We're kicking off 2023 with a new Fierce Biotech Fundraising Tracker to keep the pulse on biotech financing. We've launched a new Fierce Biotech Fundraising Tracker for 2023 to track all the venture capital flowing into the industry. While biotech VC investments in 2022 failed to live up to 2021's banner year, the second half still saw a steady stream of fundraises over $30 million. Now, the industry enters the new year with bated breath, wondering what this year could bring after the swing from high to low.
Like last year's tracker, we will continue to include any fundraising rounds north of $30 million. We'll still profile exciting new companies and larger rounds in-depth, but we’re hoping to focus more coverage on clinical trial results, special reports and enterprise stories to give readers insights they can't find elsewhere.
CEO: Emile Nuwaysir, Ph.D.
Investors: Co-led by Arix Bioscience and 5AM Ventures, plus F-Prime Capital, Cormorant Asset Management, Viking Global Investors, Takeda Ventures, Inc., SymBiosis, Alexandria Venture Investments, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Qatar Investment Authority, Catalio Capital Management, Solasta Ventures and Mirae Asset. Genomic medicines biotech Ensoma has snagged $85 million in a series B, while also sealing an acquisition deal for CRISPR engineering company Twelve Bio. Ensoma plans to use the funds to advance its Engenious in vivo engineered cell therapy platform as well as accelerate its pipeline. The acquisition will expand the Engenious platform and boost Ensoma's ability to develop the next generation of genome editors for new medicines that address rare and prevalent disease. Twelve Bio was seeded by Arix Bioscience. Financial details of the acquisition were not disclosed. Release The $100 million extension round brings Metagenomi's series B total to a hefty $275 million and comes on the heels of partnerships with Big Pharma Moderna and Ionis Pharmaceuticals. The gene editing company plans to use the new money to advance its lead therapeutic programs through preclinical development and into clinical proof-of-concept studies. The California-based biotech also intends to nominate additional therapeutic targets to its genetic medicines pipeline. Release CEO: K. Angela Macfarlane
The San Francisco biotech has received a large vote of confidence from Big Pharma J&J's venture arm, which led the series B financing round. The company is focused on developing gene therapies and other treatments for eye diseases with high unmet need. The biotech has identified protective biological targets that they believe they can use to develop therapies for addressing over half of currently untreatable retinal blindness. The new money will go toward advancing programs in geographic atrophy/age-related macular degeneration, glaucoma and other undisclosed disease areas. Release Belharra emerged from stealth with a total of $130 million in capital thanks to a $50 million series A plus a multi-year collaboration with Genentech. Belharra’s tech boasts a “library” of photoaffinity-based chemical probes, which are commonly used in drug discovery, to explore protein-ligand interactions in the cell. The company is helmed by Jeff Jonker, who previously held upper leadership roles at Ambys Medicines and NGM Biopharmaceuticals. Release The Massachusetts-based biotech aiming to treat obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and related disorders has raised an oversubscribed $79.75 million round that extends its series C financing to a total of $142.25 million. The money will go toward the planned phase 3 trials for Apnimed’s lead candidate, dubbed AD109, that could be the first oral treatment for OSA if approved. The clinical trials are expected to start enrollment in the second quarter of 2023 pending discussions with the FDA. Release