Biopharma Money on the Move: December 2 – 8 – BioSpace

December is bringing frost in the North and plenty of cold hard cash for these life sciences companies.

Forbion

European venture capital firmForbionrounded up$545 millionfor its fifthlife sciences fund. Investments will be made in about 15 therapeutics companies, with a third created byForbionthrough its Build opportunities. The rest will be invested in highly impactful existing companies.With offices in the Netherlands, Germany and Singapore, theplan is to invest about 80% into Europeancompanies and the rest in North American startups.

AbCellera

Since partnering with Eli Lilly to produce the first monoclonal antibody therapyapprovedfor mild-to-moderate COVID-19 patients,antibody discovery companyAbCellerais going big on the Nasdaq. Offering 23 million shares between $14-$17 apiecefor a hopeful total of$391 million, the company is lining up the biggest debut on record for a Canadian biotech.AbCellerasAI-powered antibody discovery platform speeds theotherwise lengthy and gruelingprocessby analyzing the database of natural immune systems to findantibodies that canbe developed into drugs.Thepromiseto partners is to move quickly. Reduce cost. Tackle the toughest problems in drug development. Investors include big names like Peter Thiel, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and more.

Silverback Therapeutics

Silverback goes for gold, upping its IPO for a4thtimesince the initial announcement. Originally slated for $125 million,the biotech is now shooting for a$241 millionraise by offering 11.5 million shares at $21 each. Some of the funds will be used for thedevelopment of therapeutics for oncology and other serious diseases through its proprietaryImmunoTACtechnology platform.TheImmunoTACplatform pairs proprietary payloads that modulate key disease modifying pathways with monoclonal antibodies directed at specific disease sites. Silverbacks lead candidate is currently in a Phase I trial in adults with HER2-expressing solid tumors.

Nuance Pharma

Theres nothing subtle about Nuances$181 millionSeries D financing round. The fully integrated pharmaceutical company creates value through Chinas specialty pharmaceutical markets with focus on iron deficiency, pain management and respiratory.Now poised to advance a robust therapeutics pipeline to clinical development, Nuance will use the funds for ongoing R&D of existing products and business development of potential new assets.

SigilonTherapeutics

Now live on the ticker,Sigilonhopes to sell 7 million shares fora$126 millionraise.Through its Shielded Living Therapeutics platform, the company is developing functional cures for chronic diseases. The companysproduct candidates consist of novel human cells engineered to produce the crucial proteins, enzymes or factors needed by patients living with chronic diseases such as hemophilia, diabetes and lysosomal storage disorders. The engineered cells are protected bySigilonsAfibromer biomaterials matrix, which shields them from immune rejection and fibrosis. In March, the company closed an $80.3 million Series B.

RayzeBio

Launched in October with a$45 million Series A,RayzeBioput a Series B on their Christmas list and Santa came early.With a pipeline of targeted radiopharmaceuticals against validated solid tumors, the biotech looks toutilizethe$105 millionraise into advancing their programs toward the clinic.Thecompanys goal is focused on improving outcomes for cancer patients by harnessing the power of targeted radioisotopes.RayzeBiois alsofunneling cash intoexpandingits HQ in San Diego with plans to further develop internal R&D.

SciNeuroPharmaceuticals

Cornering the untapped Chinese CNS market,SciNeurolaunched with$100 millionin their pocket. Headquartered in Shanghai, the company will also have a hub in Philadelphia.CEO and founder Min Li knows a thing or two from his time running GSKs neuro R&D group before the company shuttered the program in 2017.Li stated, One in every six people in China is living with a CNS condition, yet there are relatively few effective treatments available today, underscoring the urgent need to develop and deliver novel, effective therapies. The impact of CNS diseases extends beyond patientsto their families and society as well. Theassumption isSciNeurowill start with Parkinsons diseaseand painin addition to rare genetic diseases, after scaling up staffing.

BioAge

Looking to extend the humanhealthspan,BioAgeraised$90 millionin an oversubscribed Series C. The companyis at the forefront of understanding the biological drivers of aging with its unique and cutting-edge systems biology platform. A supporting pipeline has medicines to target these key pathways to reverse or eradicate disease and extend the years of healthy life remaining.BioAgeis on the cusp of takingpilot therapies BGE-117 and BGE-175 into clinical trials, targetingthe first half of 2021.According to a press release, proceeds from the financing will be used to build and develop a diversified portfolio of therapies that increasehealthspanand lifespan, augmentBioAgesartificial intelligence (AI)-driven approach to map the molecular pathways that impact human longevity, and further expand capabilities to test drug candidates in predictive models of human diseases of aging.

Remix Therapeutics

Laying down a new track for RNA processing, Remix launched with$81 millionin financing. Funds will be used to support development of theREMastertechnology platform and advance the companys pipeline of RNA processing targeted therapeutics as well.As we reach the limits of what is easily druggable with protein targeting therapies, reprogramming RNA processing represents an exciting new therapeutic opportunity. We believe we can precisely target the cellular complexes that process RNA to address the underlying drivers of disease, working upstream of protein expression, said Pete Smith, Ph.D., co-founder, president and CSO of Remix Therapeutics and Atlas Venture Entrepreneur in Residence.

Pear Therapeutics

Pear picked a sweet dealthis weekwith an$80 millionseries D backed by Temasek, 5am Ventures, Novartis andquite a fewmore.Combining biology and technology, the company specializes in Prescription Digital Therapeutics (PDTs),a new therapeutic class that treats serious disease alone or with drugs using software. PearsreSET,reSET-OandSomrystare the first PDTs to receive FDA approval for treating disease. The products are used to treat substanceuse disorder,opioid use disordersand chronic insomnia, respectively. Series D funds will be used to acceleratereimbursementcoveragefor its three commercial products.

Noema Pharma

Co-founded by the former VP of neuroscience for Roche, Noema Pharma raised$59 millionin a Series A round. With an intent to develop treatment for rare neurological disease whereexisting therapies have not shown much success, the company has licensed four clinical stage assets from Roche. The Roche-assets are aimed at seizures in tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC), trigeminal neuralgia, Tourettesyndrome and other rare neurologicaldisorders.Already having been in clinical studies at Roche, all four candidates have strong clinical and preclinical safety packages. Thisshouldallow Noemato quickly pursue a series of clinical programs in orphan central nervous system (CNS) indications.