By Mauro Orru

Shares in Celyad Oncology SA jumped Friday after the Belgian biotechnology company struck an agreement with an affiliate of investment manager Fortress Investment Group LLC for a private placement targeting gross proceeds of $32.5 million.

At 0940 GMT, Celyad shares traded 20% higher at EUR3.83.

Celyad said it would issue 6.5 million ordinary shares at $5 each and use the proceeds to fund research and development expenses. The subscription should close on or around Dec. 8.

Fortress, backed by Japanese technology and investment conglomerate SoftBank Group Corp., will hold a 28.8% stake in Celyad as a result of the transaction.

Celyad said that it should have enough funding to meet its operating expenses and capital expenditure requirements into the first half of 2023, following close of the private placement.

Write to Mauro Orru at mauro.orru@wsj.com; @MauroOrru94

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

12-03-21 0508ET