A newly private Novartis partner bags a megaround on its first go to turbocharge CAR-T, cell therapy pipeline

30 Sep 2021
endpts.com
CollaborateCell TherapyLicense out/inASCO
An early forerunner of Chinese biotech’s growing influence globally, Cellular Biomedicine — or CBMG – appeared to be taking two steps backward when it delisted on Nasdaq and went private early this year. But the biotech had its eyes set on the future, and a new megaround of fundraising with big-name backers on board could put its plans back on the right track. CBMG Holdings closed a $120 million Series A with backing from a group of prominent pharma players to drive its lead CAR-T therapies through the clinic and juice up its budding cell therapy pipeline, the company said Thursday. The round was co-led by the AstraZeneca-CICC Fund, Sequoia Capital China and Yunfeng Capital with participation from new and existing investors, including Novartis, GIC and TF Capital, CBMG said in a release. Newly private after its delisting in February, CBMG’s lead candidates are a bispecific anti-CD19/CD20 CAR-T for relapsed/refractory non-Hodgkin lymphoma, dubbed C-CAR039, and a BCMA targeting CAR-T for multiple myeloma, dubbed C-CAR088. Meanwhile, the biotech has a budding pipeline of more CAR-Ts and tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) for solid tumors, CBMG said, as well as a broad stem cell platform it’s testing against indications as diverse as acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and knee osteoarthritis. The new funding is a nice change of pace of CBMG, one of the earliest Chinese biotechs to list on Nasdaq way back in 2014 and a sign of where the field was heading despite its own shortcomings. In 2018, Novartis enlisted CBMG to manufacture and supply the CAR-T therapy Kymriah in China, while bagging a worldwide license to some of the biotech’s own CAR-T work. In 2020, the biotech decided to delist as part of a $383 million deal with debt accumulating and open loans casting doubt on the company’s ability to continue. But now, CBMG appears poised for growth with manufacturing facilities in Rockville, MD, its future headquarters site, as well as in China, where it has focused much of its R&D efforts. At this year’s ASCO, CBMG rolled out data for C-CAR039 showing an 84% complete response rate in early patients.
Organizations
Indications
Targets
Drugs
Chat with Hiro
Get started for free today!
Accelerate Strategic R&D decision making with Synapse, PatSnap’s AI-powered Connected Innovation Intelligence Platform Built for Life Sciences Professionals.
Start your data trial now!
Synapse data is also accessible to external entities via APIs or data packages. Empower better decisions with the latest in pharmaceutical intelligence.