BioAge Labs seeks $180M for obesity trials via IPO, private placement

BioAge Labs is set to attract approximately $180 million in initial proceeds through an IPO and a private placement, funds which will be utilized to advance its primary obesity treatment candidate through clinical trials. The biotech company, which has a partnership with Eli Lilly, announced earlier this month its intentions to go public. Today, BioAge provided more details in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing. The company plans to sell 10.5 million shares, each priced between $17 and $19. Additionally, Sofinnova Investments, an existing shareholder, is expected to purchase $10.6 million worth of BioAge’s stock in a private placement. If the final share price is $18, the combined proceeds from the IPO and private placement would total $180.6 million. This amount could increase to $207 million if underwriters fully exercise their option to buy an additional 1.57 million shares at the same price.

Key spending priorities for these proceeds include the clinical development of azelaprag, BioAge’s lead candidate. Azelaprag is an orally administered small molecule currently undergoing a phase 2 trial for weight loss, used in combination with Lilly’s obesity drug Zepbound. Another midstage trial to assess azelaprag in combination with Novo Nordisk’s approved obesity medication Wegovy is scheduled to commence in the first half of next year. BioAge acquired the rights to azelaprag from Amgen in 2021. The funds from the IPO will also be allocated to begin manufacturing the drug product needed for phase 3 trials of azelaprag and to prepare BioAge’s preclinical NLRP3 inhibitor for human studies aimed at treating neuroinflammation.

BioAge is joining a resurgence of biotech IPOs that began gaining momentum in late summer, following in the footsteps of companies like Bicara Therapeutics and Zenas Biopharma. When BioAge first disclosed its IPO plans in early September, Kazi Helal, Ph.D., a senior biotech analyst at PitchBook, remarked to Fierce Biotech that the IPO “could serve as a bellwether for the sector.” Helal noted that as a phase 2 biotech company entering the public market, BioAge will face heightened scrutiny as it navigates clinical trials and regulatory approvals. However, he also pointed out that the current market enthusiasm for obesity treatments could create a favorable environment for BioAge’s market debut.