In what could be termed as a cautious year, there was still plenty of financing round activity in the life sciences industry. Based on Biotechgate data, these are the top 10 rounds sorted by the amount raised. Notably, private equity rounds have not made the cut for the list.
10. Vaxcyte
Type: Post-IPO
Amount raised: USD 575 million
After initially being listed on the NASDAQ in June 2020, clinical-stage vaccine innovation company Vaxcyte closed an underwritten public offering of 13,030,000 common shares for USD 41.00 each. This produced gross proceeds of approximately USD 575 million for the company.
9. Ionis Pharmaceuticals
Type: Convertible loan
Amount raised: USD 575 million
The first instance of debt financing on this list belongs to Ionis Pharmaceuticals (formerly known as Isis Pharmaceuticals). June saw them offer a total of USD 575 million in convertible notes. The California-based organization specializes in discovering and developing RNA-targeted therapeutics.
8. Acelyrin
Type: IPO
Amount raised: USD 621 million
In May, California biotech Acelyrin announced its public offering, issuing 34.5 million shares at USD 18 apiece. This garnered proceeds of USD 621 million – the largest clinical-stage biotech IPO ever. While their price remained relatively stable over the summer, September saw its price cut by over half from USD 27.90 to USD 12.80. This was a result of their lead candidate, izokibep, failing a Phase 2b/3 trial.
7. Shockwave Medical
Type: Convertible loan
Amount raised: USD 650 million
August saw Shockwave Medical announce a post-IPO private offering of USD 650 million in the form of convertible senior notes due in 2028. The company stated that they expected to use around 13% of the proceeds to pay for the cost of any capped call transactions. This comes amid speculation of the medical device organization being subject to an acquisition, with Boston Scientific, Medtronic and Johnson & Johnson all having been listed as potential suitors.
6. DexCom
Type: Convertible loan
Amount raised: USD 1.1 billion
San Diego medtech DexCom announced an upsized offering of USD 1.1 billion in May in convertible senior notes. The notes bear an interest rate of 0.375% and are due in 2028. The company intended to use USD 89.1 million from the transaction to cover the cost of capped call transactions. DexCom develops continuous glucose monitoring systems for diabetes management.
5. Argenx
Type: Post-IPO
Amount raised: USD 1.3 billion
In July the Amsterdam-headquartered immunology company Argenx closed a public offering of 2,581,633 ordinary shares, leading to gross proceeds of USD 1.1 billion. This comes nine years after their initial IPO. However, trial failures last winter saw their share price slashed by 25%.
4. Gilead Sciences
Type: Post-IPO
Amount raised: USD 2 billion
US biopharma Gilead Sciences announced a public offering in September of senior unsecured notes with an aggregate amount of USD 2 billion. This consisted of USD 1 billion of 5.250% senior notes maturing in 2033 and USD 1 billion of 5.250% senior notes maturing in 2053. The company stated that the net proceeds from the offering will be utilized for various corporate purposes.
3. Thermo Fisher Scientific
Type: Post-IPO
Amount raised: USD 2.95 billion
Another organization with a post-IPO offering in 2023 was Thermo Fisher Scientific. In what was a quiet year compared to 2022 with COVID test demand dropping, the company priced an offering with an aggregate principal amount of USD 2.95 billion in August. This took the form of senior notes with four varying interest rates and due dates.
2. Sartorius
Type: Debt financing
Amount raised: USD 3.22 billion
Sartorius issued a total of over USD 3.22 billion in bonds in September. The round ended up being over six times oversubscribed with the bond maturities ranging from 3 to 12 years. The company stated that the proceeds will be utilized to repay the bridge financing for their acquisition of French R&D services provider Polyplus earlier in the year, as well as for general corporate purposes.
1. Kenvue
Type: IPO
Amount raised: USD 3.8 billion
The largest financing round of 2023 belonged to Kenvue, the company created as a result of Johnson & Johnson spinning off its consumer health division. In what was otherwise a dismal year for IPOs in comparison to preceding years, they made their debut on the New York Stock Exchange in May at a price of USD 22 per share. Their share price achieved a peak of USD 27.23 but since then it has failed to reach the same heights and has tumbled by over 20%, at the time of writing. The IPO garnered proceeds of USD 3.8 billion, 70% of which will go back to Johnson & Johnson.