AecorBio, formerly known as HBC Immunology, has completed a further equity financing round of $1.5m from existing and new investors at a company valuation of $30m.
This funding will enable AecorBio to complete the investigational work on its flagship peptide candidate FT-002a in advanced prostate cancer, allowing an Investigational New Drug (IND) application with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2026.
Filing the IND will represent a critical milestone for the company, paving the way for AecorBio to transition FT-002a into clinical development as a co-therapy in the management of advanced prostate cancer.
FT-002a is a first-in-class peptide co-therapeutic for the treatment of advanced prostate cancer, which affects more than 250,000 men annually in the US alone.
Unlike conventional treatments, FT-002a resets tumour iron metabolism by restoring iron-responsive gene expression homeostasis.
An increased labile iron pool (LIP) is a critical driver of tumour growth, spread and resistance to therapy. FT-002a restores LIP balance and tumour sensitivity to ARPI treatment by helping starve the tumour cells of free iron.
The current addressable market for resistant prostate cancer is more than $2.5b annually and the total ARPI market is in excess of $10b a year and continues to show sustained, strong annual growth.
Preclinical data supports the modulation of tumour iron metabolism by FT-002a.
In animal models of resistant prostate cancer, orally delivered FT-002a in a proprietary formulation achieved an 80% reduction in tumour volume when co-administered with the current standard of care compared to enzalutamide alone.
In hormone-sensitive advanced prostate cancer, even greater antitumour activity was observed, with up to 97% reduction in tumour volume.
Beyond FT-002a in prostate cancer, AecorBio has filed a robust global intellectual property portfolio and is leveraging its proprietary peptide discovery platform to advance three additional preclinical programs in other hormone-dependent oncology and immunology.
Together, these peptides establish a multi-asset pipeline and a solid foundation for future strategic partnerships with major pharmaceutical companies.
“The closing of this financing round reflects strong investor confidence in our vision and scientific platform,” said Dr Bomi Framroze, CEO of AecorBio.
“Our immediate focus is to complete the IND-enabling studies and move FT-002a into the clinic."
"With a differentiated mechanism of action, clean preliminary toxicity results and compelling preclinical efficacy, we believe FT-002a has the potential to become a transformative therapy for patients with treatment-resistant prostate cancer.”
Hofseth BioCare ASA retains approx. 67.5% ownership of the outstanding shares in AecorBio after the transaction and as a result, will book a NOK 8m gain in financial income in Q3 2025.