With half-year industry financings down 59% from last year, and a U.S. administration supportive of cryptocurrencies, biopharma companies are building treasuries of digital assets to secure future R&D efforts and operational runways. Companies such as Artelo Biosciences Inc., MEI Pharma Inc., Windtree Therapeutics Inc. and 180 Life Sciences Corp. and have entered crypto deals in recent weeks, with the latter noting the potential to “unlock value outside traditional biotech milestones.”

Xtalpi finalizes $6B AI drug discovery deal with Dovetree

Quantumpharm Inc., known as Xtalpi Inc., announced receiving $51 million up front from a potential $5.99 billion deal with Dovetree LLC on Aug. 6. The collaboration, first inked through a letter of intent (LOI) between the two parties on June 23, will combine Xtalpi’s AI-based and robotics-driven discovery platform with Dovetree’s “biological insights.” The goal will be to select and validate potential first-in-class candidates for Dovetree across five areas of oncology, immunology and inflammatory diseases, neurological disorders and metabolic dysregulation.

Innogen announces $86M Hong Kong IPO

Guangzhou Innogen Pharmaceutical Group announced an $86 million IPO on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange that will see the company advance its lead product, Diabegone (efsubaglutide alfa), an ultra-long-acting glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1) into new global markets for type 2 diabetes as well as other metabolic diseases. The IPO consists of 36.556 million H shares priced at HKD$18.68 (US$2.37) per share to raise HKD$682 million (US$86 million). Shares are expected to start trading on August 15.

Spero leads infectious disease gains with 252% stock jump

Infectious disease biopharma stocks bounced back in June and July, with the BioWorld Infectious Disease Index (BIDI) closing July up 4.34%, marking a sharp reversal from earlier in the year, when the index had dropped 21.04% by the end of May. Spero Therapeutics Inc. led the BIDI, jumping 244.5% following positive phase III data for tebipenem pivoxil hydrobromide in complicated urinary tract infections. Cidara Therapeutics Inc.’s stock surged 113.8% after the company announced positive phase IIb results from its Navigate trial of CD-388 in preventing seasonal influenza.

US FDA looking to help with Rx moving woes ahead of tariff

Location, location, location. That may become a bigger issue for drug companies when, and if, the global biopharma sector tariff U.S. President Donald Trump continues to tease becomes a reality. In the shadow of the impending tariff, the FDA is working on a draft framework to make it faster and easier for biopharma companies to relocate their manufacturing to the U.S. The agency plans to roll out the framework at a public meeting Sept. 30. Meanwhile, Trump’s thinking on the tariff continues to evolve.

Insulin, GLP-1 makers to face price-fixing class action suit

A federal appeals court opened the door yesterday for an amended class-action lawsuit alleging that Astrazeneca plc, Eli Lilly and Co., Novo Nordisk A/S and Sanofi SA engaged in a horizontal price-fixing conspiracy involving insulin products and GLP-1 drugs indicated in diabetes. In allowing the suit to proceed, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reversed a district court order denying the plaintiffs – several federally funded health centers and clinics – the opportunity to file a second amended complaint after it had dismissed their previous amended one.

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