Public Company Edition: Only nine drug developers went public in the US, raising $807m in the first quarter, versus 32 IPOs raising $5.2bn in Q1 of last year. Also, MoonLake closed its SPAC merger, Sanofi priced €650m in sustainability-linked bonds in €1.5bn note sale, and Kaleido will cease operations.

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.

Initial public offering momentum decelerated as stock prices declined last year, but even with lower valuations making M&A more attractive, the IPO market this year is expected to be active. 

Public Company Edition: Mergers with special purpose acquisition corporations also continue to take companies public, with three new SPAC offerings in late 2021. Also, Xeris raised $30m in a private placement of stock to support its recently approved drug and Sirnaomics went public in Hong Kong.