Financial services group Fidelity is set to exit US-based lung cancer treatment developer Stemcentrx in an acquisition by biopharmaceutical company AbbVie that could be sized at up to $9.8bn.
Founded in 2011, Stemcentrx emerged from stealth in September 2015 with a pipeline of oncology drugs being developed to kill cancer stem cells. Its lead drug candidate, Rova-T, is in registrational trials for small cell lung cancer.
The company has four more compounds in clinical trials for conditions including triple-negative breast cancer, ovarian cancer and non-small cell lung cancer, and additional preclinical compounds expected to enter clinical trials this year.
Stemcentrx raised $250m in an August 2015 round led by Fidelity Investments that valued it at $5bn, and had secured a total of about $500m in funding, people familiar with its finances told MIT Technology Review in 2015.
The company’s other backers include Silicon Valley Bank, which had invested $100m as of April 2015 according to business consultancy Roots Analysis, as well as Artis Ventures and Founders Fund.
The acquisition will consist of $2bn in cash, $3.8bn in AbbVie stock and up to $4bn in milestone payments dependent on certain regulatory and clinical achievements.
Richard A. Gonzalez, chairman and CEO of AbbVie, said: “The addition of Stemcentrx and its late-stage compound Rova-T provide AbbVie with a unique platform in solid tumour therapeutics and complement our leadership position in haematologic oncology.
“We believe the acquisition of Stemcentrx will strengthen and accelerate our ability to deliver innovative therapies that will have a remarkable impact on patients’ lives.”