Monte Rosa Therapeutics Closes $96 Million Series B Financing

Through this approach Monte Rosa Therapeutics with offices and labs in Basel and Boston will eradicate undruggable disease-causing proteins. The company has made robust progress since it was launched by Ridgeline, Versant’s Discovery Engine based in the Technologiepark Basel, in collaboration with The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR), London, and Cancer Research UK.

Monte Rosa plans to build out its platform and concurrently develop a portfolio of drug candidates for multiple indications including cancer. One of its portfolio leads, MRT-048, has demonstrated a differentiated degradation profile and promising in vivo activity in several models of resistant breast cancer. The molecule is undergoing further preclinical development and safety testing. The company expects to file one or more IND submissions during 2021.

The Series B financing was led by Aisling Capital with participation from founding investor Versant Ventures and existing investor New Enterprise Associates. Additional new investors included HBM Healthcare Investments, Cormorant Asset Management, GV, Amzak Health, Casdin Capital, Sixty Degree Capital and Cambridge Asset Management.

“Many approved drugs have been developed to inhibit a protein’s function. Monte Rosa’s goal is to eliminate the protein altogether,” said Andrew Schiff, M.D., of Aisling Capital. “This investment will continue to support the experienced team led by Markus Warmuth and will enable the company to target known drivers of cancers and other diseases that are currently unaddressed with conventional methods.”