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BeyondSpring Announces $35.4 Million Sale of a Portion of Equity Interest in SEED Therapeutics to Advance Lead Asset Plinabulin to Anti-Cancer Registrational Studies
FLORHAM PARK, N.J., Jan. 28, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- BeyondSpring Inc. (NASDAQ: BYSI) (“BeyondSpring” or the “Company”), a global clinical-stage
About this update from Beyondspring, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"FLORHAM PARK, N.J., Jan. 28, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- BeyondSpring Inc. (NASDAQ: BYSI) (“BeyondSpring” or the “Company”), a global clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing innovative cancer therapies, today announced that it has entered into definitive agreements to sell a portion of its Series A-1 Preferred Shares of SEED Therapeutics Inc. (“SEED”), a biotechnology company focused on Targeted Protein Degradation (TPD) technology and a subsidiary of the Company, for gross proceeds of approximately $35.4 million. Upon completion of the transactions, BeyondSpring, together with SEED Technology Limited, a majority-owned indirect subsidiary of the Company, is expected to retain approximately 14.4% of SEED’s outstanding shares. Strategic Background and RationaleSince 2016, BeyondSpring has been at the forefront of TPD innovation, incubating its proprietary TPD technology internally and co-founding SEED with Eli Lilly and Company in 2020. Through this pioneering sponsorship, SEED has grown into a leader in TPD, a revolutionary drug discovery approach targeting previously undruggable proteins. SEED has developed a robust pipeline of therapies in oncology and neurodegeneration, leveraging its proprietary molecular glue-based platform. Research collaborations with Eli Lilly and Company, and Eisai Co. Ltd. (“Eisai”) further validate its leadership in TPD. The recent Series A-3 financing led by Eisai, at a pre-money valuation of $100 million, underscores SEED’s innovation and market potential. The transactions announced today will enable BeyondSpring to unlock value while retaining a meaningful ownership stake in SEED. The $35.4 million in proceeds will advance BeyondSpring’s late-stage clinical trials of its lead asset, Plinabulin, ensuring critical resources without diluting shareholder equity. Plinabulin: A First-in-Class Agent with Broad PotentialPlinabulin is a first-in-class anti-cancer agent which has been used in over 700 cancer patients with good tolerability. It is a differentiated tubulin binder, which releases immune defense protein GEF-H1, leading to dendritic cell maturation that drives both direct anti-cancer activity and immune system activation1,2. It has demonstrated durable anti-cancer benefits across multiple clinical studies and addresses significant unmet medical needs in oncology: DUBLIN-3 (103) Study (Sep...