Finance Watch

Public Company Edition: Cormorant’s special purpose acquisition corporation, Helix Acquisition III, went public to pursue health care and related opportunities, but at least four biopharma firms are seeking $150m-plus IPOs and the follow-on market is booming.

Private Company Edition: Twenty eight biopharma firms announced $2.11bn in new VC funding between Jan. 8 and 22 on top of $1.36bn in pre-J.P. Morgan disclosures on Jan. 7 and 8. Corxel led the recent financings with a $287m series D1 round to advance its oral GLP-1 agonist.

Public Company Edition: Aktis’s public market debut sets a positive IPO tone for 2026. Also, follow-on offerings grossed $825m for Arrowhead, $575m for Praxis, $350m for Crinetics and $300m each for Alumis and Monte Rosa ahead of the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference.

Private Company Edition: Parabilis brought in $305m, Soley raised $200m, Alveus secured $159.8m, Diagonal accessed $125m, EpiBiologics raised $107m and Rakuten garnered $100m, plus other venture capital announcements ahead of the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference.

AI-guided drug developer Insilico raised HKD2.28bn ($292.2m) when on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Also, Collegium closed a $980m credit facility and in private company financings Syremis, Atavistik and Syneron raised $100m or more in year-end venture capital deals.

Restructuring Edition: Vistagen will implement cash preservation measures after intranasal fasedienol for social anxiety disorder failed in the Phase III PALISADE-3 trial, but PALISADE-4 is ongoing. Also, Geron and BiomX are cutting jobs and Valneva is consolidating in France.

Public Company Edition: Athira licensed Phase III lasofoxifene from Sermonix and raised $90m plus up to $146m from warrants. Also, Immunovant, Immunome and Kodiak grossed $550m, $400m and $160m respectively, in follow-on offerings. Vor garnered $150m in a private placement.

Private Company Edition: Three out of eight $100m-plus venture capital financings so far in December were raised by China-based biotech firms – $110m for SanegeneBio, $108m for D3 Bio and $100m for OTR – reflecting growing interest in drug candidates from the country.

FOPO Edition: Capitalizing on positive data, eight drug developers priced follow-on public offerings that brought in $3.2bn, including $650m each for Terns and Structure plus $602m for Kymera.

Public Company Edition: Uncertainty about the US FDA’s direction earlier in the year caused biotech stocks to sag, but recent leadership upheaval has not sunk the XBI. Also, Belite raised $350m, Capricor grossed $150m and Immatics brought in $125m in follow-on offerings.

Private Company Edition: Protego’s series B round comes four years after its $51m series A. Also, Aspen Neuroscience reveals a $115m series C round, Profluent raises $106m to fund AI-enabled protein design and Phrontline brings in $60m in pre-series A+ financing.

Public Company Edition: Lilly’s obesity franchise makes it the highest-valued health care company in the US. Also, Genmab accesses $4.5bn to fund its $8bn Merus buy, Moderna locks in a $1.5bn credit facility and Ionis sells $700m worth of notes.

Restructuring Edition: Nxera will cut its workforce by 15% in Japan and the UK, among other changes. Also, nearing the end of its cash, Applied Therapeutics cuts 46% of its employees, Korro will cut staffing by 34% as it shifts focus and Metagenomi revealed a 25% workforce reduction.

Private Company Edition: Solve Therapeutics raised $120m in new funding for its Phase I ADC programs and CloakLink linker platform, while Artios will use its $115m series D cash to fund Phase II trials for its drugs targeting the DNA damage response in cancer, plus other recent VC financings.

Public Company Financings: Biomedtracker’s third quarter report shows a big jump from Q2 in follow-on offerings, private placements and debt. Also, Evommune brings the US biopharma IPO tally for 2025 to a dozen and Merck’s Blackstone deal gives it $700m to develop a key ADC asset.

Private Company Edition: Braveheart Bio licensed its selective cardiac myosin inhibitor from Hengrui. Also, Arena BioWorks shuts down after raising $500m in 2024, GHO Capital closed a €2.5bn ($2.9bn) private equity fund and new cash brings Tubulis’s series C to €344m ($401m).

Public Company Edition: MapLight grossed $288.4m plus $8.1m from a private placement to fund neuropsychiatry clinical trials. Also, Evommune set a price range for its pending IPO of up to $183.3m, Sanofi priced a $3bn bond issue and Arcus raised $250m in a follow-on offering.

Public Company Edition: From Praxis’s $525m offering and Summit’s $500m private placement to Valneva’s $500m in new debt and Cidara’s $339m BARDA award, publicly traded firms are raising big money from diverse sources while biopharma stock valuations are on an upswing.

Private Company Edition: Electra will run a Phase II/III trial for ELA026 and advance a second SIRP-targeting drug with its new cash. Also, cardiovascular-focused Kardigan raised $254m, while Veradermics and Pelage brought in $150m and $120m, respectively, for hair loss treatments.

Private Company Edition: October started with several $100m-plus VC financings, including $200m for Souffle Therapeutics, Expedition’s $165m series A round, $153m in series E cash for Arthrosi and a $101m series A for Nilo. Also, three life science investors closed new funds.