PR: Heidelberg Pharma announces receipt of non-refundable upfront cash payment following the successful closing of its royalty purchase agreement with HealthCare Royalty
Ladenburg, Germany, 19 March 2024 – Heidelberg Pharma AG (FSE: HPHA), a clinical stage biotech company developing innovative Antibody Drug Conjugates (ADCs), today announced the formal closing of the royalty purchase agreement with HealthCare Royalty (HCRx) for Zircaix®, signed earlier this month.
Under the terms of the agreement, Heidelberg Pharma has received an upfront, non-refundable cash payment of USD 25 million and is furthermore eligible to receive up to USD 90 million in total from the partial sale of its future royalties on the worldwide sales of Zircaix® (TLX250-CDx, 89Zr-DFO-girentuximab), a radiopharmaceutical Positron Emission Tomography (PET) imaging agent for the diagnosis and management of clear cell carcinomas. Heidelberg Pharma developed the antibody as therapeutic and diagnostic agent up to a first completed Phase III clinical trial prior to licensing it to Telix Pharmaceuticals Limited (Telix), an Australian-headquartered company based in Melbourne, in 2017 for further development. Telix submitted the Biologics License Application submission for Zircaix® in December 2023.
Heidelberg Pharma will utilize this funding to further advance its proprietary toolbox of novel payloads and first-in-class Amanitin-based Antibody Conjugate pipeline, including lead candidate HDP-101 which is currently progressing in a Phase I/IIa study for the treatment of multiple myeloma.
Dr. George Badescu, Chief Business Officer at Heidelberg Pharma, said: “The funding from the royalty purchase agreement with HealthCare Royalty is enabling us to further advance Heidelberg Pharma’s leading expertise in the field of ADC research and development. The upfront payment strengthens the Company’s liquidity, and along with future anticipated payments, should extend our cash runway. The funds will be used to advance the expansion of our ADC pipeline including our preclinical projects HDP-102, HDP-103 and HDP-201.”