With the onset of COVID-19, biotech stocks, along with all the other major stock market indices, took a nose dive, from mid-March. The biotech index performed a little better than the other indices by the end of the quarter. In the weeks before the pandemic announcement, money still flowed into the sector from both the public and private markets. As yet, evidence of an economic downturn is not displayed in the numbers.

Stock market performance

Biotech stocks react to the economic downturn.

Global biotech intial public offerings

The US had a bumper quarter in terms of IPO funding.

Number of IPOs

 

2Q18

3Q18

4Q18

1Q19

2Q19

3Q19

4Q19

1Q20

Asia-Pacific

4

7

13

3

8

6

17

2

Europe

6

1

5

2

2

1

3

0

Americas

17

19

11

18

18

9

13

10

  1. Source: BCIQ BioCentury Online Intelligence.

Global biotech financing

Debt continued to be an important funding source.

PIPE, private investment in public equity. Source: BCIQ BioCentury Online Intelligence.

Global biotech venture capital investment

In the United States and Europe, taken together, risk capital was more plentiful than in any 2019 quarter.

Number of rounds

 

2Q18

3Q18

4Q18

1Q19

2Q19

3Q19

4Q19

1Q20

Asia-Pacific

23

15

7

18

18

15

27

12

Europe

28

29

35

29

39

41

43

49

Americas

96

82

85

60

104

86

104

99

  1. Source: BCIQ BioCentury Online Intelligence.

IPOs

Company (principal underwriters)

Amount raised ($ millions)

Date completed

Change in stock price (as of 4/7/2020)

Bio-Thera Solutions

281

21 February

Not available

Revolution Medicines (Cowen, SVB Leerink)

274

12 February

–17%

Passage Bio (Goldman Sachs, Cowen)

248

27 February

–27%

Schrödinger (Morgan Stanley, Bank of America Merrill Lynch)

232

5 February

36%

Black Diamond Therapeutics (Cowen, Canaccord Genuity)

231

29 January

–38%

Arcutis Biotherapeutics (Goldman Sachs, Cowen)

183

4 February

26%

Beam Therapeutics (J.P. Morgan, Jeffries, Barclays Capital, Wedbush)

180

5 February

–15%

I-Mab Biopharma (Jeffries, China International Capital, China Renaissance, Hopu Securities)

114

17 January

Not available

Imara (Morgan Stanley, SVB Leerink)

75

11 March

6%

Anpac Bio-Medical Science (WestPark Capital, Univest Securities)

16

30 January

–27%

Annovis Bio (ThinkEquity)

14

28 January

–66%

  1. Source: BCIQ BioCentury Online Intelligence.

Venture capital

Company (lead investors)

Amount raised ($ millions)

Round number

Date completed

EQRx (GV, Arch Venture Partners, Andreessen Horowitz)

200

A

12 January

ElevateBio (Invus, Surveyor Capital, MPM Capital)

170

B

30 March

Karius (SoftBank, HBM Partners, Khosla Ventures)

165

B

24 February

Concerto HealthAI (Declaration Partners, Maverick Ventures, AllianceBernstein)

150

B

13 January

Element Science (GV, Cormorant Asset Management, Invus)

146

C

3 March

Immunocore (General Atlantic, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, WuXi AppTec)

130

B

2 March

Aligos Therapeutics (Wellington Capital Management, Janus Henderson Investors, Cormorant Asset Management)

125

B

10 January

Apexigen (Decheng Capital)

123

C

24 March

Nurix Therapeutics (EcoR1 Capital, Third Rock Ventures, The Column Group)

120

Not disclosed

12 March

Kallyope (The Column Group, Lux Capital, Polaris Partners)

112

C

25 March

SutroVax (Janus Henderson Investors, RA Capital Management, Medicxi Ventures)

110

D

26 March

Generation Bio (T. Rowe Price, Farallon Capital Management, Wellington Management, Atlas Venture)

110

C

10 January

Akouos

105

B

3 March

  1. Source: BCIQ BioCentury Online Intelligence.

Mergers and acquisitions

Target

Acquirer

Value ($ millions)

Date announced

Dermira

Eli Lilly

1,000

10 January

Ritter Pharmaceuticals

Qualigen

Reverse merger

21 January

Neon Therapeutics

BioNTech

67

16 January

PharmAkea Therapeutics

Galecto Biotech

Merger

7 January

Onspira Therapeutics

Altavant

Undisclosed

8 January

Attenua

Coda Biotherapeutics

Undisclosed

5 February

  1. Source: BCIQ BioCentury Online Intelligence.

Licensing/collaboration

Researcher

Partner

Up-front cash ($ millions)

Description

Sangamo Therapeutics

Biogen

125

Sangamo grants Biogen exclusive worldwide rights to develop and commercialize gene regulation therapies to treat neurological diseases

Novartis

Otsuka Pharmaceutical

90

Otsuka enters into co-promotion agreement in Japan for small-molecule cocktail of the neprilysin inhibitor sacubitril plus angiotensin receptor inhibitor valsartan

Dermavant Sciences

Japan Tobacco

60

Dermavant enters into exclusive license agreement with Japan Tobacco for development and commercialization of tapinarof, a first-in-class small-molecule aryl hydrocarbon receptor agonist, in Japan

Nurix Therapeutics

Sanofi

55

Nurix partners with Sanofi to develop and commercialize protein degradation drugs to treat multiple undisclosed indications

AstraZeneca

RedHill Biopharma

53

AstraZeneca grants RedHill rights to commercialize Movantik (naloxegol) to treat opioid-induced constipation worldwide, excluding Europe, Canada and Israel

Adaptimmune Therapeutics

Astellas Pharma

50

Astellas partners with Adaptimmune to co-develop and co-commercialize stem-cell-derived allogeneic T cell therapies to treat cancer

Kyverna Therapeutics

Gilead Sciences

17.5

Kyverna partners with Gilead to develop engineered T cell therapies for the treatment of autoimmune disease based on Kyverna’s synthetic Treg platform and synNotch technology from Kite

eFFECTOR Therapeutics

Pfizer

15

eFFECTOR Therapeutics grants Pfizer worldwide, exclusive rights to develop and commercialize small-molecule inhibitors of eukaryotic initiation factor 4E to treat cancer

Camp4 Therapeutics

Biogen

15

Biogen partners with Camp4 to discover targets to address neurodegenerative and neurological diseases

GlycoMimetics

Apollomics

9

GlycoMimetics grants Apollomics exclusive rights to its E-selectin antagonist, GMI-1687, to treat acute myeloid leukemia

Evotec

Bayer

7.2

Evotec partners with Bayer to develop and commercialize drug candidates to treat polycystic ovary syndrome

  1. Source: BCIQ BioCentury Online Intelligence.