UCL's Freeline Therapeutics has priced its shares at $18 to raise nearly $159m through an IPO on the Nasdaq Global Select Market.
Freeline Therapeutics, a UK-based gene therapy developer based on University College London (UCL) research, has priced its shares at $18 and will raise almost $159m when it goes public today.
The company issued more than 8.8 million American Depositary Shares (ADSs), representing the same number of ordinary shares. Commercialisation firm Syncona invested $24.3m in the initial public offering and Freeline will trade on the Nasdaq Global Select Market using the ticker symbol FRLN.
Founded in 2015 by Syncona, Freeline is working on gene therapies for chronic systemic diseases such as haemophilia B and Fabry disease, a rare genetic condition affecting organs such as the kidney, heart and skin.
Proceeds from the offering, together with $117m in existing cash reserves, will fund the completion of a phase 1/2b trial of Freeline’s lead asset FLT180a – a treatment for haemophilia B – and the enrolment of additional patients into a phase 2b/3 trial for the same candidate.
The money will also support the dose escalation portion of a phase 1/2 trial for FLT190, a proposed treatment for Fabry disease, and the progression of FLT201, a potential therapy for Gaucher disease – an ultra-rare condition causing an enlarged spleen and liver – into the clinic.
Freeline’s flotation follows $275m in equity financing. The spinout most recently completed a $120m series C round co-led by pharmaceutical firm Novo, Eventide Asset Management and Wellington Management in June 2020.
Syncona, Cowen Healthcare Investments, Acorn Bioventures and Ample Plus Fund also took part in the series C round.
UCL Technology Fund, the institution’s venture fund, contributed to a $116m series B round in 2018 that was led by Syncona. The former previously injected $1.4m in 2016 after the latter had supplied $37.6m in series A funding in 2015.
Syncona held a 67.4% stake ahead of the offering and will remain Freeline’s largest shareholder with a 49% stake following the flotation. Novo held a 6.6% stake ahead of the offering and will come out with 4.9%.
JP Morgan Securities, Morgan Stanley and Evercore are acting as joint book-running managers for the offering, while Wedbush Securities has been appointed as lead manager. They have a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 1.3 million ADSs.
