String of successes for Merck Serono spin-offs

Calypso Biotech, an emerging leader in the development of therapeutic antibodies for autoimmune diseases, has closed a €20M Series A financing co-led by Gilde Healthcare and Inkef Capital. They are joined by Johnson & Johnson Innovation - JJDC, Inc. (JJDC), and the company’s founding investor M Ventures. The proceeds from this financing round will support the development of Calypso Biotech’s best-in-class anti-Interleukin-15 (IL-15) antibody CALY-002 up to First-in-Patient studies in several autoimmune indications.

This is only the most recent chapter in the success story of the seven Merck Serono spin-offs. They benefitted from Merck Serono’s EPP program, an initiative launched in April 2012 following Merck’s announcement to close Merck Serono’s headquarters in Geneva. Three biotech companies and an additional foundation have been founded. In addition, a bioinformatics spin-off and two IT service companies have been established.

The results in particular of the biotech companies are clear to see:

• Prexton Therapeutics (Parkinson’s disease) has been acquired by Lundbeck for up to CHF900 million in March 2018

• Asceneuron (neurodegeneration diseases) has the first molecule in clinical trial

• The foundation Esperare has five programs running in six rare disease

• Quartz Bio (bioinformatics) became part of Precision Medicine Group in January 2018.

“Merck Serono spin-offs are a genuine success,” comments Christophe Guichard, former managing director of the Geneva life science incubator Eclosion. The success factors according to Guichard are the experienced managers having strong scientific background and business sense and the support - for those companies developing drugs - of M-Ventures, the corporate venture fund of Merck. Guichard explains: “M-Ventures has played a critical role of early cornerstone investor to attract capital from large European biotech funds.”

(SK)