Finance Watch: Second Quarter Begins With Solid Base For Biopharma VC, Shaky Ground For Acorda

Evaluate data show that biopharma companies raising cash in the smallest and largest categories of venture capital financings struggled to meet bars set in prior quarters.

There were six biopharma initial public offerings on Western stock exchanges, including five in the US, during the first quarter, but plunging stock values could halt further IPOs.

Public Company Edition: Stock valuations are falling due to political, economic and regulatory uncertainty, resulting in fewer large public offerings, more alternative financings and cost cuts. Carisma, Tenaya, BioAtla, Arbutus, Nkarta, Alector and Adaptimmune announced layoffs.

CEO Kris Elverum told Scrip about the start-up’s platform for editing RNA to correct genetic variants that cause harm and to reproduce healthy variants as a means of treating disease.