Private Company Edition: Former Merck R&D head Roger Perlmutter and his new team have accessed drug candidates in oncology and neurodegenerative diseases from three companies, along with new funding. Also, Carmot raised $150m in series E equity and BenchSci brought in $70m.

There have been no biopharma initial public offerings in the US since 12 January while the industry’s valuations have plummeted by double digits since the start of 2022. Nevertheless, venture capital investment continues at a fast pace and there have been some follow-on public offerings.

Emerging Company Profile: After an early quiet period, Norway's Cytovation has raised funds locally in the past year to support initial clinical studies of a potential first-in-class viralytic and oncolytic peptide.

Complexa topped the list of recent venture capital financings with a $62m Series C round, followed by Evelo and Kezar with $50m Series B rounds and LogicBio with a $45m Series B.