Israel’s Biond Biologics to get $125 million from Sanofi to develop cancer drug
Under the terms of license agreement, Biond could get $1 billion as milestones met; Sanofi will be in charge of commercialization and clinical development
Shoshanna Solomon was The Times of Israel's Startups and Business reporter
Israeli cancer immunotherapy firm startup Biond Biologics said Tuesday it has entered an exclusive worldwide license agreement with Paris-based multinational pharma firm Sanofi for the development and commercialization of its flagship anti-tumor drug BND-22.
Under the terms of the agreement, Biond will get an upfront payment of $125 million in cash and could get $1 billion once it meets development, regulatory and sales milestones, as well as tiered double-digit royalty payments, the Israeli firm said in a statement.
Biond will lead the first-in-human, phase 1a study of BND-22, evaluating its safety and tolerability as a single drug and also in combination with approved cancer therapeutics. The firm will also explore potential associations between the anti-tumor activity of BND-22 and select tumor and blood-based biomarkers.
Sanofi will take on clinical development and commercialization responsibilities for the drug, Biond said.
An Investigational New Drug (IND) application for BND-22 has recently been submitted to the US Food and Drug Administration, and a phase 1 study to evaluate the safety, tolerability, and preliminary anti-tumor activity of BND-22 in advanced cancer patients is planned to start by mid-2021, the statement said.
Biond was founded in 2016, by Tehila Ben-Moshe and Ori Shilo. The lead investors in the company are the Israel Biotech fund (“IBF”) and Harel Insurance, the statement said. The firm has raised to date some $17 million, according to the database of Start-Up Nation Central.
