Follow the Money: Potential Best-in-Category Weight Loss Drug Tubulis’ ADC Advancement, Trojan Horse Treatment for Cancer

$600M: Series B for Obesity Treatment 

Kailera Therapeutics announced a $600 million Series B financing. The financing will be fully funded at closing and will support the advancement of Kailera’s leading obesity portfolio, including a global phase 3 clinical program of Kailera’s lead candidate KAI-9531, an injectable dual GLP-1/GIP receptor agonist with potentially best-in-category weight loss. Kailera plans to initiate its global phase 3 program by year end. The program will include two trials in adults living with obesity or overweight with comorbidities, with and without type 2 diabetes, and an additional trial in adults living with a BMI of 35 or higher.

$361M: Series C for Antibody-Drug Conjugate for Ovarian Cancer and Other Cancers 

Tubulis announced the successful closing of a $361 million Series C financing. The proceeds will be used to expand the clinical development of TUB-040, Tubulis’ lead antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) candidate, into earlier lines of therapy and additional tumor indications. TUB-040 targets NaPi2b, an antigen that is overexpressed in ovarian cancer and lung adenocarcinomas. TUB-040 is currently being evaluated in a phase 1/2a study in patients with platinum-resistant ovarian cancer, as well as relapsed or refractory non-small cell lung cancer and was granted Fast Track designation by the U.S. FDA in June 2024. The capital will also advance Tubulis’ pipeline, including the clinical-stage ADC candidate TUB-030, several preclinical programs, and expand its proprietary ADC platform technologies to bring ADCs into novel applications.

$183M: Series C for First-in-Class SIRP-Targeted Therapies 

Electra Therapeutics announced an oversubscribed $183 million Series C financing that will fund a global pivotal phase 2/3 study of ELA026 in secondary hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (sHLH), a hyperinflammatory disease with high mortality and a lack of treatment options. The study is enrolling patients at research sites across the U.S. and Europe and has initiated dosing. Beyond sHLH, Electra is also evaluating ELA026 in hematologic cancers, where initial clinical data have shown potential for promising therapeutic benefit. The financing will further support advancement of ELA822, Electra’s second SIRP-targeted program that selectively depletes activated T lymphocytes, into the clinic and through initial data readouts.

$122M: Series A for Antibody-Drug Conjugates Trial 

Adcytherix SAS announced the successful closing of a $122 million Series A financing. The funds will enable the company to advance its lead candidate ADCX-020 into the clinic, with first investigational new drug and clinical trial applications filings planned by end 2025. In parallel, Adcytherix will expand its pipeline of proprietary ADCs using novel payloads.

$95M: Series A for Curative Cancer Therapies 

Trogenix, a pioneering biotech company founded by 4BIO, has secured a $95 million Series A financing. The funding will enable the rapid advancement of Trogenix’s pipeline of potentially curative cancer therapies across multiple aggressive solid tumors into the clinic. Trogenix is combining the dual power of cancer cell killing and immune stimulation, delivered via a Trojan Horse approach that reawakens the immune system to provide long-term protection against tumor recurrence. Trogenix's lead program in glioblastoma, one of the most aggressive and treatment-resistant brain cancers, is advancing toward clinical trials with first patient dosing anticipated in Q1 2026.

$78M: Series B for Prosthetic Joint Infection Treatment Trial 

Peptilogics has completed an oversubscribed $78 million Series B2 financing round. The funding will support the company's phase 2/3 trial of zaloganan (PLG0206), an investigational treatment for prosthetic joint infections (PJI). Prosthetic joint infections are a devastating complication that can turn a successful joint replacement into a nightmare. The upcoming phase 2/3 randomized, placebo-controlled superiority trial will enroll 240 patients beginning in December 2025, with the primary endpoint measuring the reduction in clinical failure rates. The study will also evaluate health economics measures including hospitalization duration, readmission rates, and additional surgical procedures to quantify the cost savings that zaloganan can create for hospitals, health systems, and payers.

$70M: Series A for Rheumatoid Arthritis Trial and Chronic Inflammatory Diseases 

Elevara announced the closing of a $70 million Series A financing. The proceeds will fund Elevara’s upcoming phase 2 clinical trial of its lead candidate ELV001 and support exploratory programs in additional chronic inflammatory conditions and women’s health. The START-SYNERGY phase 2 trial will enroll approximately 180 patients with inadequate response to methotrexate and TNF inhibitors, with recruitment expected to begin before the end of 2025. 

$50M: Series B for Digital Chemistry  

Chemify and Chemputation, Chemify’s purpose-built AI to digitize molecule creation, announced a $50 million oversubscribed Series B funding. The financing will allow Chemify to expand this globally, build a network of digital chemistry hubs, and deliver on-demand molecule design and manufacturing to pharmaceutical, biotech, and materials-science partners everywhere.

$48M: Financing for eClinical Technologies 

Almac Group announced a $48 million investment in eClinical technologies that includes the launch of Almac Trial Coordinator, a first-in-class interoperable clinical trial technology platform, enhancements to its eClinical ecosystem capabilities, and creation of over 100 advanced technology roles globally. This investment addresses the top technology challenges facing sponsors, CROs, and clinical sites through the solution’s market-disrupting and interoperable approach to integration, enabling high-quality, efficient trials with full visibility, reduced risk, and enhanced patient engagement. 

$44.1M: Series C for Cancer and Blood Disorder Treatment 

Step Pharma has completed a $44.1 million Series C financing round. The financing will enable Step Pharma to continue advancing its ‘pipeline in a product’ strategy for dencatistat, a first-in-class, highly selective, orally bioavailable CTPS1 inhibitor currently in development for the treatment of cancers and blood disorders. All cancers appear to be highly reliant on CTPS1, a key component of the pyrimidine synthesis pathway, for DNA synthesis and cell proliferation.

$35M: Series D for Embolic Medical Devices  

ABK Biomedical announced an oversubscribed $35 million Series D financing. The proceeds of the Series D funding round will support ongoing clinical operations, prepare for the commercialization of Eye90 microspheres, and drive further product innovation and development. Additional funds will be used to increase the scale and scope of the company's manufacturing and supply chain operations to support Eye90 microspheres commercialization well into the future.

$31M: Seed Funding for In Vivo CAR-M Therapy Trial 

Liberate Bio has raised $31 million in seed funding to accelerate its first in vivo cell therapy toward human trials. Liberate Bio is focusing on monocytes and macrophages (CAR–M), rather than the more common T cells (CAR–T). The company believes this approach offers a potentially safer profile with fewer toxic side effects and the ability to better penetrate hard-to-reach disease sites, such as bone marrow and solid tumors.

$25M: Series C for First-in-Class Antimicrobials 

Omnix Medical has raised $25 million in a Series C funding round. This financing will enable Omnix to complete phase 2 proof-of-concept studies for its lead compound, OMN6. The studies will focus on treating life-threatening infections caused by Gram-negative bacteria, particularly Acinetobacter baumannii, including strains resistant to last-line treatments such as carbapenems and colistin. The funding will also support regulatory activities, manufacturing scale-up, and the advancement of Omnix’s broader pipeline of engineered antimicrobial peptides.

$22.4M: Series B for Antiviral Nasal Spray 

ENA Respiratory has raised $22.4 million in its Series B financing. The new funding will support the phase 2 clinical development of INNA-051, ENA’s virus- agnostic once-weekly dry powder nasal spray, which primes the natural antiviral host defenses in the nose, where viruses like colds, flu, RSV, and coronaviruses typically enter, enabling the body to respond more quickly when challenged. The planned phase 2 community study will evaluate the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of up to three months’ treatment with INNA-051 and assess its impact on the incidence, duration and severity of symptomatic infections caused by common respiratory viruses.

$20M: Series D for Neurodegenerative Diseases 

Axial Therapeutics rebranded as Vertero Therapeutics and raised $20 million in Series D funding to facilitate the evolution of the company and accelerate Vertero’s advancement into the clinic. Proceeds from the Series D financing will be used to advance the VT-5006 program through phase 1b clinical trials and prepare for phase 2, support ongoing drug discovery efforts and pipeline expansion, and grow the company’s operational and R&D capacity. The new identity reflects the company's mission to transform the perception and treatment of neurodegenerative diseases to delay progression and preserve quality of life for patients as long as possible.

$17.2M: Series B for Vaccine Formulation Platform 

VitriVax raised a total of $17.25 million in Series B financing. The funding will help the company execute on regulatory and clinical strategies to address critical needs in vaccine access and immunization coverage. A couple of these issues are strict cold-chain storage and requiring multiple doses. Designed to eliminate the need for cold-chain dependencies and enable a single-shot formulation for vaccines with dosing schedules, VitriVax’s ALTA platform has the potential to increase access to lifesaving immunizations worldwide by simplifying distribution and vaccination schedules.

$15M: Series A for Radiology Referral Automation 

Medmo announced a $15 million Series A funding round, and will use the new capital to further its expansion into value-based care workflows across the healthcare market and develop additional offerings for insurance companies focused on quality and gaps in care.  Medmo’s AI-powered care coordination platform has quickly become the preferred platform for enhanced referral management of diagnostic imaging exams, including MRIs, CTs, mammograms, ultrasounds, and x-rays.

$11.6M: Financing for Exosome-Based Biotherapies 

EVerZom announced the closing of a $11.6 million fundraising round. These funds will enable EVerZom to launch its first clinical trial of EVerGel in 2026, to expand the therapeutic potential of its exosomes into new indications (hepatology, dermatology), and to further scale and industrialize its GMP-compliant exosome bioproduction platform.