Mereo BioPharma Raises $100 Million in Public Offering

Rare Daily Staff

UK biotech Mereo BioPharma raised $100 million in a public offering of 34.5 million American Depositary Shares priced at $2.90 per share.

In addition, Mereo has granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to 5.2 million additional ADSs at the public offering price less underwriting discounts and commissions. Each ADS represents five ordinary shares of Mereo.

Mereo is focused on oncology and rare diseases with a portfolio of six clinical stage product candidates. Mereo’s lead oncology candidate, etigilimab is being studied in an open label phase 1b/2 basket study evaluating the anti-TIGIT candidate in combination with an anti-PD-1 in a range of tumor types including three rare tumors

Mereo has two rare disease candidates in clinical trials: alvelestat for the treatment of severe alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency (AATD), a genetically defined respiratory disease characterized by progressive destruction of lung tissue, which is being investigated in an ongoing phase 2 proof-of-concept study in the U.S. and Europe, for which the company expects to report top line data in the second half of 2021; and setrusumab for the treatment of the rare genetic bone disorder osteogenesis imperfecta (OI), which is characterized by fragile bones and reduced bone mass resulting in bones that break easily, loose joints, and weakened teeth. In addition, people with OI often suffer muscle weakness, early hearing loss, fatigue, curved bones, scoliosis, respiratory problems, and short stature, leading to significant effects on overall health and quality of life.

In September 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted Rare Pediatric Disease designation to setrusumab for the treatment of OI. Following the completion of Mereo’s phase 2b ASTEROID study, Mereo met with both the FDA and the European Medicines Agency to discuss the principles of a design of a single phase 2/3 registrational pediatric study in OI, and in December 2020, the company signed a license and collaboration agreement for setrusumab in OI with Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical.