Marseille, France, June 13, 2022 – ImCheck Therapeutics has announced the successful completion of a EUR 96 million financing round, which equates to approximately $103 million USD. This significant Series C funding round, co-led by Earlybird and Andera Partners, along with a converted tranche from Series B, totals EUR 96 million (USD 103 million) and reinforces ImCheck’s strong financial standing and its leadership in the innovative field of gamma-delta T cell therapeutics. The financing round also welcomed new investors including Invus and The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Therapy Acceleration Program®.
Existing investors also participated in this round of funding, demonstrating continued confidence in ImCheck’s vision. These include Kurma Partners’ Growth Opportunity Fund, Eurazeo, Gimv, EQT Life Sciences (formerly LSP), Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund, Pfizer Ventures, Bpifrance (through Innobio 2 and Large Venture funds), Wellington Partners, Agent Capital, Pureos Bioventures, and Alexandria Venture Investments.
The capital raised, totaling $103 million USD, will be strategically deployed to accelerate the clinical development of ImCheck’s lead candidate, ICT01. Specifically, the funds will support the Phase IIa expansion arms of the EVICTION trial in both solid tumors and hematologic cancers. Furthermore, the funding will enable the completion of randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase II clinical trials. These trials are designed to evaluate ICT01 in combination with a PD-1 inhibitor across a range of solid tumor types, marking a significant step towards potential new cancer treatments.
In addition to the ongoing EVICTION trials, ImCheck plans to initiate the EVICTION-2 clinical trial, which will explore the therapeutic potential of ICT01 in combination with other agents, including IL-2. This expansion into combination therapies underscores the versatility of ICT01 and ImCheck’s commitment to maximizing its therapeutic impact. Looking beyond ICT01, the $103 million investment will also fuel the advancement of ImCheck’s broader pipeline of antibody candidates. These candidates are being developed for applications in immuno-oncology, auto-immune diseases, and infectious diseases, highlighting the breadth of ImCheck’s therapeutic ambitions.
“Since its inception, ImCheck has garnered the support of a distinguished group of international investors. In today’s challenging financial landscape, securing this substantial funding, including the addition of strategic investors from both the U.S. and Europe, positions us strongly to further realize the significant potential of our pipeline,” commented Pierre d’Epenoux, Chief Executive Officer of ImCheck Therapeutics. “We believe our unique position with butyrophilins, enabling potent immunomodulation of both innate and adaptive immunity, is pivotal for therapeutic intervention across numerous disease areas. The investment from The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Therapy Acceleration Program® marks a significant milestone as our first investment from a cancer patient-focused nonprofit organization, which we deeply value.”
Accompanying this successful financing round, ImCheck Therapeutics is also strengthening its leadership team. Florent Gros from Earlybird and Raphaël Wisniewski from Andera Partners will be joining the Company’s Board of Directors. Their expertise and insights will be invaluable as ImCheck moves forward with its clinical and corporate development plans.
Florent Gros, Partner at Earlybird, stated, “ImCheck’s innovative approach to immuno-oncology, specifically through the clinical activation of gamma-delta T cells, is highly compelling. This area of immunology holds immense promise and is attracting significant interest from the biopharmaceutical industry. Earlybird is dedicated to supporting companies that pursue disruptive ideas, and ImCheck’s novel immunomodulation concept has the potential to be transformative across a spectrum of indications.”
Raphaël Wisniewski, Partner at Andera Partners, added, “Immune checkpoint inhibitors have revolutionized cancer treatment, and ImCheck Therapeutics is at the forefront of the next wave of immunotherapeutics. Having closely followed their progress, we are impressed by the leadership team’s execution of a compelling vision for butyrophilin-based therapeutics, from early-stage development to a highly promising clinical program. Andera Partners is confident in ImCheck’s ability to advance its groundbreaking technology to address unmet patient needs in various cancers, as well as in auto-immune and infectious diseases.”
ImCheck Therapeutics’ proprietary technology targets butyrophilins (BTNs), a novel superfamily of immune checkpoint targets. This approach has the potential to overcome tumor resistance to adaptive immune responses. By modulating BTNs, ImCheck aims to harness a broad range of immune cells, including gamma-delta T cells, CD3, CD8, NK cells, and macrophages, effectively bridging innate and adaptive immune responses. The company’s diverse pipeline leverages BTN-targeting antibodies to either activate the immune system in diseases like cancer and infectious diseases or dampen immunity in auto-immune disorders.
Hans Henrik Christensen, Chief Financial Officer of ImCheck Therapeutics, concluded, “ImCheck has now raised a total of EUR 154 million since its inception. We are deeply grateful for the continued support from both our existing and new investors. This $103 million funding significantly extends our operational runway into 2026. This financial strength allows us to fully explore the ‘pipeline in a product’ potential of our lead clinical candidate, ICT01, and advance our broader therapeutic programs.”
Dentons Europe and McDermott Will & Emery provided legal counsel for the Series C transaction. Trophic Communications offered investor relations support, and ATCG Partners provided French media and communications support.
