Themis well-funded through completion of Chikungunya Phase 3 program with €40M from series D financing round

Themis got €40 million from series D financing round, which enables development of novel vaccines and therapeutic candidates, the company said.

VIENNA–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Themis announced today the closing of a Series D financing round totaling EUR 40 million (USD 44 million). The round was co-led by new investors, Farallon Capital and Hadean Ventures. MSD (tradename of Merck & Co., Inc., Kenilworth, N.J., USA) and Adjuvant Capital, as well as current investors Global Health Investment Fund, aws Gruenderfonds, Omnes Capital, Ventech and Wellington Partners Life Sciences, also participated. The proceeds from this Series D round will be used to accelerate the company’s pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial program for its Chikungunya vaccine and to support further expansion into oncology indications using its proprietary measles vaccine vector platform. Concurrent with the financing, Dr. Walter Stockinger, Managing Partner at Hadean Ventures, will join Themis’ Supervisory Board.

“The commitment from our new investors Farallon Capital, Adjuvant Capital and Hadean Ventures as well as MSD is a validation of Themis’ achievements and the potential of our platform. This round enables us to continue implementing our strategy to develop novel vaccines and therapeutic candidates for numerous infectious diseases and oncology indications,” said Erich Tauber, MD, CEO of Themis. “The capital will primarily facilitate the progress of our lead vaccine candidate for Chikungunya towards the market as well as fund the further development of our oncology franchise. I would like to thank our current investors for their continued support and also welcome Walter to our Board.”

“We are excited about joining a world-class syndicate to support the development of a vaccine that will prevent a devastating disease in millions of people,” stated Walter Stockinger, MS, PhD, Managing Partner of Hadean Ventures. “Clearly, the uniqueness of the platform technology as well as the quality of the management were major criteria for our investment decision. We are looking forward to working with Erich and his colleagues towards achieving approval of the Chikungunya vaccine in the shortest possible time.”

Themis’ lead program is a vaccine for Chikungunya, a debilitating disease with global outbreak potential, developed using its measles vaccine vector platform. The vaccine candidate, MV-CHIK, is Phase 3-ready with the pivotal global Phase 3 trial initiation expected in the next few months. The company’s other vaccine programs include those for Zika and Lassa Fever, which are currently being studied in Phase 1 clinical trials, and for Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV), Cytomegalovirus (CMV), Norovirus and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), which are in pre-clinical studies. Themis recently announced a collaboration with MSD to develop undisclosed vaccine candidates. In 2018, the company initiated its immuno-oncology portfolio with the first therapeutic candidate to enter clinical studies this year.