BioAge aims to raise $198 million in initial public offering and accelerate the development of therapies that target the biology of aging.
BioAge Labs, Inc has officially priced its upsized initial public offering (IPO) at $18.00 per share, offering 11,000,000 shares of its common stock. The clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, which focuses on developing therapies for metabolic diseases by targeting the biology of aging, expects to raise $198 million in gross proceeds from this IPO. Trading will begin on the Nasdaq Global Select Market today, 26 September 2024, under the ticker symbol “BIOA.” Closing of the offering is expected to occur on the following day (27 September), pending the satisfaction of customary conditions.
The IPO is managed by Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, Morgan Stanley, Jefferies and Citigroup, with the company granting the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase an additional 1,650,000 shares. The offering highlights BioAge’s growing stature in the biopharmaceutical industry, as the company continues its work on developing groundbreaking treatments targeting the root causes of aging.
BioAge has been making headlines with significant appointments and developments in recent months. In August of this year, BioAge appointed former GSK CEO Jean-Pierre Garnier as the chair of its board of directors. This move was seen as a strategic alignment to leverage Garnier’s experience in scaling biopharmaceutical enterprises, and as predicted, just a couple of weeks later in early September, BioAge filed for its IPO in early September. This marked a significant milestone for the company as it seeks to broaden its clinical research into metabolic diseases and neuroinflammation.
BioAge’s leading candidate, azelaprag, has shown promise in clinical trials for treating obesity and metabolic aging. Azelaprag is an orally available small molecule agonist of APJ that has demonstrated efficacy in muscle preservation, improving metabolism and preventing muscle atrophy. Following successful Phase 1 trials, BioAge initiated a Phase 2 study earlier this year, combining azelaprag with tirzepatide for the treatment of obesity in older adults.
BioAge’s research efforts are part of a broader industry push toward using longevity science to develop new therapies targeting age-related diseases. With their proprietary discovery platform built on human longevity data, BioAge has identified several novel pathways that could be targeted to address metabolic diseases and neuroinflammation. These findings align with the increasing interest in therapeutic solutions that could extend healthspan by focusing on the biology of aging itself.
By going public, BioAge can expect to accelerate the development of its clinical programs and expand its research capabilities, developing innovative solutions to tackle some of the most pressing health challenges related to aging. The company is not only advancing its azelaprag program but is also working on preclinical NLRP3 inhibitors aimed at reducing neuroinflammation, a key driver of neurodegenerative diseases, an unmet medical need which is an enormous global burden, both on sufferers and healthcare systems.
