SpliceBio secures $135M Series B to advance lead gene therapy in Stargardt Disease

Barcelona-based biotech SpliceBio announced the close of a $135 million Series B financing funding will be used to advance the clinical development of SpliceBio’s lead gene therapy candidate, SB-007 for Stargardt disease.

The financing round was co-led by new investors EQT Life Sciences and Sanofi Ventures, with participation from Roche Venture Fund, as well as all existing investors: New Enterprise Associates, UCB Ventures, Ysios Capital, Gilde Healthcare, Novartis Venture Fund, and Asabys Partners.

Back in December, SB-007 became the first dual AAV gene therapy cleared by the U.S. FDA to enter clinical development for Stargardt disease. The most common form of inherited juvenile macular degeneration, Stargardt is caused by mutations in the ABCA4 gene. The condition leads to the progressive loss of central vision. The disease has remained elusive to genetic medicines due to the large size of the ABCA4 gene. SB-007 is designed to address the underlying genetic cause of the disease by producing a functional copy of the full-length ABCA4 protein with the potential to treat all patients, regardless of their specific ABCA4 mutation.

SpiceBio made headlines in 2022 when it revealed the largest Series A round for a Spanish biotech company. The oversubscribed $52 million (€50 million) financing was co-led by UCB Ventures and existing shareholder Ysios Capital and joined by new investors New Enterprise Associates, Gilde Healthcare, Novartis Venture Fund, and Asabys Partners.

The following year, biotech inked a $216 million collaboration with Roche’s Spark Therapeutics to utilize SpliceBio’s proprietary protein splicing platform to develop a gene therapy for an undisclosed inherited retinal disease.