Novo Holdings Leads AvenCell’s $112 Million Series B Financing to Advance Next-Generation Cell Therapy Treatments

• Funding to accelerate clinical validation of AvenCell’s proprietary Universal Switchable CAR-T cell therapy platform, for the treatment of a wide range of hematologic malignancies and auto-immune diseases

• Novo Holdings Venture Investments Partner Michael Bauer to join AvenCell Board of Directors and Venture Investments Vice President Campbell Stewart to join Board as an Observer

COPENHAGEN, Denmark, – Oct 22, 2024 – Novo Holdings, a leading life science investor, today announced that it has led a $112 million Series B financing for AvenCell Therapeutics, Inc. (“AvenCell”). AvenCell is a leading clinical-stage cell therapy company focused on advancing both autologous and allogeneic switchable CAR-T cell therapies to provide safe and efficacious treatments to patients suffering from a wide range of hematologic malignancies and auto-immune diseases.

The financing was led by Novo Holdings with participation from new investors F-Prime Capital, Eight Roads Ventures, Heartland Capital and NYBC Ventures alongside founding investor Blackstone Life Sciences.

The funds will support ongoing clinical validation of AvenCell’s proprietary, switchable universal CAR-T cell therapy platform, which generates CAR-T cells that can rapidly be turned “Off” and “On” even after they are administered to a patient. AvenCell’s switchable cell targeting CAR-T candidate is designed to solve for the on-target off-tumour toxicity seen with conventional cell targeting strategies, providing an improved therapeutic window for clinical application, and therefore enhancing outcomes for patients.

AvenCell was launched in 2021 by Blackstone Life Sciences, Cellex Cell Professionals and Intellia Therapeutics to create an offering that leverages switchable universal T-cell technology developed by the former Cellex subsidiary GEMoaB GmbH, with a license to Intellia’s proprietary CRISPR/Cas9-based allogeneic platform. The combined entity is the first of its kind to integrate a Switchable CAR-T with an off-the-shelf solution for applications across cancer and auto-immune indications, allowing for greater flexibility and a reduction in cycle times that will provide patients in need with advanced cell therapy treatments at significantly reduced costs.

Current pipeline assets utilizing AvenCell’s universal platform include AVC-101, an autologous CAR-T cell candidate, and AVC-201, a CRISPR-engineered allogeneic CAR-T cell candidate. Both products target the antigen CD123 found on most Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) cells. The ongoing trials are investigating both products for the treatment of relapsed/refractory AML, which has a high unmet medical need with very limited treatment options for patients. In addition, AvenCell has several pipeline candidates entering the clinic over the next two years.

Michael Bauer, Partner, Venture Investments, Novo Holdings said: “AvenCell’s universal switchable technology and CRISPR-engineered allogeneic platforms are first-of-its-kind and represent a step change in the field of cell therapy. Both AVC-101 and AVC-201 have already yielded encouraging safety and efficacy results in early clinical trials in a very difficult to treat disease like AML. Our investment reflects our confidence in these assets and the future of cell therapy, as well as our long-held strategy to support companies transforming care solutions to enhance patient outcomes.”

In connection with the financing, Michael Bauer will join the AvenCell Board of Directors, with Venture Investments Vice President Campbell Stewart joining the AvenCell Board as an Observer.

AvenCell Chief Executive Officer, Andrew Schiermeier, Ph.D. added: “We are excited by the progress of our pipeline and believe our next-generation immunotherapies have the power to address significant unmet patient needs. AvenCell is working to transform the standard of care through switchable, adaptable and readily available cell therapy treatments that can better treat a wide range of difficult-to-treat cancer and autoimmune diseases. The support of Novo Holdings and this leading group of new investors will be integral to our ability to progress and bring these therapies to patients.”

About Novo Holdings A/S
Novo Holdings is a holding and investment company that is responsible for managing the assets and the wealth of the Novo Nordisk Foundation. The purpose of Novo Holdings is to improve people’s health and the sustainability of society and the planet by generating attractive long-term returns on the assets of the Novo Nordisk Foundation. Wholly owned by the Novo Nordisk Foundation, Novo Holdings is the controlling shareholder of Novo Nordisk A/S and Novonesis A/S (Novozymes A/S) and manages an investment portfolio with a long-term return perspective. In addition to managing a broad portfolio of equities, bonds, real estate, infrastructure and private equity assets, Novo Holdings is a world-leading life sciences investor. Through its Seed, Venture, Growth, Asia, Planetary Health and Principal Investments teams, Novo Holdings invests in life science companies at all stages of development. As of year-end 2023, Novo Holdings had total assets of EUR 149 billion. www.novoholdings.dk

About the Novo Nordisk Foundation
Established in Denmark in 1924, the Novo Nordisk Foundation is an enterprise foundation with philanthropic objectives. The vision of the Foundation is to improve people’s health and the sustainability of society and the planet. The Foundation’s mission is to progress research and innovation in the prevention and treatment of cardiometabolic and infectious diseases as well as to advance knowledge and solutions to support a green transformation of society.