Hookipa brings in €50mm via Series C

Hookipa Biotech AG (immune activation therapies for cancer and infectious diseases) raised €50mm ($59.5mm) in an oversubscribed Series C financing round led by an undisclosed US blue chip public investment fund, which was joined by other first-time backers HBM Partners, Hillhouse Capital, Sirona Capital, and Gilead, and returning shareholders Sofinnova Partners, Forbion Capital Partners, Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund, Takeda Ventures, and BioMedPartners. The company will use the funds to move its Vaxwave-based HB101 cytomegalovirus vaccine into Phase II and for Phase I of a TheraT-based active immunization therapy in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Additional money will help expand into other diseases such as prostate cancer.