Aura Biosciences, a US-based cancer therapy developer backed by pharmaceutical firms Lundbeck and Chiesi Group and scientific measurement system provider Li-Cor Biosciences, has filed for an initial public offering.
The IPO has a $100m placeholder figure and is set to take place on the Nasdaq Global Market. Cowen, SVB Leerink and Evercore are serving as joint underwriters for the offering and are being joined by lead manager BTIG.
Founded in 2009, Aura has a pipeline of ocular and urologic cancer therapy candidates dubbed molecular surgeries, leveraging particles modelled after viruses designed to target and destroy solid tumour cells and trigger immune response.
The company had received $80m in March this year, in a round co-led by Matrix Capital Management and Surveyor Capital and backed by Lundbeckfonden Ventures and Chiesi Ventures, on behalf of Lundbeck and Chiesi Group respectively.
The March round was filled out by Rock Springs Capital, Adage Capital Management, Velosity Capital, Medicxi, Advent Life Sciences, Arix Bioscience, Columbus Venture Partners and Ysios Capital.
Lundbeckfonden Ventures and Chiesi Ventures had already taken part in a $40m series D round for Aura in 2019 that was led by Medicxi and which also featured Arix Bioscience, Advent Life Sciences, Columbus Venture Partners, Ysios Capital and unnamed returning investors.
Lundbeckfonden Ventures and Arix Bioscience had co-led the company’s $30m series C round two years before, investing alongside Li-Cor Biosciences, Chiesi Ventures and Alexandria Venture Investments, a subsidiary of life sciences real estate investment trust Alexandria Real Estate Equities.
Columbus Venture Partners, Henri Termeer, Advent Partners and Ysios Capital also contributed to the series C round, after Chiesi Ventures, Alexandria Venture Investments, Advent Partners and Ysios Capital had provided $8m for the company in 2016.
Aura had closed a $22m series B round the previous year led by Advent Life Sciences that included Chiesi Ventures, Ysios Capital, Henri Termeer and Alexandria Venture Investments, bringing its overall funding to more than $33m.
Entities affiliated with Medicxi and Matrix Capital Management Master Fund each hold a 10.1% stake in the company, while Surveyor Capital’s Citadel-Multi Strategy Equities Master Fund has an 8.1% share and vehicles connected to Advent Life Sciences 8%.
Lundbeckfond Invest owns 7.7% while Arix Bioscience (6.6%), Chiesi Ventures (6.3%), Columbus Innvierte (5.5%) and Ysios Biofund II Innvierte (5.4%) are also among Aura’s notable shareholders.
