Arix Bioscience : Aura Biosciences announces oversubscribed USD80 million financing

Arix Bioscience PLC (ARIX) 
Aura Biosciences announces oversubscribed USD80 million financing 
22-March-2021 / 11:09 GMT/BST 
Dissemination of a Regulatory Announcement, transmitted by EQS Group. 
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. 
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Arix Bioscience plc 
 
Aura Biosciences announces oversubscribed USD80 million financing 
 
LONDON, 22 March 2021: Arix Bioscience plc ("Arix" or "the Company"), a global venture capital company focused on 
investing in and building breakthrough biotech companies, notes that its portfolio company Aura Biosciences ("Aura"), 
today announced the closing of an oversubscribed USD80 million financing, following strong interest from leading global 
investors. 
 
Arix retains a 5.6% ownership stake in Aura following the financing. The Company no longer retains a seat on Aura's 
Board. 
 
The announcement can be accessed on Aura's website at: http://www.aurabiosciences.com/news-and-publications and full 
text of announcement from Aura is contained below. 
 
[ENDS] 
For more information on Arix, please contact: 
 
Arix Bioscience plc 
Charlotte Parry, Head of Investor Relations 
[phone] 
[e-mail] 
 
 
Optimum Strategic Communications 
Mary Clark, Supriya Mathur, Shabnam Bashir 
[phone] 
[e-mail] 
 
 
About Arix Bioscience plc 
Arix Bioscience plc is a global venture capital company focused on investing in and building breakthrough biotech 
companies around cutting-edge advances in life sciences. 
We collaborate with exceptional entrepreneurs and provide the capital, expertise and global networks to help accelerate 
their ideas into important new treatments for patients. As a listed company, we are able to bring this exciting growth 
phase of our industry to a broader range of investors. www.arixbioscience.com 
 
 
Aura Biosciences Announces Oversubscribed USD80 Million Financing 
 
Proceeds to Support Pivotal Program of AU-011 for the First Line Treatment of Choroidal Melanoma and Expansion of 
Virus-like Drug Conjugate (VDC) Platform in additional Ocular Oncology Indications and Solid Tumors 
 
Lead Investors Matrix Capital Management and Surveyor Capital (a Citadel company) are Joined by New Investors Rock 
Springs Capital and Adage Capital Management LP, Along with All Existing Institutional Investors 
 
CAMBRIDGE, MA - March 22, 2021 - Aura Biosciences, a clinical-stage oncology company developing a novel class of 
virus-like drug conjugate (VDC) therapies for multiple oncology indications, today announced the closing of an 
oversubscribed USD80 million financing. The financing was led by Matrix Capital Management and Surveyor Capital (a 
Citadel company) with participation from new investors, including Rock Springs Capital, Adage Capital Management LP and 
Velosity Capital. Existing investors Medicxi, Advent Life Sciences, Lundbeckfonden Ventures, Arix Bioscience, Chiesi 
Ventures, Ysios Capital and Columbus Venture Partners also participated in the round. 
Aura intends to use the proceeds from this financing to advance the clinical development of its VDC technology 
platform, including the pivotal Phase 3 program for AU-011, the Company's lead candidate in development for the first 
line treatment of choroidal melanoma, and ongoing research for additional programs in ocular oncology, as well as 
expanding the VDC technology into bladder cancer, the first non-ophthalmic solid tumor indication. 
"Aura is pioneering the development of a new class of targeted therapies for life-threatening cancers with our novel 
VDC technology platform. This funding from a syndicate of distinguished investors enables us to advance AU-011 into a 
pivotal Phase 3 program for the first line treatment of choroidal melanoma, a rare, life- and vision-threatening form 
of cancer with no drugs approved. It also allows us to continue to expand the reach of our VDC technology in additional 
ocular oncology indications and in the treatment of solid tumors like bladder cancer where there is a high unmet 
medical need for better targeted therapies to treat early and reduce the incidence of metastasis," said Elisabet de los 
Pinos, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of Aura. 
In connection with this financing, Karan Takhar, Senior Managing Director of Matrix Capital Management, will join 
Aura's Board of Directors. 
Mr. Takhar said, "Matrix believes in the long-term potential of Aura's VDC technology to further strengthen the 
Company's position as a leader in ocular oncology and beyond within other types of cancers in need of better treatment 
options. We look forward to supporting Aura's leadership team through this next stage of pipeline growth and transition 
into late-stage development with the commencement of the AU-011 pivotal program." 
About AU-011 (belzupacap sarotalocan) 
AU-011 is a first-in-class virus-like drug conjugate (VDC) therapy in development for the first line treatment of 
choroidal melanoma. The virus-like component of the VDC selectively binds unique heparan sulphate proteoglycans (HSPGs) 
that are modified and overexpressed on the tumor cell surface of choroidal melanoma cells (and other tumors) and 
delivers a potent cytotoxic drug that is activated with infrared light. Upon activation with an ophthalmic laser, the 
cytotoxic drug rapidly and specifically disrupts the cell membrane of malignant melanoma cells with a pro-immunogenic 
cell death that is believed to activate the immune system generating long term anti-tumor immunity. The unique 
specificity of tumor binding by the VDC enables the preservation of key eye structures, which may allow for the 
potential of preserving patients' vision and reducing other long-term complications of radiation treatment. The 
possibility of early treatment intervention and the activation of the immune system could lead to a reduction in the 
metastatic rate for patients with this life-threatening disease. AU-011 can be delivered using equipment commonly found 
in an ophthalmologist's office and does not require a surgical procedure, pointing to a potentially less invasive, more 
convenient therapy for patients and physicians. AU-011 for the treatment of choroidal melanoma has been granted Orphan 
Drug and Fast Track designations by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and is currently in Phase 2 clinical 
development. 
 
About Aura Biosciences 
 
Aura Biosciences, Inc. is a clinical-stage oncology company developing a novel technology platform based on virus-like 
drug conjugates (VDCs) to target and destroy cancer cells selectively while activating the immune system to create long 
lasting anti-tumor immunity. The VDC technology platform is based on the pioneering discoveries of NIH Distinguished 
Investigator Dr. John Schiller of the Center for Cancer Research at the National Cancer Institute (NCI). The company 
has the goal of developing this technology in multiple cancer indications with an initial focus in ocular oncology, a 
group of rare diseases that have no drugs approved. Aura's lead product candidate belzupacap sarotalocan (AU-011) is 
currently in Phase 2 development for the first line treatment of choroidal melanoma, a vision and life-threatening form 
of eye cancer where standard of care radioactive treatments leave patients with major vision loss and severe 
comorbidities. Aura has demonstrated the efficacy and safety of AU-011 in a Phase 1b/2 trial, including high rates of 
tumor control and vision preservation. Future pipeline applications for Aura's technology include additional ocular 
oncology indications like choroidal metastases and solid tumor indications like non-muscle invasive bladder cancer. 
Aura is headquartered in Cambridge, MA. For more information, visit www.aurabiosciences.com or follow us on Twitter. 
 
 
Investor and Media Contact: 
Joseph Rayne 
Argot Partners 
617.340.6075 | [e-mail] 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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ISIN:           GB00BD045071 
Category Code:  MSCU 
TIDM:           ARIX 
LEI Code:       213800OVT3AHQCXNIX43 
OAM Categories: 3.1. Additional regulated information required to be disclosed under the laws of a Member State 
Sequence No.:   95973 
EQS News ID:    1177238 
 
End of Announcement  EQS News Service 
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 22, 2021 07:09 ET (11:09 GMT)