Brenus Pharma has raised an €11 million, or approximately $12.6 million, extension to its Series A financing. The round brings the French biotechnology company’s total capital raised since its founding to €38 million, or approximately $43.5 million. The financing included follow-on participation from Angelor, UI Investissement through FRAI, Crédit Agricole through CACE Création and CACF Capital Innovation, Noshaq, Orsa and BIO JAG. Bpifrance also supported the company through non-dilutive funding. New investors Sambrinvest and Korea Omega Investment Corp joined the round. Sambrinvest expands Brenus Pharma’s European shareholder base, while Korea Omega represents the company’s first institutional investor from the Asia-Pacific region.
Brenus Pharma plans to use the funding to complete the Phase I clinical program for STC-1010 and advance its next drug candidate. The capital will also support the continued development of the company’s proprietary in vivo immunotherapy platform.
STC-1010 is Brenus Pharma’s lead clinical-stage therapy for microsatellite-stable metastatic colorectal cancer, commonly known as MSS mCRC. This form of colorectal cancer has spread to other parts of the body and is generally less responsive to certain existing immunotherapies than tumors with high levels of microsatellite instability.
The investigational therapy is being evaluated under clinical trial identifier NCT06934538. Brenus Pharma said its progress across clinical, regulatory and business development milestones has reduced some of the development risk surrounding the program, although its safety and effectiveness remain subject to clinical testing and regulatory review.
Brenus Pharma is developing an off-the-shelf immuno-oncology platform for difficult-to-treat solid tumors. Off-the-shelf therapies are designed to be produced in advance and used across multiple patients rather than being individually manufactured from each patient’s cells.
The company’s technology is designed to reproduce patterns of tumor protein expression and make them more visible to the immune system. Brenus Pharma believes this approach can generate a multispecific immune response capable of adapting as a tumor changes over time.
Tumor evolution can allow cancer cells to avoid treatments that target only a limited number of features. By stimulating a broader immune response, Brenus Pharma aims to address multiple tumor signals and reduce the ability of cancer cells to escape recognition.
The financing will help Brenus Pharma move beyond a single clinical asset and develop additional treatments based on the same platform. The company’s expansion strategy depends on demonstrating that its technology can be applied across multiple solid tumor indications.
KEY QUOTES:
“We couldn’t be more confident in our first investment in France. The company combines truly differentiated technology with early clinical validation and a team executing at pace. This is exactly the type of European innovation we want to support as we expand our portfolio internationally. We look forward to supporting Brenus as it advances its innovation toward a new treatment for patients with significant unmet medical needs.”
Dae Kyeong Bae, Senior Vice President at Korea Omega Investment Corp.
“We are proud to welcome international investors who share our vision, and grateful for the continued confidence of our existing backers. This funding will enable us to complete the Phase I program and continue accelerating our in vivo immunotherapy platform by advancing our next drug candidate. I would also like to thank our historical investors for their trust and support.”
Paul Bravetti, CEO of Brenus Pharma
