March Biosciences Closes Oversubscribed $28.4 Million Series A Financing

Mission BioCapital and 4BIO Capital led the financing with significant participation from new and existing investors, raising over $51 million to date

Funds will support Phase 2 development of March Bio's lead CD5 CAR-T therapy, MB-105, for T-cell lymphoma and pipeline candidates

HOUSTON, Oct. 23, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- March Biosciences (March Bio), an emerging clinical stage biotechnology company committed to combating challenging cancers and other diseases, today announced the close of a $28.4 million oversubscribed Series A financing. Mission BioCapital and 4BIO Capital led the financing, with participation from KdT Ventures, Alexandria Venture Investments, Volnay Therapeutics, Modi Ventures, and Mansueto Investments. Existing investors TMC Venture Fund, Cancer Focus Fund, and Small Ventures also participated in the round. March Bio has raised over $51 million to date inclusive of all dilutive and non-dilutive funding.

Since its inception as a spinout of the Center for Cell and Gene Therapy (Baylor College of Medicine, Houston Methodist Hospital, Texas Children's Hospital), March Bio has rapidly advanced its innovative autologous chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) therapy, MB-105, in development for the treatment of relapsed and refractory CD5 positive T-cell lymphoma. MB-105 is specifically engineered to overcome major hurdles related to T-cell targeting by overcoming T-cell fratricide while maintaining high potency against CD5 positive tumor cells. MB-105 has demonstrated a favorable safety profile and durable remissions in relapsed T-cell lymphoma patients in a Phase 1 clinical trial at Baylor College of Medicine, with plans to begin a Phase 2 clinical trial in early 2025. Proceeds from the financing will support the Phase 2 clinical development of MB-105 to expand on this data with optimized manufacturing processes.

"This oversubscribed financing enables us to advance our first-in-class CAR-T therapy, MB-105, into a Phase 2 trial for T-cell lymphoma, an indication with an exceptionally poor prognosis and few treatment options," said Sarah Hein, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of March Biosciences. "With the support and confidence of our investors, we are not only advancing our lead program but also expanding our pipeline, underscoring our commitment to delivering best-in-class therapies to patients that can change the treatment paradigm ...