California-based biotech Alumis has successfully secured $259 million in a series C financing round, marking the largest private biotech fundraising in 2024. The funding, co-led by Foresite Capital, Samsara BioCapital, and venBio Partners, will support Alumis' pipeline of oral therapies targeting immune dysfunction. The substantial investment will also facilitate the launch of a phase 3 psoriasis trial for the lead asset, ESK-001, an allosteric tyrosine kinase 2 (TYK2) inhibitor. Alumis plans to initiate pivotal phase 3 trials for ESK-001 in the second half of the year, focusing on moderate to severe plaque psoriasis.
Alumis’s President and CEO Martin Babler expressed gratitude for the significant funding, emphasizing investor confidence in the biotech's team, assets, strategy, and technology. The company aims to leverage the financing to advance midstage trials for ESK-001 in systemic lupus erythematosus and non-infectious uveitis. Additionally, Alumis plans to explore ESK-001's potential in other autoimmune indications and develop another allosteric TYK2 inhibitor, A-005, targeting neuroinflammatory and neurodegenerative diseases, with clinical trials scheduled for the first half of 2024. Babler indicated that Alumis is well-positioned for future fundraising opportunities, including the possibility of an initial public offering.
