Nov 9, 2018 - Economy & Business

Moderna files for what could be largest IPO for a biotech startup

Dan Primack, author of Pro Rata

Illustration: Rebecca Zisser/Axios

Moderna Therapeutics, a Massachusetts startup that wants to revolutionize drug manufacturing, on Friday filed for what could be the largest-ever IPO for a biotech startup.

The bottom line: Moderna creates synthetic mRNA, which is injected into patients so they can create their own therapies. It's an entirely new way to think about making medicine, and it also could lend itself to a modular approach whereby it doesn't need different facilities for different products.

  • Moderna filed to raise $500 million and reports a $243 million net loss on around $100 million in revenue for the first nine months of 2018.
  • It plans to trade on the Nasdaq under ticker symbol MRNA.
  • Morgan Stanley is lead underwriter, but 10 other investment banks are also listed.

The company has raised nearly $2 billion in venture capital funding, most recently at a $7.5 billion valuation.

  • Shareholders include Flagship Pioneering, AstraZeneca, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, BB Biotech, Julius Baer, EDBI, Sequoia Capital China, Fidelity, Pictet, Viking Global Investors, ArrowMark Partners and Alexandria Venture Investments.

Its goal is to be involved in treatments for infectious diseases, immuno-oncology and rare diseases.

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Felix Salmon, author of Capital
15 mins ago - Economy & Business

A white-collar crime crackdown

Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios

America has waited a decade for an aggressive government crackdown on white-collar crime. Now, just before the election, and in the middle of a bull market, it has arrived.

Why it matters: When times are good, investors become more trusting and more greedy. That makes them more likely to put their money into fraudulent or criminal enterprises.

  • After a decade-long bull market, there is no shortage of those frauds to prosecute.
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Ashley Gold
43 mins ago - Technology

Lawyers crystal-ball the Google antitrust case

Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios

The Justice Department's antitrust suit against Google is a strong, straightforward monopoly case, competition lawyers and experts tell Axios. But that doesn't mean it'll be an easy journey for the government.

The big picture: Winning any antitrust case is a heavy lift. It's even more of a challenge to pull off victory in a future-looking case that seeks to make room for potential new competition to flourish.

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Sam Baker, Andrew Witherspoon
48 mins ago - Health

The pandemic is getting worse again

Expand chart
Data: The COVID Tracking Project, state health departments; Note: Due to a database error, Missouri had a 3 day gap in reporting from Oct. 11-13; Map: Andrew Witherspoon/Axios

Every available piece of data proves it: The coronavirus pandemic is getting worse again, all across America.

The big picture: As the death toll ticks past 212,000, at a moment when containing the virus ought to be easier and more urgent than ever, we are instead giving it a bigger foothold to grow from.

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