Vor pivots to autoimmune drugs and brings in new CEO

Vor Biopharma is shifting from oncology to autoimmune disease, licensing telitacicept from China’s RemeGen and raising $175M in new funding. Jean-Paul Kress, former MorphoSys CEO, takes the helm.

• Why it matters: This pivot revives a struggling company that recently laid off 95% of staff. With a Phase 3-ready drug already approved in China, Vor aims to fast-track its reentry into clinical development.

Backstory: Founded by PureTech and Siddhartha Mukherjee (author of The Emperor of All Maladies), Vor went public in 2021 on its cancer therapies. But years of setbacks led to winding down its leukemia programs and seeking strategic alternatives.

• Big picture: Vor joins a growing trend of U.S. and European biotechs licensing late-stage Chinese drug candidates to cut development time and cost. Its bet on telitacicept also aligns with the rising demand for autoimmune treatments.

Drug mechanism: Telitacicept targets the cytokines BAFF and APRIL, proteins critical for B cell survival. These molecules are implicated in autoimmune conditions where B cells malfunction and attack the body’s own tissues.

• The licensed drug is being developed for generalized myasthenia gravis, systemic lupus erythematosus, and rheumatoid arthritis. It’s already approved for use in China.

Investor backing: Vor paid $45 million upfront and issued $80 million in stock warrants to RemeGen for global rights to telitacicept, excluding China.

• Vor also raised $175 million in a PIPE with high-profile biotech investors like RA Capital Management, Forbion, and Venrock Healthcare Capital Partners.

Market reaction: Vor’s stock nearly doubled following the announcement.