, Shanghai and Taipei.
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Jennifer Williams
Cook Williams Communications, Inc.
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