Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 20 May 2021 – Forbion, a leading European life sciences venture capital firm, announces that its portfolio company Numab Therapeutics AG (“Numab”), a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing next-generation multispecific antibody-based immunotherapies for cancer and inflammation, today announced the closing of a CHF 100 million (approximately USD 110 million /EUR 91 million) Series C financing. The financing was co-led by new investors Novo Ventures, the ventures arm of Novo Holdings, and HBM Partners, with participation from additional new investors Forbion via its Forbion Growth Opportunities Fund, Cormorant Asset Management, BVF Partners, RTW Investments, BlackRock Financial Management, Octagon Capital Advisors, and existing investors. Concurrent with the financing, Nanna Lüneborg from Novo Ventures, Matthias Fehr from HBM Partners, and Carlo Incerti from Forbion have been appointed to Numab’s Board of Directors.
Proceeds will support acceleration and expansion of the clinical development of Numab’s lead program NM21-1480 into multiple cancer indications, and the advancement of the company’s pipeline of multi-specific antibodies in oncology and inflammation, into clinical trials.
“The Numab investment represents an ideal deal Forbion Growth has set out for a European platform company with a differentiated lead asset that targets a significant commercial opportunity with high unmet medical need and carries a high likelihood of clinical success”, explained Dirk Kersten, General Partner, Forbion. “With a great management team and supported by a strong EU/US investor syndicate, the Forbion team will focus on value creation by strengthening the clinical trial execution and devising new development programs.”
“We are thrilled to be supported by such a strong group of investors who share our vision for the company’s future,” said David Urech, Ph.D., Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Numab Therapeutics. “Combining PD-L1 blockade with tumor localized 4-1BB co-stimulation in a single molecule emerges as an attractive next-generation therapeutic strategy in solid tumors, and Numab’s lead compound NM21-1480 has best-in-class potential. The financing will help us to maximize the value of this asset by significantly expanding the clinical development program and accelerating toward phase 2 proof-of-concept.”
For more information please contact:
Forbion
Dirk Kersten, General Partner
Tel: +31 (0) 35 699 30 00
Media Enquiries
Laura Asbjornsen, Head of Communications
Email: laura.asbjornsen@forbion.com
Tel: +31 (0) 35 699 30 00
Instinctif Partners for Forbion
Melanie Toyne-Sewell / Agnes Stephens / Phil Marriage
Email: forbion@instinctif.com
Tel: +44 (0)207 457 2020
About Numab Therapeutics
Numab Therapeutics is an oncology-focused biopharmaceutical company based in Zurich-area, Switzerland. At Numab, we are writing the next chapter in cancer immunotherapy by creating multi-specific antibodies that enable the pursuit of novel therapeutic strategies. With our proprietary MATCHTM technology platform, we are fueling a new wave of multi-specific drug candidates engineered with versatility and developability in mind. Our lead product was designed to balance potent anti-tumor immunity with a desirable safety profile by targeting 4-1BB, PD-L1 and Human Serum Albumin simultaneously. We believe meeting the highest quality standards in every step of the drug design process matters and will result in better patient outcomes. For further information, visit www.numab.com.
About Forbion
Forbion is a dedicated life sciences venture capital firm with offices in The Netherlands, Germany and Singapore. Forbion invests in life sciences companies that are active in the (bio-) pharmaceutical space.
Forbion manages well over EUR 1.7 billion across multiple fund strategies that cover all stages of (bio)pharmaceutical drug development. Forbion’s current team consists of 20 life sciences investment professionals that have built an impressive performance track record since the late nineties with successful investments in over 69 companies.
The firm is a signatory to the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment. Besides financial objectives, Forbion selects investments that will positively affect the health and well-being of patients.
Its investors include the EIF, through its European Recovery Programme (ERP), LfA, Dutch Venture Initiative (DVI), AMUF and EFSI facilities and KfW Capital through the Programme, “ERP – Venture Capital Fonds investments”. Forbion operates a joint venture with BGV, the manager of seed and early-stage funds, especially focused on Benelux and Germany.
For more information, please visit: www.forbion.com.