Debtor-in-process financing up to $55 million could keep the lights on at Karyopharm Therapeutics for its multiple myeloma and myelofibrosis programs as the biotech waits to see if its union with Ayrmid will go through.
Less than three months after revealing significant financial strain, Karyopharm Therapeutics has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy as it works toward a merger with U.K. biotech Ayrmid.
The commercial-stage companies’ transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2027, according to the Monday announcement, which came in lieu of expected third quarter earnings from Karyopharm.
During the transaction process, the biopharma will remain focused on its commitment to advancing its multiple myeloma and myelofibrosis programs and will “operate in the ordinary course of business,” Karyopharm noted.
Ayrmid, which is developing therapies that address significant unmet needs in hematology, is serving as lead bidder in the court-supervised sale of Karyopharm, which markets the multiple myeloma drug Xpovio and has a pipeline of clinical candidates. Other companies can still submit competing proposals and bids for the biopharma’s assets.
Monday’s announcement was not wholly unexpected, as Karyopharm reported in August that it only had enough cash to carry on into September.
The companies have not disclosed the amount of Ayrmid’s bid, but Karyopharm did reveal that it had secured commitments for up to $55 million in debtor-in-process financing from its existing secured lenders. Once approved by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, that money, along with cash generated from the company’s ongoing operations, is expected to support the biopharma during the Chapter 11 process.
News of the filing and planned merger failed to garner strong support from Rodman & Renshaw. In a Monday note, the investment firm downgraded its outlook of Karyopharm, explaining that lenders and note holders will recover equity first, leaving the value left for shareholders highly uncertain—it “could be minimal,” the analysts wrote.
“Our estimates, scenarios, and price target were built on an operating-company framework,” the analysts continued. “That framework assumed the equity would capture the value of the commercial and pipeline assets, and it no longer fits.”
The firm had previously put Karyopharm at a $986.6 million enterprise value and a $15 per share intrinsic value.
As Karyopharm works to stay afloat, its future workforce structure remains somewhat up in the air. But it may not mean the end of the road for the biopharma’s workforce.
“There are no layoffs associated with today’s announcement of the planned merger,” a spokesperson at FTI Consulting, Karyopharm’s financial and communications advisor, told BioSpace in an email. “While it is too early to say what may ultimately come from the transaction, we understand from Ayrmid that they intend to retain the majority of Karyopharm’s organization, recognizing the valuable capabilities that exist within the team.”
Recent business challenges
Karyopharm previously announced workforce cuts in August 2023, August 2024 and July 2025, as noted in an SEC filing earlier this year. The most recent downsizing, in July 2025, involved letting go of 20% of staff to help manage operating expenses. At that time, the company was exploring its options to extend its cash runway, which it noted could include a merger or sale.
In Karyopharm’s Monday announcement, Joe Wiley, Ayrmid chairman and CEO, noted a strong strategic fit between the two companies given their complementary portfolios, established commercial capabilities and shared commitment to addressing significant unmet needs in hematology.
Karyopharm’s only marketed product, Xpovio, has been approved for the treatment of relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma, a rare blood cancer in which abnormal plasma cells multiply and produce abnormal proteins that can affect bones, kidneys and blood cells.
The company has also been advancing Xpovio for another rare blood cancer, myelofibrosis, in which scar tissue forms in bone marrow and leads to conditions including anemia and an enlarged spleen. In March, the company announced mixed results in a Phase 3 myelofibrosis study, with an investigational Xpovio regimen meeting just one of two primary endpoints. A few months later, however, Karyopharm submitted a supplemental new drug application to the FDA requesting accelerated approval for the indication, in combination with Incyte’s Jakafi.
Ayrmid has two FDA-approved products, Omisirge and Aphexda. Omisirge is used for the treatment of blood cancers in adults and children ages 12 years and older and severe aplastic anemia in adults and children six years and older. Aplastic anemia is a rare blood disorder that occurs when there aren’t enough blood cells and platelets in the body. Aphexda is used to mobilize hematopoietic stem cells in adult patients with multiple myeloma.
