Kirkland’s EIT Pharma Closes Oversubscribed $35M Series A Round

Kirkland-based EIT Pharma Inc., a biotechnology company focused on developing therapies for infectious diseases, today announced the successful close of an oversubscribed $35-million Series A financing round.

Propel Bio Partners led the round, with participation from Good Ventures, Arrowtown, and others. Propel is an equity-investment firm with offices in Seattle and Los Angeles focused on helping entrepreneurial life-science companies advance technologies and therapies.

Proceeds from the funding will support continued FDA review activities related to lonafarnib for the treatment of chronic hepatitis D, or CHD, and future manufacturing and commercial readiness steps for lonafarnib, subject to regulatory approval. The funding also will help advance EIT Pharma’s infectious-disease pipeline and general corporate operations, EIT Pharma said in a news release.

The financing follows an announcement earlier this month of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s acceptance of the New Drug Application, or NDA, for lonafarnib for the treatment of CHD, a life-threatening liver disease caused by hepatitis D virus, or HDV, in individuals who already have hepatitis B virus infection.

Lonafarnib is an investigational first-in-class oral CHD-therapy candidate. If approved, lonafarnib’s oral administration and room-temperature storage may offer practical advantages for people impacted by CHD and healthcare providers who consider quality of life, treatment burden, and accessibility when evaluating treatment options, according to EIT Pharma.

“This oversubscription of this round is a validation of EIT Pharma’s founding belief that advancing important medicines is about recognizing unrealized potential and assembling the scientific, clinical, regulatory, and commercial expertise to turn that potential into a treatment for patients,” EIT Pharma CEO Leen Kawas said in today’s release. “This new capital allows us to continue advancing lonafarnib through the review process and, subject to FDA approval, prepare to bring it to patients.”

Richard Kayne, general partner of Propel Bio Partners, added in a statement, “EIT Pharma pairs a differentiated, late-stage asset with a team experienced in moving complex programs through development and regulatory review. We see meaningful value potential across EIT Pharma’s infectious disease pipeline, and we’re backing a management team with the scientific, clinical, and commercial discipline to realize it. We’re proud to support EIT Pharma at this pivotal stage as it works to bring important new therapies to underserved patient communities.”