Hookipa Pharma Raises $84 Million in IPO to Advance Arenavirus-Based Immunotherapies for Cancer and Infectious Diseases

VCBeat (WeChat Official Account: vcbeat) learned from foreign media that clinical biotechnology company Hookipa Pharma recently announced it had raised $84 million in its initial public offering (IPO). The funds will be used to develop therapies that reprogram the immune system to treat infectious diseases and cancer.

It was reported that Hookipa Pharma aimed to price its shares in the range of $14 to $16 per share, with an initial plan to sell 6.7 million shares. However, the company’s IPO fell short of the planned size, ultimately issuing only 6 million shares at the lowest price of $14 per share.

Hookipa Pharma (NASDAQ: HOOK) is a biotechnology company headquartered in Vienna, Austria, dedicated to developing innovative immunotherapies for infectious diseases and cancer. Compared with existing immunotherapies, this novel approach elicits stronger and more durable immune responses in patients. In its IPO prospectus, Hookipa Pharma compared its newly developed immunotherapy with cell therapies, noting that its therapy is easier to administer and more cost-effective.

Hookipa Pharma’s immunotherapy is built on reprogrammed arenaviruses, which can be transmitted from rodents to humans. Hookipa Pharma primarily employs arenaviruses in two areas: first, the company uses its proprietary VaxWave technology to leverage an arenavirus that stimulates immune responses for the prevention of infectious diseases; second, it utilizes its proprietary TheraT technology to harness arenaviruses to generate immune responses against cancer.

Hookipa Pharma’s latest candidate drug, HB-101, is a therapeutic agent designed to prevent cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection in kidney transplant recipients. In Phase I trials, the drug elicited a robust immune response against CMV. The company stated that this immunotherapy does not generate antibodies that would compromise its therapeutic efficacy. The Phase II study commenced in the fourth quarter of 2018 and was expected to conclude in the first half of 2020, with preliminary efficacy data anticipated to be released in the second half of 2020.

The company also has three other drug candidates: HB-201, HB-202, and HB-301. Among them, HB-201 and HB-202 are still in the preclinical stage. These two drugs are being developed to treat cancers caused by human papillomavirus (HPV), including cervical cancer, anal cancer, and cancers occurring in the tonsils and tongue. HB-301 is intended for the treatment of prostate cancer.

In its prospectus, Hookipa Pharma stated that it would conduct a Phase 1/2 clinical study in the first half of 2019 to evaluate its cancer candidate HB-201 in combination with checkpoint inhibitors as a monotherapy. The company also indicated that it plans to file an investigational new drug application for HB-202 in the first half of 2020, with data expected to be available by mid-2021.

According to the prospectus, approximately $20 million of the proceeds will be used to fund Phase 2 testing of HB-101, $40 million will be allocated specifically to advance HB-201 and HB-202 into human clinical trials, and the remaining $27 million will be used to conduct Phase 1 testing of HB-301.

Furthermore, since its founding in 2011, Hookipa Pharma has raised approximately $105 million. Its most recent financing round occurred in February of this year, when the company completed a $37.9 million Series D round led by Redmile Group.

(Compiled by Wang Chan)