Bioenvision Inc. is raising $30 million through a registered direct offering of 8 million shares.

Bioenvision, of New York, sold the shares at $3.75 each from an existing shelf registration. Net proceeds are expected to total about $27.6 million. J.P. Morgan Securities Inc. is exclusive placement agent for the deal, which was expected to close Wednesday.

The company develops and markets products for treating cancer and other diseases. Among those products is Evoltra (clofarabine), a purine nucleoside analogue approved in Europe to treat pediatric relapsed or refractory acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Bioenvision has filed for approval to include certain adult acute myeloid leukemia patients. Genzyme Corp., of Cambridge, Mass., markets clofarabine as Clolar in the U.S. for pediatric ALL and is conducting a Phase III trial in adult AML.

Another Bioenvision product, Modrenal, is approved in the UK for treating postmenopausal breast cancer following relapse to initial hormone therapy.

The company also is developing Suvus, which is in clinical development for treating refractory chronic hepatitis C infection.

Bioenvision's stock (NASDAQ:BIVN) fell 33 cents Monday to close at $3.76.

In other financing news:

• Egalet A/S, of Copenhagen, Denmark, raised $19.3 million (DKK107.7 million) in a Series B financing round. The round was led by Danish investor Vaekstfonden Life Science Ventures, and included existing investors Atlas Venture, Bio Fund, Dansk Kapitalanlaeg, Danske Bank, Index Ventures and QueQuoin Holdings Ltd. The specialty pharmaceutical company is focused on development of oral, controlled-release products targeting the cardiovascular and pain markets.

• Corcept Therapeutics Inc., of Menlo Park, Calif., raised $9 million through the placement of 9 million shares at $1 per share. Existing investor Paperboy Ventures LLC led the financing. Sutter Hill Ventures, Alta Partners LLP, members of the Corcept board, Black Point Group LLP and certain individuals also participated. Among the uses for the funds will be to prepare for the next Phase III clinical trial evaluating Corlux (mifepristone), a GR-II antagonist, for treating the psychotic features of psychotic major depression. The second of three Phase III trials of Corlux, Study 09, recently failed to show statistical significance. Corcept's stock (NASDAQ:CORT) gained 20 cents Monday, or 22.2 percent, to close at $1.10. (See BioWorld Today, Oct. 2, 2006.)

• Manhattan Pharmaceuticals Inc., of New York, raised about $8.6 million through a private placement of about 10.2 million shares at $0.84 per share. Investors also got five-year warrants to purchase about 3.6 million shares at $1 per share. Paramount BioCapital Inc. was placement agent. Manhattan is developing products for obesity and psoriasis, and a sedative-hypnotic agent for use in medical procedures.

• Neurobiological Technologies Inc., of Emeryville, Calif., entered into agreements to raise $7 million through a registered offering of about 3.04 million shares. NTI is selling units at $2.30 per unit. The institutional investors also will get five-year warrants to purchase another 3.04 million shares at $2.40 per share. Rodman & Renshaw LLC and Dawson James Securities are placement agents for the deal. NTI is focused on developing therapies for neurological conditions that occur in connection with ischemic stroke and brain cancer.

• Acadia Pharmaceuticals Inc., of San Diego, filed a preliminary prospectus supplement to its effective shelf registration statement, relating to a proposed underwritten public offering of 5 million shares. The stock sale would raise about $75 million if the shares sold at Friday's closing price of $5.02. Acadia's stock (NASDAQ:ACAD) fell 38 cents Monday to close at $14.64. The book-running managers for the offering are Banc of America Securities LLC and Lehman Brothers Inc., with Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. the co-lead manager. Co-managers are Piper Jaffray & Co., JMP Securities LLC and Rodman & Renshaw LLC.

• Alexza Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Palo Alto, Calif., said it filed a universal shelf registration statement that would allow it to sell up to $150 million of various securities. Alexza said it has no specific plans at this time to sell securities covered by the registration. Terms would be established at the time of any offering.