Singapore-headquartered biotechnology company Aslan Pharmaceuticals has raised $42 million in its initial public offering (IPO) in the US, according to a Nasdaq report.
The Taiwan Stock Exchange-listed clinical-stage biopharma firm raised the amount after pricing 6 million American Depository Shares at $7.03 each, down from its original plan of offering 7.5 million
The ADSs started trading on 4 May 2018 on the Nasdaq Global Market under the trading symbol ASLN.
Aslan said it will use the net proceeds from the offering to continue to invest in the clinical development of its product candidates. It targets diseases that are both highly prevalent in Asia and orphan indications in the United States and Europe.
The remaining net proceeds are expected to fund new and other ongoing research and development activities, working capital and other general corporate purposes.
Aslan, headquartered in Singapore with offices in Taiwan and China, said its portfolio is comprised of four product candidates, which target validated growth pathways applied to new patient segments, novel immune checkpoints and novel cancer metabolic pathways.
The biopharma said its planned and ongoing clinical trials include global pivotal clinical trial for varlitinib in biliary tract cancer; China pivotal clinical trial for varlitinib in biliary tract cancer; and global phase 2/3 clinical trial for varlitinib in gastric cancer.
Its partners include Array BioPharma, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Almirall and CSL.
In May last year, Aslan Pharmaceutials concluded an IPO of common shares via public lottery on the Taipei Exchange, raising a total of NT$1 billion ($33 million).
“The conclusion of the public lottery represents the successful closing of our initial public offering, an important milestone in Aslan’s development,” said Dr Carl Firth, chief executive of ASLAN Pharmaceuticals, said in an official statement following its Taiwan IPO.
Recent years have seen the Taipei Exchange emerge as premier listing destination for biotechnology firms, since Taipei identified biotechnology as the next engine of growth for the Taiwanese economy back in 2002.
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