Viela Bio, the US-based autoimmune disease therapy developer spun off by pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca, has filed to raise up to $150m in an initial public offering.
Spun off in 2018, Viela is working on drugs to treat autoimmune diseases and severe inflammatory diseases. Its therapies will target the disorders’ molecular pathogenesis in order to more precisely treat each patient.
The IPO proceeds will fund pre-commercial and commercial activities for Viela’s lead product candidate, inebilizumab, a monoclonal antibody being developed to treat a rare autoimmune disease known as neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder.
In addition to inebilizumab, which has just had its Biologics License Application accepted for review by the US Food and Drug Administration, the proceeds will support an ongoing phase 1b trial for another candidate, VIB7734, and phase 2 trials for a third, VIB4920, expected to take place in 2020.
AstraZeneca provided $142m of series A funding for Viela in February 2018 that was raised alongside $140m from 6 Dimensions Capital – which was co-founded by pharmaceutical company WuXi AppTec – Boyu Capital, Hillhouse Capital, Temasek and Sirona Capital, according to the IPO filing.
Viela added $30m in series A-2 financing in December before raising $75m in a June 2019 series B round led by HBM Healthcare Investments and backed by Goldman Sachs, Temasek, Viking Global Investors, Terra Magnum Capital Partners, Cormorant Asset Management and Barer and Son Capital.
AstraZeneca retains a 38.4% stake in the company, whose other notable investors are Boyu Capital (18.4%), 6 Dimensions Capital and Hillhouse Capital (9.2% each), and Temasek (7.6%).
Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Cowen and Company, and Guggenheim Securities have been appointed underwriters for the offering, which is set to take place on the Nasdaq Global Market.
