Valneva raises US$85m

Valneva said the transaction, led by US investors Deerfield Management Company and OrbiMed, included an initial US$60m fixed rate debt and flexible terms to draw down an additional US$25m in the following 12 months. The company announced it will use the proceeds to advance its clinical programmes for a first-in-class protein subunit vaccine against Borrelia burgdorfferi’s OspA protein to prevent Lyme diesease (VLA15 in Phase II)  and an attenuated live vaccine for prevention against infections with the chikungunya virus (VLA1553, Phase I).

The company wants to use the proceeds to repay European Investment Bank (EIB) loan and continue development of its Lyme and chikungunya programmes in the short term. Valneva also confirmed its intention to list on Nasdaq to support potential co-funding for the late stage development of its Lyme disease programme. The Company completed Phase II patient recruitment last September and expects to report initial efficacy data mid-2020.