About 91% of funds recorded in 2020 for all biopharma collaborations with nonprofit entities and 75% of all grant money went directly to therapeutic and vaccine efforts to fight COVID-19. BioWorld has tracked 912 bio/nonprofit deals worth $19.86 billion and 658 grants awarded to the industry and valued at $12.98 billion for a combined total this year of 1,570 and $32.84 billion.

Slate Bio Inc., a startup developing an interleukin 2 fusion cytokine for the potential treatment of autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, has closed a $1.75 million seed financing led by Epidarex Capital. Financing for the company, a spinout of the University of Virginia, also came from the UVA Licensing & Ventures Group Seed Fund, Center for Innovative Technology's GAP Biolife Fund, VTC Seed Fund, Pharmadirections Inc., company management and others.

The record pace of biopharmas filing for IPOs in the U.S. continues as five more companies filed SEC paperwork, looking for gross proceeds totaling $356 million. In 2020, 106 new offerings were completed and raised $22.5 billion, more than double 2018's record of $10.7 billion.

PERTH, Australia – Sydney-based Cyclopharm Ltd. raised AU$30 million (US$23.19 million) in a private placement that will enable the company to launch its Technegas combination product in the U.S.

Tscan Therapeutics Inc. CEO David Southwell told BioWorld that his firm’s series C financing of $100 million will allow two IND filings in liquid tumors this year and three – possibly more – in solid tumors starting next year. “We’ll be filing a lot of INDs in solid tumors,” he said. The Waltham, Mass.-based firm works with T-cell receptor-engineered T-cell therapies.