Phrontline Biopharma Secures Over RMB 100 Million in Pre-A Financing to Advance Next-Generation Bispecific ADC Pipeline

VCBeat has learned that, recently, a leading domestic bispecific antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) companyPhrontline BiopharmaAnnounced the completion of a Pre-A financing round exceeding RMB 100 million, led byDecheng CapitalExclusive Investment,Index CapitalServed as the exclusive financial advisor. Following this round of financing, Phrontline Biopharma will increase its R&D investment, accelerate the advancement of multiple preclinical pipelines, and upgrade its proprietary technology platform, accelerating progress toward its vision of “becoming a globally leading pharmaceutical company.”

Phrontline Biopharma, established in early 2022, is firmly committed to developing antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) therapeutics through source innovation. Its proprietary technology platform encompasses the four core components of ADC drugs—toxins, linkers, conjugation methods, and antibodies—and has rapidly established advanced platforms for antibody discovery and bispecific antibody preparation, Linker-Payload design and synthesis, and site-specific quantitative conjugation.

Mifang Health Fund, the angel-round investor, firmly believed in the founding team and the key strategic focus on the ADC pipeline from the outset of team building in 2021, and invested tens of millions of RMB after the company’s establishment in 2022.

Currently, ADC drugs have entered the commercial harvest period. Known as "magic bullets," ADC drugs leverage the specific binding of antibodies to tumor targets to deliver cytotoxic agents specifically to tumor sites, achieving precise tumor targeting and highly efficient killing. Globally, 15 monoclonal antibody-based ADC drugs have been approved for marketing, with sales exceeding $7.7 billion in 2022. Meanwhile, business development (BD) transactions related to ADCs are thriving, featuring numerous blockbuster deals worth billions of dollars.

Bispecific Antibody-Drug Conjugates (BsADCs) will further expand the clinical application of ADC therapeutics. By leveraging the synergistic effects of two distinct targets, BsADCs can enhance tumor selectivity and internalization rates, improve responses in patients with low target expression and tumor heterogeneity, and achieve a “1+1>2” effect.

Phrontline Biopharma has assembled the most comprehensive talent pool in the field of ADC R&D, with team members boasting over a decade of experience in the overall design and development of ADCs. Among them,Dr. Chen Zhaoyuan, FounderA senior scientist in the field of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), he/she has led the development of more than 10 ADC drug pipelines and possesses extensive experience in bispecific antibody-drug conjugates (bsADCs), with the most advanced bsADC candidate having entered Phase II clinical trials.Dr. Hu Siyi, Head of Biology,With over a decade of experience in anti-tumor drug research, he is one of the first senior scientists in China to engage in antibody drug discovery.Dr. Mao Yanli, Head of Chemistry,He is a senior ADC medicinal chemistry expert in China, with nearly 20 years of experience in innovative drug R&D, particularly possessing extensive expertise in the design and synthesis of linker-payloads.

The team designs and synthesizes small-molecule toxins with diverse mechanisms of action (MOAs) from scratch, and designs compatible linkers tailored to the physicochemical properties of each toxin, thereby establishing a rich linker-payload library.The relevant technological achievements have been submitted for international patent applications.

The company has also independently developedSite-specific and stoichiometric conjugation technology, with significantly higher conjugation homogeneity than the industry standard.Two different linker-payloads can be introduced via two distinct conjugation technologies to enable the combination of toxins with different mechanisms of action (MOAs), thereby addressing resistance to single-toxin therapies.

To address the current druggability challenges associated with monoclonal antibody-based ADCs, Phrontline Biopharma has formulated a highly forward-looking and differentiated pipeline strategy.Designed a pipeline of molecules including the world’s first dual-target ADCs and dual-linker-payload ADCs., thereby expanding the therapeutic window and addressing challenges faced by monoclonal antibody-drug conjugates (mAb-ADCs), such as toxin resistance and lack of efficacy in patients with low target expression.

The company is currently advancing multiple bispecific antibody ADC pipelines at a rapid pace.Compared with monoclonal antibody–drug conjugates (ADCs) targeting the same antigen, its core R&D candidate TJ101 demonstrated superior tumor selectivity and growth inhibition in multiple preclinical tumor models. Its potential indications include various solid tumors such as lung cancer and head and neck cancer.

Decheng Capital, the sole investor in this roundPhrontline Biopharma stated: “The founding team of Phrontline has many years of experience both domestically and internationally in the screening and optimization of monoclonal and bispecific antibodies, the design, synthesis, and optimization of conjugates, as well as ADC molecule construction and efficacy validation. The founding team possesses a profound understanding of the biology underlying target combinations and has established a proprietary patent platform for conjugates and linkers. In the ADC field, Decheng Capital has strategically invested in a portfolio of star companies worldwide and boasts extensive experience in incubation, value-added empowerment, mergers and acquisitions, and exit strategies. Leveraging its global industrial resources, Decheng Capital will assist Phrontline in rapidly entering the international market and foster multi-level synergistic collaborations with enterprises within Decheng’s global industrial ecosystem.”

Decheng Capital, established in 2012, is a global venture capital fund focused on the healthcare sector. With offices located in Silicon Valley and New York in the United States, as well as Shanghai in China, Decheng Capital manages approximately USD 3 billion in assets. The firm leverages the historic opportunity of rapid growth in China’s healthcare industry and revolutionary innovations in global life sciences, focusing its investments on biopharmaceuticals, gene sequencing and molecular diagnostics, medical devices, and digital health. Decheng Capital has built an unparalleled global healthcare ecosystem, providing entrepreneurs, founders, and inventors with funding, strategic support, and post-investment value-added services.

Mifang Health Fund continuously explores and seeks investment opportunities in China’s innovative new drug development, biotechnology, medical devices, and cross-disciplinary innovations. The management team boasts a broad international perspective, deep industry background, extensive industry resources, and professional investment experience, having completed investments in over 60 companies to date. The firm currently manages multiple RMB and USD funds. Its investors include large insurance companies, funds of funds (FOFs), state-owned enterprises, government guidance funds, listed companies, and renowned family offices.

Guided by the vision of “Shaping the Life Sciences Horizon” and driven by the mission to “Leverage Capital to Foster Innovation and Development in the Healthcare Industry,” Mifang adheres to the core values of “Customer First, Talent Excellence, Quality Leadership, and Trustworthy Returns.” By integrating “decentralized investment” with “systematic operations,” Mifang is committed to becoming an open, platform-based, highly competitive, and globally renowned professional investment institution.