Autolus Therapeutics to receive $250 million Investment from Blackstone Inc

Blackstone Inc. is set to invest $250 million in Autolus Therapeutics for funding the development of a therapy aimed at treating a severe form of Leukemia. The U.K biotechnology company will direct the new funding for the final stages of development and is expected to receive an upfront payment of $50 million.

$150 million will be allocated towards the development of a cell therapy called obecabtagene Leukemia which treats acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Blackstone Inc is also planning to buy Autolus American depository shares worth $100 million and acquire a significant stake in the company along with a seat at the board. As of Friday, the U.K company reflected a market capitalization of $404 million.

Nicholas Galakatos, head of Blackstone Life Sciences stated, “There’s simply a lot of less capital available in Europe and the U.K, specifically for life sciences, than in the U.S.” Blackstone has also invested greatly in the real-estate side of things and acquired land for development of a scientific lab in Cambridge.

Blackstone Life Sciences unit was set up two years ago in 2018 to focus on pharmaceutical investments and biotech. The additional funding provided will help Autolus focus on crucial development of the therapy and commercialize the treatment across the globe. In recent trials, it was seen that the treatment helped 85% of patients with lymphoblastic leukemia and showed no signs of the disease whereas half of the patients remained in remission after two years. Those without the treatment are seen to live only a year with lymphoblastic leukemia.

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