Cambridge-based Maxion Therapeutics, a BioTech company developing antibody-based KnotBody drugs for ion channel and G protein coupled receptor (GPCR) driven diseases, announced today that it has raised €68.9 million in a Series A financing.
This oversubscribed Series A funding round was led by General Catalyst with additional investment from new investors, British Patient Capital, a commercial subsidiary of the British Business Bank, Solasta Ventures and Eli Lilly and Company and supported by existing investors LifeArc Ventures, Monograph Capital and BGF.
Arndt Schottelius, MD PhD, Maxion’s Chief Executive Officer, commented: “This landmark fundraising – one of the largest European private biotech financings since the beginning of 2024 – highlights the significant potential of our technology and development pipeline. KnotBodies represent a potential breakthrough biologic drug modality, delivering greater potency, selectivity, and durability.
“We believe that KnotBodies will provide transformational new therapeutic options for ion channel- and GPCR-driven diseases, across a wide range of therapeutic areas with a remaining high unmet medical need. The calibre of our international investor syndicate validates our approach, and I would like to welcome our new investors to Maxion and thank our existing investors for their continued support.”
Maxion was founded in 2020 by BioTech entrepreneurs and scientists Dr John McCafferty (CTO) and Dr Aneesh Karatt-Vellatt (CSO). Dr McCafferty previously co-invented antibody phage display, which was the subject of the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry awarded to his co-inventor Sir Gregory Winter.
Maxion is developing a proprietary pipeline of KnotBody molecules with ‘first-in-class’ and ‘best-in-class’ potential. Maxion’s lead KnotBody programme, MAX001, is currently in preclinical development to target a broad spectrum of inflammatory diseases such as atopic dermatitis and inflammatory bowel disease.
Other early-stage programmes include KnotBody molecules for the treatment of pain and cardiovascular disease.
According to Maxion, Ion channel and GPCR dysfunction is implicated in a wide range of debilitating diseases and current treatments, based on small molecule drugs, often “suffer from poor efficacy and side effects due to the lack of selectivity and exposure“.
Compared to small molecules, engineered antibodies reportedly offer superior selectivity and are well proven therapeutically. Despite these advantages, antibody discovery against ion channels and GPCRs has been very challenging with no antibodies against ion channels currently in clinical development.
Co-founders Dr McCafferty and Dr Karatt-Vellatt developed Maxion’s KnotBody technology, which combines the benefits of knottins (cysteine-rich mini-proteins which are natural ion channel modulators) with antibodies, creating safe, efficacious and long-acting ion channel modulators.
Elena Viboch, Managing Director at General Catalyst, added: “We believe Maxion is radically shifting the biologics discovery process to address the most challenging drug targets such as ion channels and GPCRs. With a strong team and differentiated platform, Maxion is well-positioned to discover and develop medicines that matter.”
Emma Johnson, Senior Investment Manager – Life Sciences, Direct & Co-Investments, British Patient Capital, said: “We’re excited to support Maxion at a pivotal stage in their development and realise the potential of the KnotBody platform. This advances the field of antibody therapeutics, opening up new target classes to ultimately benefit patients, and builds on the successes of the UK’s contributions to the global biologics market.”
Following this fundraising, Elena Viboch, Managing Director at General Catalyst and Emma Johnson, Senior Investment Manager, Life Sciences at British Patient Capital will join the Maxion Board.
Read the orginal article: https://www.eu-startups.com/2025/03/maxion-therapeutics-raises-e68-million-to-advance-its-knotbody-pipeline-and-platform/
