VC-backed TxCell raises €16.2m in IPO

Ellie Pullen
14 April 2014

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French immunotherapy biotech TxCell, backed by Auriga Partners and Seventure Partners among others, has raised €16.2m in its IPO on the Euronext Paris.

The company sold 2.9 million shares at €5.58 apiece – the lower end of the indicative price range. The offering gives TxCell a market cap of €63.5m.

TxCell is backed by Auriga, Seventure, Ardian, BPI France and CDC Innovation (now Innovation Capital), according to unquote" data.

Auriga currently holds a 37.5% stake in the company, while BPI owns a 35.58% stake and Seventure holds a 19.74% stake. Ardian owns a 2.78% shareholding and Innovation Capital holds 3.79%.

Conditional dealings commenced today on the Euronext Paris under the ticker "TXCL". Admission to the main market is set to take place on Thursday (17 April).

Societe Generale CIB and Oddo & Cie have been appointed as joint lead managers and bookrunners, while Sponsor Finance is acting as TxCell's adviser.

Previous funding
TxCell first received funding in October 2004, securing €10.5m from Ardian, Auriga, CDC, Seventure and BioAm (now managed by BPI France). The company's founders and senior management also contributed to the total amount raised.

A second €10.5m funding round took place in March 2008, with the same consortium of venture capital investors supplying capital.

In November 2012, BPI France led a €12.4m funding round for the company, supplying €6m of the total amount via the €139m InnoBio fund. Auriga and Seventure also reinvested in the company.

Company
Based in Sophia-Antipolis near Nice, TxCell was spun out from Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (Inserm) in 2001.

The company develops cell-based immunotherapies for the treatment of severe chronic inflammatory diseases via its Astria technology platform.

TxCell's lead candidate product, Ovasave, is designed for use in the treatment of refractory Crohn's disease and has just completed its phase-IIa clinical study, with a phase-IIb planned for the near future.

The company employs 39 staff.

People
Damian Marron is the CEO of TxCell.