On July 2, 2025 Nektar Therapeutics (Nasdaq: NKTR), a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the development of innovative medicines in the field of immunotherapy, reported the closing of its underwritten public offering of $115 million of shares of its common stock (Press release, Nektar Therapeutics, JUL 2, 2025, View Source [SID1234654228]). Nektar sold 4,893,618 shares of common stock in the offering, which includes 638,298 shares sold upon exercise in full by the underwriters of their option to purchase additional shares of common stock in the offering. The shares of common stock were sold at a public offering price of $23.50 per share. The gross proceeds to Nektar from the offering were approximately $115 million, before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses. All of the securities sold in this offering were offered by Nektar.

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Nektar intends to use the net proceeds from the offering for general corporate purposes, which may include research and development, clinical development and manufacturing costs to support the advancement of its drug candidates, as well as other general corporate purposes.

Jefferies and Piper Sandler acted as joint bookrunning managers for the offering. BTIG, LLC also acted as bookrunner for the offering. H.C. Wainwright & Co. acted as lead manager for the offering.

The securities described above were offered pursuant to a shelf registration statement on Form S-3 (No. 333-286222) that was filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") on March 28, 2025 and declared effective on April 1, 2025. This offering was made only by means of a prospectus supplement and an accompanying prospectus that form a part of the registration statement.

A final prospectus supplement related to and describing the terms of the offering was filed with the SEC and is available on the SEC’s website located at www.sec.gov. Copies of the final prospectus supplement and an accompanying prospectus related to the offering may also be obtained from Jefferies LLC, Attention: Equity Syndicate Prospectus Department, 520 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10022, by telephone at (877) 821-7388, or by email at [email protected]; or Piper Sandler & Co., Attention: Prospectus Department, 800 Nicollet Mall, J12S03, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402, or by telephone at (800) 747-3924, or by e-mail at [email protected].

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of that state or jurisdiction.

On July 2, 2025 Cellectar Biosciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: CLRB) (the "Company"), a late-stage clinical biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of drugs for the treatment of cancer, reported the closing of its previously announced underwritten public offering for gross proceeds of approximately $6.9 million prior to deducting underwriting commissions and offering expenses (Press release, Cellectar Biosciences, JUL 2, 2025, View Source [SID1234654213]). The offering includes participation from healthcare dedicated funds and executive management.

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The offering is composed of (i) 1,045,000 Class A Units (which includes 180,000 Class A Units issued pursuant to the Underwriter’s exercise of the over-allotment option in full) with each Class A Unit consisting of (a) one share of common stock and (b) one common warrant to purchase one share of common stock (the "Common Warrants"), and (ii) 335,000 Class B Units with each Class B Unit consisting of (a) one pre-funded common stock purchase warrant to purchase one share of common stock ("Pre-funded Warrants") and (b) one Common Warrant. The price per Class A Unit is $5.00 and the price per Class B Unit is $4.99999 (collectively, the "Offering"). The Common Warrants have an exercise price of $5.25 per share, are exercisable upon issuance, and have a term expiring five years from issuance.

Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. Inc. acted as sole bookrunning manager in connection with this Offering.

The gross proceeds from the Offering to the Company, before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and other Offering expenses and excluding any proceeds that may be received upon the exercise of the Common Warrants were approximately $6.9 million. The Company currently intends to use the net proceeds of the Offering for general corporate purposes, including working capital and operating expenses, and to initiate a Phase 1b clinical study of our compound CLR 121125 (CLR 125) in triple-negative breast cancer.

The securities described above were sold pursuant to a registration statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-288333), which was declared effective by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") on July 1, 2025. A prospectus relating to the securities was filed with the SEC on July 1, 2025 and is available on the SEC’s website at View Source Electronic copies of the final prospectus, may also be obtained by contacting Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. Inc., Prospectus Department, 640 Fifth Avenue, 4th Floor, New York, New York 10019 or by email at [email protected].

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor will there be any sales of these securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of such jurisdiction.

On July 2, 2025 Modella AI, a leader in artificial intelligence for life sciences, reported a multi-year agreement with AstraZeneca (Press release, AstraZeneca, JUL 2, 2025, View Source [SID1234654229]). Under the agreement, Modella AI will provide access to its state-of-the-art multi-modal AI foundation models to AstraZeneca. This agreement aims to harness Modella AI’s advanced foundation models, capable of rich feature extraction from diverse data types, to accelerate clinical development across AstraZeneca’s global oncology portfolio.

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"Foundation models are transforming precision medicine. They are the backbone of AI-powered biomedical discovery and mark the first step toward fully autonomous AI agents," said Jill Stefanelli, CEO of Modella AI. "Our state-of-the-art multimodal foundation models provide powerful features from different data types for downstream tasks. When integrated with AstraZeneca’s research engine, they will have the potential to accelerate data driven development and enable the development of new AI agents that can automate complex R&D workflows."

AstraZeneca will leverage Modella AI’s platform to enhance its oncology R&D capabilities, with the goal of enhancing clinical development, biomarker discovery, and improving patient outcomes. Both companies will collaborate closely to integrate the models into AstraZeneca’s research pipeline, enabling data-driven discovery at increased scale and speed.

"At AstraZeneca, AI is integrated across every aspect of clinical development," said Jorge Reis-Filho, Chief AI and Data Scientist, Oncology R&D, AstraZeneca. "Through the use of foundation models, combined with our unique datasets and AI expertise, we are confident in our strategy to accelerate development and increase the probabilities of success in our oncology clinical trials."

On July 2, 2025 Curis, Inc. ("Curis") (NASDAQ: CRIS), a biotechnology company focused on the development of emavusertib (CA-4948), an orally available, small molecule IRAK4 inhibitor, reported that it has entered into a definitive agreement with a combination of existing and new investors for the purchase of 1,538,460 shares ("Shares") of its common stock in a registered direct offering priced at-the-market under Nasdaq rules. In a concurrent private placement, Curis also agreed to issue to the investors in the registered direct offering unregistered pre-funded warrants to purchase up to an aggregate of 1,538,461 shares of Common Stock ("Pre-Funded Warrants") at an exercise price of $0.01 per share and unregistered warrants to purchase up to an aggregate of 3,076,921 shares of Common Stock ("Common Warrants" and together with the Pre-Funded Warrants, the "Unregistered Warrants") at an exercise price of $2.15 per share (Press release, Curis, JUL 2, 2025, View Source [SID1234654214]). The Pre-Funded Warrants will be exercisable immediately and will be exercisable until exercised in full. The Common Warrants will be exercisable immediately and will be exercisable for five years following the date of issuance. The combined purchase price for one Share and the associated Common Warrant is $2.275. The combined purchase price for one Pre-Funded Warrant and the associated Common Warrant is $2.265.

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Gross proceeds to Curis from the offering are expected to be approximately $7.0 million, before deducting the placement agents’ fees and other offering expenses payable by Curis. Curis intends to use the net proceeds from the offering on research, development, working capital, and other general corporate purposes.

The registered direct offering and concurrent private placement are each expected to close on or about July 3, 2025, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.

Laidlaw & Company (U.K.) Ltd. and Jones are acting as placement agents for the registered direct offering and the concurrent private placement.

The Shares of common stock offered in the registered direct offering (but excluding the Unregistered Warrants to be issued in the concurrent private placement and shares of common stock underlying the Unregistered Warrants) are being offered by Curis pursuant to a shelf registration statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-276950) that was filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") on February 8, 2024 and declared effective by the SEC on April 12, 2024. A prospectus supplement relating to and describing the terms of the registered direct offering will be filed with the SEC and will be available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. The registered direct offering is being made only by means of a prospectus and related prospectus supplement. When available, electronic copies of the prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus may also be obtained from Laidlaw & Company (U.K.) Ltd., 521 Fifth Avenue, 12th Floor, New York, NY 10175, Attention: Syndicate Dept., e-mail: [email protected]; or JonesTrading Institutional Services LLC, Attention: Equity Capital Markets, 325 Hudson Street, 6th Floor New York, New York 10013; email: [email protected].

The Unregistered Warrants are being offered in the concurrent private placement pursuant to an exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), provided in Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act and/or Regulation D promulgated thereunder and, along with the shares of common stock underlying such Unregistered Warrants, have not been registered under the Securities Act or applicable state securities laws. Curis has agreed to file a resale registration statement with the SEC covering the resale of the shares of common stock underlying the Unregistered Warrants.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy these securities, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or other jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to the registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or other jurisdiction.

On July 1, 2025 HanchorBio Inc. (7827.TWO), a global clinical-stage biotechnology company developing innovative immunotherapies for oncology and autoimmune diseases, reported the signing of a major out-licensing agreement with Shanghai Henlius Biotech, Inc. (hereafter "Henlius") (Press release, Hanchor Bio, JUL 1, 2025, View Source [SID1234654201]). The deal grants Henlius exclusive development and commercialization rights to HCB101 across Greater China (including Mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau), key Southeast Asian countries, as well as all countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).

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Under the terms of the agreement, HanchorBio will receive an upfront payment of USD 10 million, with additional payments tied to development and regulatory milestones of up to USD 192 million. Henlius will also pay tiered royalties and assume full responsibility for development, manufacturing, and commercialization in the licensed territories. HanchorBio retains all rights outside the licensed regions.

HCB101 is a novel engineered SIRPα-IgG4 Fc fusion protein developed using HanchorBio’s proprietary Fc-Based Designer Biologics (FBDB) platform. It is designed to selectively block the CD47 "don’t eat me" signal and activate macrophage-mediated anti-tumor immunity. Compared to earlier CD47-targeted agents, HCB101 reduces hematologic toxicity while maintaining strong efficacy, as demonstrated in over 80 CDX and PDX tumor models, and exhibits durable pharmacokinetics. Its binding affinity to CD47 is 100-fold higher than that of wild-type SIRPα-Fc fusions, and its signal-blocking potency exceeds 1,000-fold that of earlier versions.

In a global Phase 1 dose-escalation study (NCT05892718), HCB101 monotherapy demonstrated a favorable safety profile, high CD47 receptor occupancy (saturating RO levels across multiple doses), and early signs of anti-tumor activity. Two patients achieved confirmed partial responses (PRs): one with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma and another with marginal zone lymphoma confirmed by both PET imaging and CT, as reported at ASCO (Free ASCO Whitepaper) 2025. Both tumors continued to shrink with ongoing weekly dosing. Additionally, six patients achieved stable disease at low to mid dose levels, including one ovarian cancer patient who maintained disease control for over 40 weeks.

Following regulatory clearance from the U.S. FDA, Mainland China’s NMPA, and Taiwan’s TFDA, HCB101 has advanced into multi-regional Phase 2 trials in patients with solid tumors and hematologic malignancies, including head and neck, gastric, colorectal, and breast cancers.

"This agreement positions HCB101 as a key asset in Greater China and reinforces HanchorBio’s scientific strength and global partnering strategy," said Scott Liu, Ph.D., Founder, Chairman, and CEO of HanchorBio. "It also marks a critical milestone for HanchorBio’s biopharmaceutical innovation as we pursue our mission to deliver globally accessible, next-generation cancer immunotherapies, and as Taiwan continues to gain global recognition."