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Three biotech raise $856M in IPOs & FDA clears Arvinas’ first-in-class PROTAC breast cancer drug

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Joachim Eeckhout & Eduardo Longoria
May 04, 2026

Good morning. If using space microgravity to develop better drug formulation still sounds like science fiction to you, you are not alone. But biotech startup BioOrbit believes in this model and just raised £9.8 million, the largest seed round to date for in-space manufacturing. To the moon!

— Joachim E.

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SNAPSHOT

Biotech IPO surge continues as Avalyn, Hemab and Seaport raise $856M amid market rebound

Seaport Therapeutics, Hemab Therapeutics and Avalyn Pharma raised a combined $856.4 million in IPOs, extending a strong 2026 run for biotech public offerings.

Why it matters: The offerings show biotech investors are willing to fund larger, more mature companies again after years of a difficult IPO market. Ten biotechs have now raised nearly $3.2 billion in 2026, with six securing at least $300 million.

Backstory: Biotech IPO activity slowed in recent years, forcing many startups to stay private longer and raise large venture rounds before going public. In 2026, companies entering the market are generally more mature, often with mid- to late-stage clinical programs.

Zoom in: Hemab, which specialises in blood diseases, raised $301.5M, exceeding expectations after increasing its offering size, while Avalyn, which is developing inhaled, targeted therapies for rare respiratory diseases, has brought in only a little less at $300.0M. Seaport raised $254.9M, becoming 2026’s first neuro-focused biotech IPO with a focus on improving existing depression and anxiety therapies.

Big picture: The number of biotech IPOs in 2026 may still land near recent annual totals, but the size of the offerings is notable. Investors expect the IPO window to widen if public biotech performance continues improving, potentially giving smaller or earlier-stage companies a path to market.

SNAP AGAIN

FDA clears Arvinas’ first-in-class PROTAC breast cancer drug, but commercial path remains uncertain

Fragment of ancient sculpture.

Why it matters: This marks a scientific breakthrough, validating a new drug class that destroys disease-causing proteins rather than blocking them, while offering a new option for patients with limited second-line treatments.

Backstory: Veppanu was developed under an Arvinas-Pfizer partnership aiming to treat broad breast cancer populations. Clinical data ultimately showed benefit mainly in patients with ESR1 mutations, which drive resistance to hormone therapy.

Zoom in: PROTACs, short for proteolysis-targeting chimeras, work by directing unwanted proteins to the cell’s natural disposal system. Veppanu targets estrogen receptors, which help fuel certain breast cancers.

Yes, but: While the FDA clearance is a scientific first, analysts have questioned whether Veppanu is meaningfully better than rival therapies.

What’s next: In response to this skepticism, Arvinas is shifting focus to its broader PROTAC pipeline, including treatments for Parkinson’s disease and other cancers, betting that this platform can deliver a wider impact beyond Veppanu. Arvinas and Pfizer are seeking a third-party partner to commercialize the drug.

SNIPPETS

What’s happening in biotech today?

🧬 Trispecific try: BeOne Medicines has secured an option to license Huahui Health’s preclinical trispecific antibody HH160 in a deal worth up to $2B. BeOne will pay $20M upfront and $100M if it exercises its exclusive option. HH160 targets PD-1, CTLA-4, and VEGF-A using Huahui’s PolyBoost platform, with preclinical data suggesting enhanced anti-tumor activity and simplified dosing. The agreement may also include future investment by BeOne in Huahui.

🚪 Lymphoma exit: Johnson & Johnson has discontinued its CD20-targeting CAR-T therapy JNJ-9530 and bispecific CD19/CD20 CAR-T JNJ-4496, despite earlier expectations that they could generate over $5B in peak sales. The decision, driven by shifting portfolio priorities and changes in the large B-cell lymphoma treatment landscape, comes even after promising early data, including 75% to 80% complete response rates for JNJ-4496 in phase 1b trials. Acquired in 2023 for $245M, the therapies were in early-stage studies and had been positioned as future blockbusters alongside J&J’s existing CAR-T portfolio. The company will continue supporting patients in ongoing trials while exiting this segment of the market.

✂️ Pipeline prune: Amgen has discontinued two midstage drug candidates, adezkibart for Sjögren’s syndrome and anvumetostat for multiple cancers, following disappointing clinical results, leading to the termination of five trials. Adezkibart, acquired through Amgen’s $27.8B Horizon Therapeutics deal, failed a phase 2 futility analysis, while anvumetostat showed insufficient efficacy in early- to mid-stage studies. Despite this setback, Amgen continues to pursue Sjögren’s treatments with its phase 3 candidate dazodalibep, which targets CD40 ligand to address underlying immune dysfunction.

🛑 Alzheimer halt: GSK and Alector have halted a phase 2 trial of the Alzheimer’s drug nivisnebart after an interim analysis indicated it was unlikely to meet its primary endpoint of slowing disease progression. The antibody, designed to boost progranulin by targeting sortilin, follows another recent failure in the partnership, effectively ending GSK’s $700M collaboration with Alector. The setback adds to broader doubts about the viability of targeting progranulin after a similar drug, latozinemab, failed in phase 3.

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