BEIJING – Chinese clinical-stage cancer drug developer Tot Biopharm International Co. Ltd. went public on Hong Kong's stock exchange under the stock code of 1875 on Friday, raising HK$511.4 million (US$61.3 million) by issuing shares at HK$6.55 apiece. But its debut met with an unexpected setback, with share prices down nearly 7% in mid-morning. Prior to the listing, the company said its shares were oversubscribed by around 11.95 times and it "was well received by the capital market."
Arkuda Therapeutics, a new company targeting progranulin and lysosomal biology to treat neurodegenerative diseases, has completed a $44 million series A financing led by Atlas Venture, its co-creator, and Pfizer Ventures. Funds managed by Tekla Capital Management LLC and Bioinnovation Capital also participated.
LONDON – It used to be called junk DNA, but now Ervaxx Ltd. has shown the noncoding parts of the genome are a treasure trove of novel cancer antigens. Two years after spinning out of the Francis Crick Institute in London, the company has emerged with a $17.5 million series A funding and a fully formed platform for systematically discovering coding sequences for what it refers to as "dark antigens." (The name is trademarked.)
BEIJING – Antibody developer Akeso Biopharma Inc., from China's Guangdong province, closed a $150 million series D financing round to advance its pipeline, especially the two PD-1-based bispecific antibodies, AK-104 and AK-112, aimed to help it stand out in the fierce PD-1 space in China. "A significant portion of the proceeds will go to AK-104 and AK-112, which are both first-in-class drug candidates," Akeso CEO Michelle Xia told BioWorld. This year is a big one for Akeso, as AK-104 and AK-112 received IND approvals from the FDA in March and July, respectively.
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