Finance Watch: Two SPAC Deals, Two IPOs Take Four Biopharmas Public

Surrozen Merging With Consonance-HFW Acquisition, Raising $212m

Public Company Edition: Mergers with special purpose acquisition corporations may be heating up, but in addition to the Surrozen and Tango SPAC deals Recursion and Biomea launched initial public offerings. Also, Organon sells $5.6bn worth of notes to fund spinout from Merck & Co.

Finance Watch

Surrozen Inc. is raising $212m in 2021 as it prepares to enter the clinic in 2022, going public through a merger with the special purpose acquisition corporation (SPAC) Consonance-HFW Acquisition Corp. Surrozen, which is focused on tissue repair and regeneration through selective activation of the Wnt pathway, will garner $92m held in trust by the SPAC when the merger closes and raise $120m from a concurrent private investment in public equity (PIPE) financing.

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Finance Watch: As Stocks Tumble, Offerings Slow, Financial Alternatives Rise

 
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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.

Finance Watch: European And Japanese Biotechs See VC Investor Interest In March

 
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Private Company Edition: The latest group of drug developers to announce venture capital financings is remarkable for its geographic diversity, from Character Biosciences’ $93m series B round in the US to Augustine’s $85m series B in Belgium to a $29.2m series C for Aculys in Japan.

Finance Watch: Cargo Restructuring Not The News The IPO Market Needs

 
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Public Company Edition: Cargo suspended development and cut 90% of its workforce to focus on strategic alternatives, while Pyxis and Kiromic laid off or furloughed employees. Also, Pfizer sold its remaining Haleon shares for $3.3bn, Galderma sold $1bn in bonds and other financings.

Finance Watch: Venture Capital Mega-Rounds Attempt A Rebound In March

 
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Private Company Edition: There have been five $100m-plus VC rounds so far this month, up from three in all of February. Flagship unveiled Lila Sciences with $200m, while Curevo and Insilico raised $110m in series B and E rounds, respectively. Also, Arbor Biotech garnered $73.9m.

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Japan T-Reg Venture RegCell Raises New Funds, Relocates To US

 
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Kyoto-based venture moves HQ to California to expand R&D and business outreach for its regulatory T-cell technology, as it raises around $46m in public and private funding.

Major Cash Injection Advances Augustine’s HDAC6 Hopes

 
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The Belgian firm banks nearly €77.7m to push its Charcot-Marie-Tooth to proof-of-concept.

Korea Needs To Think Bigger On M&As: KHIDI

 

A new report from a domestic institute on South Korea’s biopharma M&A trends shows a pickup in activity, but that this remains relatively weak and small-scale. It calls for broader domestic government support to build expertise, drive innovation and globalization.