Umoja Biopharma has successfully closed a $100 million Series C funding round, marking a step forward for the company’s efforts to advance innovative cell therapies. This latest investment comes as the cancer-focused biotech seeks to expand its pipeline of treatments targeting oncology and autoimmune diseases.
Currently, Umoja’s only candidate in clinical development is UB-TT170, a TumorTag-based therapy designed to identify solid tumor cells that express folate receptor alpha. This treatment is being investigated in a phase 1 trial in combination with a CAR-T therapy for osteosarcoma, the most prevalent bone tumor in pediatric patients. Despite the ongoing trial, UB-TT170 was not a focal point in the company’s recent announcement.
Instead, Umoja highlighted its preclinical asset UB-VV400, a novel off-the-shelf therapy. This treatment utilizes a multidomain fusion protein surface-engineered lentiviral vector to generate CD22-directed CAR-T cells directly within a patient’s body.
According to the January 14 release, the newly acquired funds will support the initiation of clinical trials for UB-VV400 across multiple cancer and autoimmune indications. Another preclinical candidate, UB-VV111, which targets CD19 for blood cancer treatment, also received attention. Both UB-VV400 and UB-VV111 were developed using Umoja’s proprietary VivoVec platform.
The Series C financing round was led by Double Point Ventures and DCVC Bio, with additional contributions from ARK Invest, Cormorant Asset Management, MPM Capital, Qiming Venture Partners USA, RTW Investments, Alexandria Venture Investments, and SoftBank Vision Fund 2, among others. The round was described as oversubscribed, underscoring strong investor confidence in Umoja’s approach to developing next-generation therapies.
“We are excited to close our Series C financing with robust support from both new and existing investors,” said Andrew Scharenberg, M.D., CEO of Umoja Biopharma, in a statement. He emphasized the company’s aim to create the first in vivo CAR-T cell-generating therapies, with the goal of improving treatment effectiveness, lowering access barriers, and broadening availability of CAR-T therapies to patients in need.
Umoja Biopharma has raised $100 million in Series C funding to support its development of cell therapies targeting cancer and autoimmune diseases. The company’s clinical-stage candidate, UB-TT170, is being tested in a phase 1 trial for pediatric osteosarcoma. However, the focus is on preclinical assets like UB-VV400, an off-the-shelf therapy generating CAR-T cells within patients, and UB-VV111, a treatment for blood cancers, developed using Umoja’s VivoVec platform. This oversubscribed funding round, led by Double Point Ventures and DCVC Bio highlights strong investor confidence and positions Umoja to advance its pipeline and mission of broadening CAR-T therapy access.
Since its inception in 2020 with an initial $53 million in funding, Umoja has said to be dedicated to overcoming the limitations of existing immunotherapies. In 2021, the company raised an additional $210 million to support its clinical objectives, laying the groundwork for its current endeavors.
With this recent influx of capital, Umoja is well-positioned to accelerate its clinical programs and advance its mission of transforming the treatment landscape for cancer and autoimmune diseases.
