Finance Watch: Investors Can't Get Enough Of NASH, Including Start-Ups With Novel Drugs

Investors can't seem to get enough of biopharmaceutical companies developing drugs for non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), an indication with potentially millions of patients, no approved therapies and a growing list of players vying for a piece of the pie, including recently funded Terns Pharmaceuticals Inc. and 89bio.

Terns Pharmaceuticals, operating from San Mateo, Calif. and Shanghai, China, revealed an $80m Series B venture capital round on Oct. 30 to fund the development of targeted oral small molecules to treat NASH and cancer. New investors Vivo Capital and OrbiMed led the round with participation from Decheng Capital – another new investor – and prior backer Lilly Asia Ventures