Welcome to the newest instalment of Flagged Events: Funding segment. We’ll cover a sample of the drug companies with funding announcements in the previous month across different global markets. These include IPO announcements, grants, royalty payments, investments, and more.
Here are some of the pharma/biotech companies headquartered in Massachusetts that announced funding activity:
On July 1, Morphic announced the closing of their initial public offering (Symbol MORF) of 6.9 million common stock shares at $15 per share, totalling $103.5 million.
City: Waltham
Website: http://morphictx.com/
Primary Therapeutic Area: Oncology
Preclinical Activity in the past 12 months: No
Have a Zymewire account? Click here to view Morphic’s global activity!
On July 2, Karuna also announced the closure of their initial public offering, totalling $102.6 million in gross proceeds for 6,414,842 common stock shares at $16 per share. The shares began trading under the KRTX symbol.
City: Boston
Website: https://karunatx.com/
Primary Therapeutic Area: CNS
Preclinical Activity in the past 12 months: No
Have a Zymewire account? Click here to view Karuna’s global activity!
On July 8, Waltham’s Skyhawk Therapeutics announced a collaboration agreement with Merck & Co. ($MRK) for the development and commercialization of RNA - binding small molecule candidates that modulate RNA splicing for neurodegenerative and oncologic indications. Exclusive worldwide licensing will be available to Merck, through the use of a subsidiary. Skyhawk will receive an upfront payment for an undisclosed amount, and dependent on Merck’s exercising of option to exclusive licensing, they will also receive potential milestone payments and royalties.
On July 16, a similar agreement was announced between Skyhawk and Genentech. Skyhawk will receive an unknown upfront payment, as well as future payments and royalties, while Genentech receives the exclusive worldwide license.
City: Waltham
Website: https://www.skyhawktx.com/
Primary Therapeutic Area: Oncology
Preclinical Activity in the past 12 months: No
Have a Zymewire account? Click here to view Skyhawk’s global activity!
On July 17, Frequency announced an exclusive licensing agreement with Astellas Pharma ($TSE: 4503) for the development and commercialization of FX-322, Frequency’s candidate for sensorineural hearing loss. The upfront payment for Frequency is $80 million, with future royalties as well as up to $545 million in milestone payments.
City: Woburn
Website: https://www.frequencytx.com/
Primary Therapeutic Area: Audiology
Preclinical Activity in the past 12 months: No
Have a Zymewire account? Click here to view Frequency’s global activity!
Akston received a Phase 2 SBIR grant payment from the National Institutes of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease for the development of AKS-107, their subcutaneous Type 1 Diabetes candidate for the prevention or delay of diabetes in high risk pre-diabetic patients.
City: Beverly
Website: https://www.akstonbio.com/
Primary Therapeutic Area: Metabolic and Endocrine
Preclinical Activity in the past 12 months: No
Have a Zymewire account? Click here to view Akston’s global activity!
Spero received a $5.9 million award from the United States Department of Defense Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs to further the development of SPR206, Spero’s intravenous Potentiator Platform for the treatment of MDR Gram-Negative infections in hospitals. The award will be used for a series of pharmacology, toxicology, and microbiological surveillance across the 4 years of non-dilutive funding.
City: Cambridge
Website: https://sperotherapeutics.com/
Primary Therapeutic Area: Infectious Diseases
Preclinical Activity in the past 12 months: Yes
Have a Zymewire account? Click here to view Spero’s global activity!
SEC Form D records indicate the receipt of $1.53 million in equity financing between April 4 and July 11.
City: Lexington
Website: https://www.kiniksa.com
Primary Therapeutic Area: Dermatology
Preclinical Activity in the past 12 months: Yes
Have a Zymewire account? Click here to view Kiniksa’s global activity!
SEC Form D records indicate the receipt of $2.91 million in equity financing between June 28 and July 15, towards a total offering of $3.5 million.
City: Lexington
Website: https://www.lucytherapeutics.com/
Primary Therapeutic Area: CNS
Preclinical Activity in the past 12 months: Yes
Have a Zymewire account? Click here to view Lucy’s global activity!
If you’d like to track funding activities across the regions that matter to you, all without relying on a database, Zymewire is here to help. Put your prospecting and sales research on autopilot so that you can quickly identify and prioritize new opportunities. Reach out today, and stay tuned for the next instalment of Flagged Events: Funding. If you enjoy these articles, please feel free to give them a share through the social links below!