A new year means a new Fierce Biotech Fundraising Tracker to record the significant amounts of venture capital being funneled into the industry.
We're maintaining the criteria we used for last year's tracker, which means including financing rounds north of $50 million. Of course, we'll still profile innovative new companies and larger rounds in-depth, while we focus more coverage on clinical trial results, M&A and special reports.
April
April 24—Granite Bio
Series: A & B
Amount: $100 million
Investors: Versant Ventures, Novartis Venture Fund, Forbion and Sanofi Ventures.
Granite Bio's financing will go toward polishing two lead molecules, both of which were developed with Versant’s Ridgeline Discovery Engine in Switzerland. One of the antibody candidates—dubbed GRT-001—is designed to drain pro-inflammatory monocytes. The investigational treatment is currently undergoing phase 1a testing in healthy volunteers, with a phase 1b trial for patients with inflammatory bowel disease slated for later this year. Story
April 24—Etiome
Series: N/A
Amount: $50 million
Investors: Flagship Pioneering
Flagship's Etiome has spent the last four years quietly building a platform to map out how diseases progress over time, tracking key molecules and biomarkers to identify not only potential drug targets but also when those drugs should be taken to stop disease in its tracks. The $50 million financing will support development of what the company calls preemptive medicines, which will initially focus on serious and progressive metabolic, neurodegenerative, and autoimmune diseases and cancers. Story
April 16—Glycomine
Series: C
Amount: $115 million
Investors: CTI Life Sciences Fund, funds managed by abrdn, Advent Life Sciences, Novo Holdings, Sanofi Ventures, Abingworth, RiverVest Venture Partners, Sanderling Ventures, Chiesi Ventures, Remiges Ventures and Asahi Kasei Ventures.
The San Carlos, California-based biotech is now looking to use its series C cash to fund a phase 2b study to further demonstrate the efficacy of its mannose-1-phosphate replacement therapy GLM101. Glycomine is touting the drug as the first disease-modifying therapeutic in development for phosphomannomutase-2 congenital disorder of glycosylation (PMM2-CDG), a rare, life-threatening condition. Story
April 15—Attovia Therapeutics
Series: C
Amount: $90 million
Investors: Deep Track Capital, Vida Ventures, Sanofi Ventures, Mirae Asset Capital Life Science, Frazier Life Sciences, venBio, Goldman Sachs Alternatives, Nextech Ventures, Cormorant Asset Management, EcoR1 Capital, Marshall Wace and Illumina Ventures.
Attovia’s focus is ATTO-1310, an anti-IL31 biologic in phase 1 development for chronic pruritus of unknown origin, as well as ATTO-3712, a preclinical anti-IL13 x IL3 bispecific designed to treat atopic dermatitis as well as potentially chronic spontaneous urticaria, prurigo nodularis and other inflammatory skin conditions. The series C funds will be used for the clinical development of both candidates, as well as support the biotech's Attobody tech to create new treatments for the likes of inflammatory bowel disease. Release
April 10—Imbria Pharmaceuticals
Series: B
Amount: $57.5 million
Investors: Deep Track Capital, AN Ventures, Catalio Capital Management, Cytokinetics, RA Capital Management and SV Health Investors.
Cardiometabolic disease-focused Imbria will use the new series B financing to advance a partial fatty acid oxidation inhibitor known as ninerafaxstat through a phase 2b trial in non-obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (nHCM). The study is slated to start sometime this quarter, with topline data expected in late 2026. Alongside the fundriase, the biotech also tapped its executive chair, Alvin Shih, M.D., to helm Imbria as CEO. Release
April 8—Merida Biosciences
Series: A
Amount: $121 million
Investors: Bain Capital Life Sciences, BVF Partners, Third Rock Ventures, GV and Perceptive Xontogeny Venture Funds (PXV Funds).
The latest biotech to roll out of Third Rock Ventures is working on Fc-based therapeutics designed to benefit patients with autoimmune disorders. Merida was seeded by Third Rock in 2022, when the biotech’s co-founder and chief scientific officer Dario Gutierrez, Ph.D., was entrepreneur-in-residence at the VC firm. The company’s lead preclinical program is targeting Graves' disease, an autoimmune disorder that causes the body to produce antibodies that attack the thyroid gland. Further back in development is an antibody aimed at allergic disease that is designed to neutralize and eliminate IgE antibodies and a treatment for a chronic inflammatory kidney disease called primary membranous nephropathy. Story
April 4—RayThera
Series: A
Amount: $110 million
Investors: Foresite Capital, OrbiMed Advisors and TTM Capital.
New biotech RayThera has made its debut with a $110 million fundraising and plans to develop small molecules for anti-inflammatory indications. The San Diego-based company will use the cash to move its lead assets through phase 1 trials; one asset is currently in the preclinical phase, while two others are in earlier stages of development, according to the biotech's website. RayThera was founded by Qing Dong, Ph.D., and Gene Hung, M.D., who previously founded the similarly named company XinThera, which was acquired by Gilead in 2023. Release
April 3—Neurona Therapeutics
Series: N/A
Amount: $102 million
Investors: Fidelity Management & Research Company, The Column Group, Soleus Capital, Viking Global Investors, Cormorant Asset Management, Schroders Capital, LYFE Capital, Euclidean Capital, UCB Ventures, Willett Advisors, UC Investments, YK Bioventures, Berkeley Frontier Fund, Ysios Capital, Alexandria Venture Investments and Spur Capital Partners.
Neurona Therapeutics has raised $102 million to push its allogeneic cell therapy for a common form of epilepsy through phase 3 testing. The asset, dubbed NRTX-1001, is currently being tested in an open-label phase 1/2 trial among patients with drug-resistant mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE), plus another phase 1/2 study for drug-resistant unilateral MTLE. Story
April 2—Atsena Therapeutics
Series: C
Amount: $150 million
Investors: Bain Capital, Sofinnova Investments, Abingworth, Wellington Management, Lightstone Ventures, Foundation Fighting Blindness, Hatteras Venture Partners, Osage University Partners and the Manning Family Foundation.
Atsena hopes that the funds can carry the biotech’s gene therapy designed to reverse or prevent blindness through a potential market approval. The new cash is designed to fuel Atsena’s lead program, an investigational gene therapy dubbed ATSN-201 that has received fast track, rare pediatric disease and orphan drug tags from the FDA. The asset is designed to treat X-linked retinoschisis, an inherited eye condition that is typically diagnosed in childhood and can cause blindness. The candidate is currently being studied in a phase 1/2 trial called Lighthouse, with updated data expected later this year. Story
April 1—AIRNA
Series: B
Amount: $155 million
Investors: Venrock Healthcare Capital Partners, Forbion Growth, RTW Investments, Nextech Invest, ARCH Venture Partners, Forbion Ventures, ND Capital and other unnamed investors.
AIRNA, a transatlantic RNA editing biotech, is prepping to launch its lead asset into clinical trials with fuel from a $155 million series B fundraise. The cash will go toward launching a phase 1/2 trial for AIR-001, AIRNA’s drug candidate for alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, and will also help bolster the company’s early pipeline of RNA editing therapeutics. AIRNA plans to ask for approval to enter AIR-001 into clinical trials in the second half of this year. Story
March
March 31—Isomorphic Labs
Series: N/A
Amount: $600 million
Investors: Led by Thrive Capital with participation from Google’s GV and follow-on capital from Alphabet.
AI drug discovery firm Isomorphic Labs has completed the company’s first external funding round since its 2021 founding within Google parent company Alphabet, raising $600 million to advance programs spanning multiple therapeutic areas. Isomorphic will use the windfall to fund development of its next-generation artificial intelligence drug design model, and is also looking to expand its team as the company grows. Story
March 26—Epicrispr Biotechnologies
Series: B
Amount: $68 million
Investors: Ally Bridge Group, SOLVE FSHD and other investors.
The South San Francisco-based biotech will use the funds to take EPI-321, its disease-modifying therapy for facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy, into the clinic. Epicrispr is lining up a trial in New Zealand this year that it claims will mark “the first epigenetic therapy to enter the clinic for a neuromuscular disease.” Release
March 25—Character Biosciences
Series: B
Amount: $93 million
Investors: aMoon, Luma Group, Bausch + Lomb, Jefferson Life Sciences, Endeavors, Catalio Capital Management, S32 and KdT Ventures.
The eye disease biotech will use the proceeds to take its lead age-related macular degeneration (AMD) assets, CTX203 and CTX114, into the clinic as well as expand its pipeline into other eye diseases. The company already has another undisclosed early-stage program in AMD, as well as one pursuing primary open-angle glaucoma. Story
March 25—Hillstar Bio
Series: A
Amount: $67 million
Investors: Droia Ventures, Frazier Life Sciences, Novo Holdings, LifeArc Ventures and Hummingbird Bioscience.
The Boston-based biotech has launched with the aim of “revolutionizing autoimmune disease treatment through a precision-driven approach that selectively depletes pathogenic cells while preserving healthy ones.” The series A funds have been earmarked for taking Hillstar's lead asset, which targets TRBV9 T cells, into the clinic next year. Release
March 24—Augustine Therapeutics
Series: A
Amount: $84.8 million
Investors: Jeito Capital, Novo Holdings, Asabys Partners, Eli Lilly, AdBio Partners, V-Bio Ventures, PMV, VIB, Gemma Frisius Fund, Charcot-Marie-Tooth Research Foundation and Newton Biocapital.
The French biotech will use the funds to push its lead candidate, a HDAC6 inhibitor called AGT-100216, through a phase 2 proof-of-concept trial in Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, as well as “support significant pipeline expansion into cardio-metabolic and neurodegenerative diseases.” Release
March 24—Tempero Bio
Series: B
Amount: $70 million
Investors: 8VC, Aditum Bio, Khosla Ventures and other unnamed investors.
The substance use disorder-focused company has earmarked the new funds to take its lead candidate, a mGluR5 negative allosteric modulator dubbed TMP-301, through a pair of phase 2 trials for alcohol use disorder and cocaine use disorder. The California biotech will commence phase 3-enabling activities and plans to launch preclinical studies for additional indications and formulations. Release
March 19—Ampersand Biomedicines
Series: B
Amount: $65 million
Investors: Flagship Pioneering, Eli Lilly and additional unnamed new investors.
Flagship's biotech has secured $65 million to keep building out its computationally-powered platform designed to program new biologic medicines. Ampersand's goal is to develop therapeutics that can improve target engagement while limiting on-target, off-tissue side effects across a range of diseases. The new cash infusion will be used to advance an immuno-inflammation asset and an immuno-oncology program, both of which are expected to enter IND-enabling studies this year. The biotech also has a partnership with Pfizer to create next-gen programmable medicines targeting metabolic pathways. Release
March 18—Arbor Biotechnologies
Series: C
Amount: $73.9 million
Investors: Led by Arch Venture Partners and TCGX, with new investors QIA, Partners Investment, Revelation Partners and Kerna Ventures joining alongside other existing investors.
As other gene editing programs fold or get sold, Arbor Biotechnologies has secured just under $74 million to advance its lead liver-targeting gene therapy into human trials. The raise will support ABO-101, a CRISPR-based gene editing therapy meant to treat primary hyperoxaluria type 1, along with other branches of Arbor’s pipeline, including an editing program for an undisclosed rare liver disease and another program targeting amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Story
March 17—Maxion Therapeutics
Series: A
Amount: $72 million
Investors: Led by General Catalyst, with British Patient Capital, Solasta Ventures, Eli Lilly and Company, LifeArc Ventures, Monograph Capital and BGF.
The British biotech will use the oversubscribed funds to further develop its KnotBody platform of antibody-based drugs for ion channel- and G protein coupled receptor-driven diseases. The firm's lead asset, MAX001, is in preclinical development for inflammatory diseases such as atopic dermatitis and inflammatory bowel disease, while other early-stage programs aim to target pain and cardiovascular disease. Release
March 17—Latigo Biotherapeutics
Series: B
Amount: $150 million
Investors: Blue Owl Capital, Deep Track Capital, Access Biotechnology, Qatar Investment Authority and Sanofi Ventures.
Latigo will use the $150 million series B to advance its pipeline of non-opioid pain management drugs. More specifically, the money will help move the biotech's oral small-molecule Nav1.8 inhibitors, dubbed LTG-001 and LTG-305, through the clinic, with lead asset LTG-001 currently amid phase 1 testing. Story
March 17—Curevo Vaccine
Series: B
Amount: $110 million
Investors: Medicxi, OrbiMed, Sanofi Ventures, HBM Healthcare Investments, RA Capital Management, Janus Henderson Investors, Adjuvant Capital and GC Biopharma.
The Seattle-based biotech plans to inject the new funds into a phase 2 extension program for amezosvatein, a non-mRNA adjuvanted sub-unit vaccine designed to prevent shingles. In efforts to rival shingles vaccine Shingrix, Curevo has also recruited two former GSK leaders to its board. Story
March 10—Lila Sciences
Series: Seed
Amount: $200 million
Investors: Flagship Pioneering, General Catalyst, March Capital, ARK Venture Fund, Altitude Life Science Ventures, Blue Horizon Advisors, State of Michigan Retirement System, Modi Ventures and a wholly owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.
Biotech incubator Flagship Pioneering has uncorked its latest company. Lila Sciences is looking to use its $200 million in seed funding to develop new advanced AI that can power fully autonomous research labs. Flagship claims the firm's tech has already led to groundbreaking results, including the generation of new genetic medicines that outperform commercially available therapies and the discovery and validation of hundreds of new antibodies. Story
March 4—Garuda Therapeutics
Series: A-1
Amount: $50 million
Investors: OrbiMed, Northpond Ventures, Cormorant Asset Management and Kyowa Kirin.
With a focus on off-the-shelf cell therapies for blood disorders, Garuda will use the funds to advance its first hematopoietic stem cell transplantation candidate into the clinic for bone marrow failure syndrome and beta thalassemia. The cash will also go towards building up Garuda's team, scaling up manufacturing and other general operating activities. Release
March 3—Callio Therapeutics
Series: A
Amount: $187 million
Investors: Frazier Life Sciences, Jeito Capital, Novo Holdings, Omega Funds, ClavystBio, Platanus, Norwest, Pureos Bioventures, SEEDS Capital and EDBI.
Callio was launched by Frazier and is focused on a HER2-targeted dual-payload antibody-drug conjugate licensed from Hummingbird Biosciences. The two biotechs share a CEO as well as a number of financial backers. Story
February
Feb. 26—Eikon Therapeutics
Series: D
Amount: $350.7 million
Investors: Lux Capital, Alexandria Venture Investments, AME Cloud Ventures, The Column Group, E15 VC, Foresite Capital, General Catalyst, Soros Capital, StepStone Group, funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates, and UC Investments (Office of the Chief Investment Officer of the Regents of the University of California), among others.
No stranger to eye-popping funding rounds, the cancer-focused biotech will use the series D to fuel its various clinical trials, including a phase 3 study of a toll-like receptor 7 and 8 agonist immune modulator for advanced melanoma. Story
Feb. 14—Bambusa Therapeutics
Series: A
Amount: About $90 million
Investors: RA Capital Management, Janus Henderson Investors, Redmile Group, Invus, ADAR1 Capital Management, and other unnamed existing investors.
Bambusa has banked about $90 million to build out a pipeline of next-gen bispecific antibodies targeting immunological and inflammatory (I&I) conditions. The Boston biotech’s series A follows a $15 million seed financing that closed in September 2024. The new funds will go toward supporting lead programs through phase 1 clinical trials, including BBT001, a bispecific antibody currently in clinical testing. Story
Feb. 13—Newleos Therapeutics
Series: A
Amount: $93.5 million
Investors: Goldman Sachs Alternatives, Longwood Fund, Novo Holdings, DCVC Bio and Arkin Bio Capital.
Newleos is making its debut with $93.5 million aimed at developing next-gen neuroscience treatments, starting off with several clinical programs from Swiss major Roche. The Boston-based biotech paid Roche an undisclosed upfront sum for several clinical-stage oral small molecules and is offering the Big Pharma success-based milestones and royalties in exchange for worldwide rights. The biotech will use the series A funds to run proof-of-concept trials across the programs. Story
Feb. 12—Abcuro
Series: C
Amount: $200 million
Investors: New Enterprise Associates, Foresite Capital, RA Capital Management, Bain Capital Life Sciences, Redmile Group, Samsara BioCapital, Sanofi Ventures, Pontifax, Mass General Brigham Ventures, New Leaf Ventures, funds managed by abrdn, funds and accounts managed by BlackRock, Eurofarma Ventures and Soleus Capital.
Sanofi-backed Abcuro has secured $200 million to power its anti-KLRG1 antibody through a phase 2/3 muscle disease trial ahead of a planned push to regulators. The idea is that its anti-KLRG1 antibody ulviprubart, also known as ABC008, will deplete cells that drive autoimmune disease without affecting regulatory T cells and central memory T cells. Story
Feb. 3—AdvanCell
Series: C
Amount: $112 million
Investors: SV Health Investors, Sanofi Ventures, Abingworth, SymBiosis, Morningside, Tenmile, Brandon Capital and others.
The Australian radiopharma company has secured $112 million to carry its lead candidate through a prostate cancer study. The Pb-212-based radionuclide treatment, dubbed ADVC001, is currently undergoing a phase 1/2 dose-escalation trial in metastatic prostate cancer. AdvanCell’s hope is that ADVC001 will prove itself to be a best-in-class targeted alpha therapy. Story
January
Jan. 28—Atalanta Therapeutics
Series: B
Amount: $97 million
Investors: EQT Life Sciences, Sanofi Ventures, F-Prime Capital, Novartis Venture Fund, RiverVest Venture Partners, funds managed by abrdn, Pictet Alternative Advisors, the Mirae Asset Financial Group and the GHR Foundation.
After raising a $110 million series A in 2021, Atalanta is back with an oversubscribed $97 million series B. The biotech intends to use the funds to launch clinical trials for its small interfering RNA (siRNA) candidates in epilepsy and Huntington’s disease. The investigational therapies are designed to silence certain genes in the central nervous system. Story
Jan. 28—Helicore Biopharma
Series: A
Amount: $65 million
Investors: Founding investor Versant Ventures, OrbiMed, Longitude Capital and Wellington Management.
The California-based biotech has emerged from stealth with an obesity-focused pipeline headed up by HCR-188, a monoclonal antibody designed to bind directly to glucose-dependent insulinotropic peptide (GIP), which Helicore describes as “clinic-ready.” Further back in development is an incretin conjugate called HCR-488 that should begin preclinical studies as a monthly weight loss option in the second half of this year. Story
Jan. 22—Shenzhen TargetRx
Series: C
Amount: $50 million
Investors: Not disclosed
The joint Chinese-U.S. venture—whose clinical pipeline is led by a Bcr-Abl allosteric inhibitor for leukemia and an ALK inhibitor for non-small cell lung cancer—pledged to use the series C funds to “advance the overseas clinical development of multiple innovative drugs.” Release
Jan.15—Be Bio
Series: C
Amount: $92 million
Investors: Nextech, ARCH Venture Partners, Atlas Venture, RA Capital Management, Alta Partners, Longwood Fund, Bristol Myers Squibb, Takeda Ventures, and others.
The biotech has earmarked the funds to continue the ongoing phase 1/2 trial of its lead B-cell medicine, dubbed BE-101, in people with hemophilia B. Money will also go towards pushing another candidate called BE-102 toward clinical trials for a rare bone development disorder called hypophosphatasia. Release
Jan. 14—Umoja Biopharma
Series: C
Amount: $100 million
Investors: Co-led by Double Point Ventures and DCVC Bio, with ARK Invest, Cormorant Asset Management, MPM Capital, Qiming Venture Partners USA, RTW Investments, Alexandria Venture Investments, SoftBank Vision Fund 2, CaaS Capital, Emerson Collective Investments managed by Yosemite, K2 HealthVentures, Myeloma Investment Fund, University of Minnesota Endowment and others.
Umoja plans to use the raise to bring more cell therapies into the clinic, including UB-VV400, an off-the-shelf, multidomain fusion protein surface-engineered lentiviral vector designed to generate CD22-directed CAR T cells within a patient’s body. The series C funds will be used to launch clinical studies of UB-VV400 in multiple oncology and autoimmune clinical studies. Story
Jan. 13—Normunity
Series: B
Amount: $75 million
Investors: Co-led by Samsara BioCapital and Enavate Sciences, with participation from Regeneron Ventures, Pfizer Ventures, YK Bioventures, Canaan Partners, Sanofi Ventures, Taiho Ventures, Osage Venture Partners, HongShan Capital Group and Connecticut Innovations.
After a $65 million series A in 2022, Normunity is back with a $75 million financing that will be used to progress the biotech's lead program, a T cell engager dubbed NRM-823. Normunity expects to launch a phase 1 trial for the asset in the second half of 2025 and also plans to advance other pipeline programs that take aim at novel targets tied to tumor-specific immune suppression. Release
Jan. 13—Tune Therapeutics
Series: B
Amount: $175 million
Investors: Led by New Enterprise Associates, Yosemite, Regeneron Ventures and Hevolution Foundation.
Tune's series B has been earmarked to advance a cell and gene therapy pipeline, which is led by Tune-401. The startup has spent recent months securing permission to bring Tune-401 into clinical trials in both New Zealand and Hong Kong. The epigenetic silencing drug for chronic hepatitis B is built on Tune’s TEMPO epigenetic editing platform, which is delivered to cells in lipid nanoparticles. Story
Jan. 10—Kardigan
Series: A
Amount: $300 million
Investors: Perceptive Advisors, ARCH Venture Partners and Sequoia Heritage.
Co-founded by the former leadership of MyoKardia, newly launched Kardigan will use the funds to knit together a pipeline focused on unmet needs in cardiology, including primary and secondary cardiomyopathies leading to heart failure. The company plans to use its discovery platform—alongside in-licensing and acquisitions—to build its portfolio, which currently includes multiple late-stage candidates. Story
Jan. 10—Windward Bio
Series: A
Amount: $200 million
Investors: Led by OrbiMed, Novo Holdings, and Blue Owl Healthcare Opportunities, with SR One, Omega Funds, RTW Investments, Qiming Venture Partners, Quan Capital and Pivotal bioVenture Partners.
The newly emerged Swiss biotech will use the raise to advance its mission of improving treatment options for advanced immunological diseases and progress its discovery pipeline of bispecifics. More specifically, the cash is designed to carry two undisclosed programs through investigational new drug-enabling studies. Windward is also developing clinical-stage WIN378, an mAb the biotech picked up in a deal with from Kelun-Biotech and Harbour BioMed. Story
Jan. 10—Ouro Medicines
Series: A
Amount: $120 million
Investors: Co-led by TPG Life Sciences Innovations, NEA and Norwest Venture Partners, with Monograph Capital, GSK, UPMC Enterprises, Boyu/Zoo Capital, LongRiver Investments and other unnamed investors.
Ouro is emerging in the increasingly crowded T cell engager (TCE) space with the goal of harnessing T cells to reset the immune systems of patients with chronic immune diseases. Paired with the series A is the licensing of a bispecific TCE, now called OM336, from Chinese biotech Keymed Biosciences. Ouro plans to enter OM336 into the clinic for B cell-mediated immune diseases this year. Story
Jan. 10—Numab Therapeutics
Series: C extension
Amount: 50 million Swiss Francs (about $54.6 million)
Investors: Cormorant Asset Management, Forbion Growth Opportunities Fund, HBM Healthcare Investment, Novo Holdings, BVF Partners, Octagon Capital Advisors, RTW Investments, and funds and accounts managed by BlackRock.
Swiss biotech Numab is adding on to its series C, closing the round with a total of 180 million Swiss Francs (about $196 million). The funds will be used to support the biotech's pipeline of multi-specific antibodies in inflammation and oncology. Release
Jan. 9—Timberlyne Therapeutics
Series: A
Amount: $180 million
Investors: Led by Abingworth, Bain Capital Life Sciences and Venrock Healthcare Capital Partners, with Boyu Capital, Lilly Asia Ventures, Braidwell LP and 3H Health Investment.
U.S.-based biotech builder Mountainfield Venture Partners and China’s Keymed Biosciences have launched Timberlyne armed with $180 million in series A funds and a clinical-stage CD38-targeting antibody. The firm's efforts will be centered around the IgG1 monoclonal antibody CM313, for which Keymed has sold the ex-China rights for an undisclosed upfront payment, potential milestones, royalties and an equity stake in Timberlyne. Story
Jan. 9—Light Horse Therapeutics
Series: A
Amount: $62 million
Investors: Versant Ventures, Mubadala Capital, Bristol Myers Squibb, Taiho Ventures and AbbVie.
The Versant-founded biotech plans to apply precision genome editing to small-molecule drug discovery with an initial focus on cancer targets. Light Horse's platform is designed to find new functional sites within targets that play critical roles in disease biology. Story
Jan. 9—Leyden Labs
Series: N/A
Amount: $70 million
Investors: Co-led by ClavystBio and Polaris Partners, with Qiming Venture Partners and existing investors.
The Dutch biotech plans to use the proceeds from the round for its mucosal protection platform, a nasal spray approach aimed at protecting against respiratory viruses like influenza and coronavirus. The funding will specifically go towards human efficacy studies of PanFlu, as well as platform research and other pipeline activities. Release
Jan. 9—Verdiva Bio
Series: A
Amount: $410 million
Investors: Co-led by Forbion and General Atlantic, with RA Capital Management, OrbiMed, Logos Capital, Lilly Asia Ventures and LYFE Capital.
Just when you thought there couldn’t be investor appetite for yet another GLP-1-focused obesity biotech, Verdiva Bio has arrived on the scene with what CEO Khurem Farooq told Fierce is “probably the largest” series A ever for a U.K.-based biotech. The company launched with three assets licensed from China’s Sciwind Biosciences, including a weekly oral GLP-1 agonist that Verdiva believes will stand out from the daily-dose crowd. Story
Jan. 9—A2 Biotherapeutics
Series: C
Amount: $80 million
Investors: A syndicate of investors that includes The Column Group and Samsara BioCapital.
Cell therapy specialist A2 will use the raise to advance its three clinical development programs and pipeline of CAR-T cell therapies based on its Tmod platform technology. The biotech is currently running two phase 1/2 trials in various cancer indications. Release
Jan. 8—Tenvie Therapeutics
Series: N/A
Amount: $200 million
Investors: Arch Venture Partners, F-Prime Capital and Mubadala Capital with participation from other unnamed investors.
Tenvie has unveiled with $200 million and the goal of transforming the neurological treatment landscape. The South San Francisco-based biotech houses several small-molecule assets, some of which were acquired from Denali, a company that focuses on neurodegenerative and lysosomal storage diseases. Tenvie said the financing will be used to progress multiple assets into the clinic. Currently, the biotech’s most advanced candidates—an NLRP3 inhibitor and an allosteric SARM1 inhibitor—are in the investigational new drug-enabling stage. Story
Jan. 8—Aspect Biosystems
Series: B
Amount: $115 million
Investors: Led by Dimension, with participation from existing and new investors Novo Nordisk, Radical Ventures, an undisclosed leading global investment firm, InBC, Pallasite Ventures, Pangaea Ventures, Rhino Ventures and T1D Fund: A Breakthrough T1D Venture.
Aspect aims to use the raise to develop a new class of cellular medicines, bioprinted tissue therapeutics, with a focus on endocrine and metabolic diseases. Some funds will also go towards the company's full-stack tissue therapeutic platform, which combines AI-powered bioprinting technology, computational design tools, therapeutic cells and advanced biomaterials. Release
Jan. 8—Alesta Therapeutics
Series: A
Amount: €65 million ($67 million)
Investors: Co-led by Frazier Life Sciences and Droia Ventures, with participation from Novartis Venture Fund, RTW Investments, RV Invest, Thuja Capital and SSI Strategy.
The Dutch biotech will use the raise to advance its two lead oral small molecules into the clinic this year. ALE1 is in development for the rare genetic disease hypophosphatasia, which causes fragile bones, while ALE2 is meant to tackle Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, a group of genetic conditions that cause progressive muscle weakness, sensory loss and limb deformities. Release
Jan. 7—Aviceda Therapeutics
Series: C
Amount: $207.5 million
Investors: Co-led by Omega Funds and TCGX, with participation from Enavate Sciences, Jeito Capital, Blue Owl Healthcare Opportunities, Longitude Capital, OrbiMed, Logos Capital, Marshall Wace, Catalio Capital Management, funds managed by abrdn Inc., and Digitalis Ventures.
Aviceda will use the proceeds to advance AVD-104, the firm’s intravitreal glycan-coated nanoparticle currently undergoing a phase 2b/3 trial comparing the candidate to Astellas’ approved eye drug Izervay for geographic atrophy, a degenerative eye condition. Twelve-month data from the study are due in the second half of 2025, while a phase 2 trial in diabetic macular edema kicked off in September. Story
Jan. 7—Alebund Pharmaceutical
Series: C
Amount: RMB 550 million (about $75 million)
Investors: Unnamed healthcare fund, Yangzhou Guojin Investment Group and Kingray Capital.
The China-based biotech's new funds will support development and potential commercial activities of its renal disease pipeline. The raise will support the firm's Chinese new drug application and global pivotal study for its iron-based phosphate binder AP301, as well as a phase 2 study for other asset AP306 and further commercial expansion of Roche's Mircera in China, which Alebund is heading up. Release
Jan. 7—XyloCor Therapeutics
Series: B
Amount: $67.5 million
Investors: New investor Jeito Capital and existing institutional investors EQT, Fountain Healthcare Partners and Lumira Ventures.
XyloCor has closed a series B financing that will go toward the biotech's mission of developing gene therapies for cardiovascular disease. Specifically, the new funds will be used to support a phase 2b clinical trial assessing XC001 (encoberminogene rezmadenovec), in refractory angina, as well as a second mid-stage study of the candidate as an adjunctive treatment for coronary artery bypass graft surgery. Release
Jan. 6—Orbis Medicines
Series: A
Amount: €90 million (About $93.4 million)
Investors: NEA (New Enterprise Associates), Eli Lilly, Cormorant, the Export and Investment Fund of Denmark, and founding investors Novo Holdings and Forbion.
Danish biotech Orbis has closed its first series financing, money that will be used for oral macrocycle drug discovery. The biotech has also tapped Morten Graugaard to lead as CEO after three years of serving as executive chair of Orbis' board of directors. Graugaard is a Novo Holdings partner with more than 20 years of experience in the life sciences. Under his leadership, the biotech will work to develop oral macrocycles—a drug class that has historically been difficult to create oral versions of—as alternatives to blockbuster drugs. Release