Star Therapeutics Announces $200 Million Private Financing to Advance Pipeline of Best-in-Disease Therapies

Financing will support Star’s next phase of growth, including advancement of current preclinical programs into the clinic and continued pipeline expansion

Financing follows Incyte’s July 2026 acquisition of Star subsidiary Vega Therapeutics for up to $2 billion and builds on the Star team’s track record of creating and advancing innovative therapies

Financing co-led by OrbiMed and Janus Henderson Investors, with participation from other leading healthcare investors

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Star Therapeutics, a biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of life-changing therapies for diseases with significant unmet need, today announced a $200 million private financing. The financing follows the July 2026 acquisition of Star subsidiary Vega Therapeutics and was co-led by OrbiMed and Janus Henderson Investors, with participation from Agent Capital, Catalio Capital Management, Cormorant Asset Management, New Leaf Venture Partners, NYBC Ventures, RA Capital Management, Redmile, Sofinnova Investments, Soleus Capital, and a leading sovereign wealth fund. Proceeds from the private financing will support Star’s next-generation pipeline of potential best-in-disease therapies, advancing its current preclinical programs into the clinic and expanding its pipeline with additional programs.

“Our mission is to develop best-in-disease therapies at scale for the millions of patients with diseases of significant unmet need,” said Adam Rosenthal, Ph.D., founder and chief executive officer of Star Therapeutics. “This financing marks the next phase for Star, building on our team’s track record of discovering and developing novel medicines. With an experienced team, a growing pipeline and the support of a top-tier investor base, we are well positioned to advance our current programs into the clinic and continue to add new, highly innovative programs to our pipeline in order to meaningfully improve patient outcomes.”

Across multiple companies, members of the Star team have invented four first-in-class therapies that are now in Phase 3 development or commercialized. The team has contributed to four successful acquisitions, including Vega Therapeutics, DICE Therapeutics, True North Therapeutics and iPierian. In July 2026, Incyte completed the acquisition of Star’s wholly owned subsidiary Vega Therapeutics in a transaction valued at up to $2 billion, which included Star’s lead program latarcibart (VGA039), a novel monoclonal antibody in Phase 3 development for von Willebrand disease. Additionally, in September 2026, Star’s spinout company Electra Therapeutics became a publicly traded company (Nasdaq: ETRA).

“I have worked with this team across three different companies, and have seen firsthand their ability to identify important therapeutic opportunities and translate them into medicines with the potential to make an impact for patients,” said Carl L. Gordon, Ph.D., CFA, managing partner at OrbiMed. “We believe Star has the team, scientific approach and pipeline to build on those achievements in its next phase of growth.”

“Star stood out to us because of the strength of its team and its proven ability to invent and develop innovative therapies,” said Vish Sridharan, M.D., assistant portfolio manager and research analyst at Janus Henderson Investors, who is joining as a board observer for Star Therapeutics. “We do not often invest in companies at this stage of development, which reflects our conviction in Star’s ability to repeatedly identify areas of significant unmet need and develop differentiated therapies to address them. We look forward to supporting the team as it advances its growing pipeline into the clinic and continues to develop the next generation of therapies for patients.”

About Star Therapeutics

Star Therapeutics is a biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of life-changing therapies for diseases with significant unmet need. Star Therapeutics’ team has invented four first-in-class antibody therapies, including the first approved drug (Enjaymo^®) for cold agglutinin disease, and three other therapies that are each in Phase 3 development. For more information, please visit Star-Therapeutics.com and follow us on LinkedIn and X.