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Star Therapeutics, a biotech developing antibody therapies for rare bleeding disorders, raised a $125 million Series D, CEO Adam Rosenthal tells Axios Pro.

Why it matters: The funding will support an ongoing Phase 3 study of Star's lead asset, which is a less burdensome alternative to weekly IV treatments.

How it works: Star's VGA039 is a monoclonal antibody being developed as a universal hemostatic therapy for multiple bleeding disorders, starting with von Willebrand disease (VWD).

VWD is the most common inherited bleeding disorder, which prevents blood from clotting properly.

Star's VGA039 is a monthly subcutaneous injection that can be administered at home.

What's next: Star expects Phase 3 trial data for VGA039 (which has both FDA fast track and orphan drug designations) in 2028.

Follow the money: Sanofi Ventures and Viking Global Investors led the Series D.

Janus Henderson Investors, Frazier Life Sciences, GordonMD Global Investments, Blue Owl Capital, Catalio Capital Management, OrbiMed, RA Capital Management, Sofinnova Investments and others participated.

Star has raised more than $300 million to date, Rosenthal says.

Zoom in: Star has other programs in development for additional bleeding disorders.

While Star is always having discussions with pharma companies about potential licensing or acquisition deals, Rosenthal sees a very "doable" pathway to commercializing its lead asset on its own.

State of play: Dealmaking involving rare-disease biotechs has been picking up in recent months.

In April, Merck KGaA acquired genetic nerve disorder treatment maker SpringWorks Therapeutics for $3.9 billion.

In June, Sanofi agreed to buy rare immunology disease company Blueprint Medicines for $9.1 billion.

What they're saying: Sanofi Ventures' investment sweet spot is opportunities that "are of high strategic interest to our parent company, but too early or risky to partner or acquire," says managing director Jason Hafler.

The Star investment "strategically aligns with our ultimate goal of getting great medicines ... into patients, run the trials and hopefully provide opportunities that can be strategically relevant for our parent company with additional data," he adds.

The big picture: About 1% of the U.S. population has VWD, per the CDC.

People with the disease can experience bleeding in the mouth, joints, nose and other parts of the body.

"You could be waking up in pools of blood that can be happening multiple times a day that make it really hard to go to school or to have a job," Rosenthal says.

Catch up quick: Rosenthal launched South San Francisco-based Star in 2018 following operating roles at other biotech companies.

He was the head of corporate development for iPierian, acquired by Bristol-Myers Squibb in 2014.

Rosenthal was later the chief business officer at True North Therapeutics, which Bioverativ acquired in 2017.

Star Therapeutics raises $125M Series D for bleeding disorder therapy

The new financing will help support the Phase 3 study of its lead asset.

Illustration of a dollar sign hanging on an IV stand. 

Star Therapeutics, a biotech developing antibody therapies for rare bleeding disorders, raised a $125 million Series D, CEO Adam Rosenthal tells Axios Pro.Why it matters: The funding will support an ongoing Phase 3 study of Star&#x27;s lead asset, which is a less burdensome alternative to weekly IV treatments.

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Star Therapeutics raises $125M Series D for bleeding disorder therapy

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