Aileron Therapeutics, a US-based cancer treatment developer that counts pharmaceutical firms Roche, Novartis, GlaxoSmithKline and Eli Lilly as investors, has filed to raise up to $69m in an initial public offering.
Founded in 2005, Aileron is working on a type of therapeutics called stapled peptides, and its lead drug candidate, ALRN-6924, is being developed to treat a range cancers by targeting specific tumour suppressor proteins.
The IPO proceeds will fund research and clinical development activity for ALRN-6924, including a phase 1 all-comers clinical trial, a phase 1/1b trial for acute myeloid leukaemia and myelodysplastic syndrome, and a phase 2a trial for peripheral T cell lymphoma.
The offering will come after approximately $162m of funding raised by Aileron, which most recently secured $19m in a December 2016 series F round led by a $5m investment by Novartis subsidiary Novartis BioVentures, according to the IPO filing.
The round also featured SR One, Lilly Ventures and Roche Finance, respective subsidiaries of GlaxoSmithKline, Roche and Eli Lilly, as well as Excel Medical Fund, a branch of venture capital firm Excel Venture Management, and company chairman Scott B. Kapnick.
Aileron had received $13.2m in series E funding in January 2016 from all the series F investors, in addition to VC firm Apple Tree Partners.
The company had previously closed a $48m series D round in 2014 that included AJU IB Investments, Roche Venture Fund, Novartis Ventures, SR One, Lilly Ventures, Apple Tree Partners and Excel Venture Management.
Apple Tree is Aileron’s largest shareholder, owning a 22.4% stake, while other notable investors include Novartis BioVentures (20.8%), SR One (10.6%), Excel Medical Fund (8.7%), Lilly Ventures (7.7%) and Roche Finance (5.3%).
Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Jefferies, William Blair & Company and Canaccord Genuity are the underwriters for the offering.