Selecta Biosciences Secures Up To $35 Million Debt Financing with Oxford Finance LLC and Silicon Valley Bank

Rhea-AI Summary

Selecta Biosciences (NASDAQ: SELB) announced a debt financing facility for up to $35 million with Oxford Finance and Silicon Valley Bank. The funds will retire $12.6 million of existing debt and support the advancement of Selecta's ImmTOR pipeline focused on gene therapy and autoimmune diseases. The financing is structured in two tranches: $25 million at closing, and another $10 million contingent on meeting development milestones for its gene therapy programs. The agreement allows for interest-only payments until at least April 2022.

Positive

• Secured $35 million debt financing to enhance financial position.
• Proceeds will retire existing debt, extending cash runway.
• Financing supports ImmTOR pipeline in gene therapy and autoimmune diseases.
• Interest-only payment period until at least April 2022 reduces short-term financial burden.

Negative

• None.

WATERTOWN, Mass., Sept. 01, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Selecta Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: SELB), a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on unlocking the full potential of biologic therapies based on its immune tolerance platform, ImmTOR^TM, today announced that it has entered into a debt financing facility for up to $35 million with Oxford Finance and Silicon Valley Bank (SVB). Proceeds from the financing will be used to retire $12.6 million of existing debt, advance Selecta’s ImmTOR pipeline in gene therapy and autoimmune diseases, and for selected business development activities.

“This partnership with Oxford Finance and SVB bolsters our financial position and extends our cash runway as we look to accelerate the development of our ImmTOR pipeline in gene therapy and autoimmune diseases,” said Brad Dahms, Chief Financial Officer of Selecta. “We are pleased to continue our relationship with SVB and are excited to partner with Oxford Finance on this facility at such an important time for Selecta.”

“We are thrilled to support Selecta’s efforts to continue development of its ImmTOR platform,” said Christopher A. Herr, Senior Managing Director at Oxford Finance. “The potential for ImmTOR in gene therapy and autoimmune diseases align with our strategy of funding innovative life sciences companies”.

“Selecta is driving important advancements in biologic therapies through its ImmTOR platform,” said Ryan Roller, Director of Life Science and Healthcare at Silicon Valley Bank. “We are pleased to expand our relationship with the Selecta team and have the opportunity to support the Company’s next phase of growth.”

Under the terms of the financing agreement, Oxford Finance and Silicon Valley Bank will provide Selecta with up to $35 million of borrowing capacity available in two tranches: $25 million at closing, and an additional $10 million available through September 30, 2021 upon the achievement of two development milestones: enrollment of the first patient in the Phase 1 clinical trial of Selecta’s gene therapy program in methylmalonic acidemia, and the enrollment of the first patient in each of the two Phase 3 clinical trials of SEL-212 in chronic refractory gout. The facility will require Selecta to make only interest payments through at least April 1, 2022. If the development milestones are met, the interest-only period will be extended to October 1, 2022. The entire facility matures on August 1, 2025. There are no financial covenants in the agreement.

About Selecta Biosciences, Inc.
Selecta Biosciences, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on unlocking the full potential of biologic therapies based on its pioneering immune tolerance platform (ImmTOR™). Selecta is committed to utilizing ImmTOR to potentially improve the efficacy of biologics, enable re-dosing of life-saving gene therapy, and create novel immunotherapies for autoimmune diseases. Selecta’s late-stage product candidate, SEL-212, is designed to be a monthly treatment for chronic refractory gout, a debilitating rare disease with a significant unmet medical need. SEL-212 consists of a combination of its ImmTOR platform co-administered with pegadricase, an enzyme designed to treat patients with symptomatic gout, refractory to standard uric acid lowering treatment. Selecta’s proprietary gene therapy product candidates are in development for certain rare inborn errors of metabolism and incorporate our ImmTOR platform with the goal of addressing barriers to repeat administration. In addition to our own pipeline of core discovery and clinical candidates, Selecta has established collaborative relationships with leading biopharmaceutical companies, including Asklepios BioPharmaceutical (AskBio) and Sarepta Therapeutics for gene therapy, and Swedish Orphan Biovitrum AB (Sobi™) for SEL-212. Selecta is based in Watertown, Massachusetts. For more information, please visit www.selectabio.com.

About Oxford Finance LLC
Oxford Finance is a specialty finance firm providing senior secured loans to public and private life sciences and healthcare services companies worldwide. For over 20 years, Oxford has delivered flexible financing solutions to its clients, enabling these companies to maximize their equity by leveraging their assets. In recent years, Oxford has originated over $6 billion in loans, with lines of credit ranging from $5 million to $150 million. Oxford is headquartered in Alexandria, Va., with additional offices in San Diego, Calif.; Palo Alto, Calif.; and the greater Boston and New York City areas. For more information, visit https://oxfordfinance.com/.

About Silicon Valley Bank
For more than 35 years, Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) has helped innovative companies and their investors move bold ideas forward, fast. SVB provides targeted financial services and expertise through its offices in innovation centers around the world. With commercial, international and private banking services, SVB helps address the unique needs of innovators. Learn more at svb.com. 

Forward-Looking Statements
Any statements in this press release about the future expectations, plans and prospects of Selecta Biosciences, Inc. (“the company”), including without limitation, the company’s plans to use the proceeds from the debt financing facilities, the company’s cash runway, the ability of the company to develop its product candidates, the potential of the ImmTOR platform in both gene therapy and autoimmune disease indications and generally, the company’s ability to achieve various development milestones, the company’s plans to access the additional $10 million available under the debt financing facility upon the achievement of various milestones, the timing, enrollment and progress of the company’s clinical trial programs, and the timing of various interest payments, and the company’s ability to grow its strategic partnerships, the sufficiency of the company’s cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments, and other statements containing the words “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “hypothesize,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “target,” “would,” and similar expressions, constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including, but not limited to, the following: the company’s inability to maintain its existing or future collaborations, licenses or contractual relationships, the availability of funding sufficient for its foreseeable and unforeseeable operating expenses and capital expenditure requirements, substantial fluctuation in the price of its common stock including stock market fluctuations that occur as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak, and other important factors discussed in the “Risk Factors” section of the company’s most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, and in other filings that the company makes with the Securities and Exchange Commission. In addition, any forward-looking statements included in this press release represent the company’s views only as of the date of its publication and should not be relied upon as representing its views as of any subsequent date. The company specifically disclaims any intention to update any forward-looking statements included in this press release.

For Investors:
Lee M. Stern
Solebury Trout
+1-646-378-2922
lstern@soleburytrout.com

For Media:  
Meredith Sosulski, Ph.D.
LifeSci Communications, LLC
+1-929-469-3851
msosulski@lifescicomms.com

FAQ

What is the recent financing announced by Selecta Biosciences?

Selecta Biosciences announced a debt financing facility for up to $35 million with Oxford Finance and Silicon Valley Bank.

How will Selecta Biosciences use the $35 million financing?

The financing will be used to retire $12.6 million of existing debt and advance Selecta's ImmTOR pipeline in gene therapy and autoimmune diseases.

What are the terms of Selecta Biosciences' financing agreement?

The agreement provides $25 million at closing and an additional $10 million upon achieving specific development milestones.

When does Selecta need to start making principal payments on its new debt?

Selecta will only make interest payments through at least April 1, 2022, with the possibility of extending this period based on milestones.

What are the development milestones for Selecta Biosciences?

The milestones include enrolling the first patient in the Phase 1 clinical trial for methylmalonic acidemia and in two Phase 3 trials for SEL-212 in chronic refractory gout.