Freeline Therapeutics, a UK-based gene therapy developer backed by pharmaceutical firm Novo, will raise almost $159m when it floats on the Nasdaq Global Select Market today.
The company increased the number of shares it is issuing from about 7.35 million to more than 8.82 million and priced them at the top of the initial public offering’s $16 to $18 range. Commercialisation firm Syncona is buying $24.3m of shares in the IPO, which values Freeline at about $620m.
Founded in 2015 by Syncona, Freeline is working on gene therapies for chronic systemic diseases such as haemophilia B and Fabry disease, a rare genetic condition affecting organs such as the kidney, heart and skin.
Proceeds from the offering, together with $117m in existing cash reserves, will fund the completion of a phase 1/2b trial of Freeline’s lead asset, a treatment for haemophilia B called FLT180a, and the enrolment of more patients into a phase 2b/3 trial for the same candidate.
The takings will also support the dose escalation portion of a phase 1/2 trial for FLT190, a proposed treatment for Fabry disease, and the progression of FLT201, a potential therapy for Gaucher disease – an ultra-rare condition causing an enlarged spleen and liver – into the clinic.
The flotation follows $275m in equity financing for Freeline, which most recently completed a $120m series C round in June this year co-led by Novo, Eventide Asset Management and Wellington Management.
Cowen Healthcare Investments, Syncona, Acorn Bioventures and Ample Plus Fund also took part in the series C round, which came after Syncona led a $116m series B in mid-2018 that also featured another existing backer, University College London’s UCL Technology Fund.
Syncona held a 67.4% stake ahead of the offering and will remain Freeline’s largest shareholder, with a 49% share following the flotation. Novo owned 6.6% and will come out with a 4.9% stake.
JP Morgan Securities, Morgan Stanley and Evercore are joint book-running managers for the IPO while Wedbush Securities is lead manager. They have a 30-day option to buy more than 1.3 million additional shares, potentially boosting the size of the IPO to $182m.
The original version of this article appeared on our sister site, Global University Venturing.
