On December 20, 2021 VBL Therapeutics (Nasdaq: VBLT), a clinical stage biotechnology company developing first-in-class therapeutics for difficult-to-treat malignant solid tumors and immune or inflammatory indications, reported that it has been selected for €17.5 million of blended funding by the European Innovation Council (EIC) Accelerator (Press release, VBL Therapeutics, DEC 20, 2021, View Source [SID1234597463]). The funding is comprised of a €2.5 million grant and an additional €15 million direct equity investment by the EIC.
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The EIC Accelerator is a prestigious competitive program of the European Commission, which offers grants combined with equity investments through the EIC Fund. In addition to financial support, all projects benefit from a range of Business Acceleration Services that provide access to leading expertise, corporates, investors and ecosystem actors.
"We are honored to have been selected in this prestigious and competitive program, where only nine percent of companies got funded, with only a small fraction of those in biopharma," said Dror Harats, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of VBL. "In selecting us for this grant and investment, we believe the EIC recognized the value proposition that ofra-vec (VB-111) potentially offers to patients and the high unmet need that exists in ovarian cancer. Ofra-vec offers a novel targeted gene based approach to the way cancer is treated, and if approved, can potentially address some of the key challenges in treating ovarian cancer and establish a new standard of care. We are grateful for the EIC’s support and alignment in our collective mission to improve the lives of patients with cancer."
The EIC Accelerator’s support comes at a pivotal time for VBL. VBL is nearing the completion of enrollment in the ongoing Phase 3 OVAL registration-enabling clinical trial of ofra-vec (VB-111) in ovarian cancer, with the top-line progression free survival (PFS) co-primary endpoint data readout expected in the second half of 2022. The funds from the EIC will be used to support clinical development, Chemistry Manufacturing and Controls (CMC), and pre-commercialization activities.
For more information about the EIC Accelerator, refer to View Source