Advent Life Sciences announces sale of its portfolio Company KaNDy Therapeutics to Bayer AG for USD 425M upfront plus USD 450M in potential development milestones followed by further potential commercial milestones

LONDON, Aug. 11, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Advent Life Sciences, a leading European life sciences venture capital firm, today announced the sale of its portfolio company, KaNDy Therapeutics Ltd, ("KaNDy"), to Bayer AG for an upfront consideration of USD 425 million plus potential milestone payments of up to USD 450 million until launch followed by potential additional triple digit million sales milestone payments.

KaNDy recently completed the Phase IIb with NT-814, a once-daily, oral neurokinin-1,3 receptor antagonist, publishing positive data for the treatment of frequent symptoms of the menopause, hot flashes and night sweats (vasomotor symptoms). The start of Phase III clinical trial is expected to commence in 2021. Once the deal completes, Bayer AG, a global leader in women's healthcare, will assume full responsibility for completing Phase III studies of NT-814, registration, and marketing and sales.

KaNDy Therapeutics is a spin-out from NeRRe Therapeutics, a Stevenage, UK, based Company, which Advent Life Sciences co-founded with Mike Trower in 2012 based on a portfolio of Neurokinin modulators.  Advent Life Sciences has supported the company since inception and remained the largest shareholder throughout. In 2015, Dr Mary Kerr, then an Operating Partner at Advent Life Sciences, became full time CEO of NeRRe and in 2017 Advent introduced Andrew Kay (previously CEO of Algeta, a realised Advent portfolio company) as Chairman.

Kaasim Mahmood, General Partner at Advent Life Sciences, said: "KaNDy is another example of our hands-on approach to achieving our twin objectives - to provide strong returns to our Investors while enabling the discovery and development of truly innovative medicines. We hope that NT-814 will fulfil the potential shown in the Phase IIb studies and provide a much-needed non-hormonal treatment for the alleviation of menopause symptoms."

Mary Kerr, CEO and Co-Founder of KaNDy, said: "Advent Life Sciences has played a central role in building this company from the very beginning, leveraging its extensive network to introduce new investors and providing strategic guidance to advance this potential novel medicine and become an important non-hormonal treatment option for women suffering debilitating symptoms of the menopause."

Closing is subject to customary conditions, in particular anti-trust approval, and is expected by September 2020.

Contact details:
Katja Stout, Scius Communications
[email protected]

About Advent Life Sciences
Advent Life Sciences founds and invests in early- and mid-stage life sciences companies that have a first- or best-in-class approach to unmet medical needs. The investing team consists of experienced professionals, each with extensive scientific, medical and operational experience, a long-standing record of entrepreneurial and investment success in the US and Europe and is particularly focused on supporting entrepreneurs and founders to take innovative new medical entities from concept to approval. The firm invests in a range of sectors within life sciences, principally drug discovery, enabling technologies and med tech, always with an emphasis on innovative, paradigm-changing approaches. Advent Life Sciences has a presence in the UK, US and France.  For more information, please visit www.AdventLS.com

About KaNDy Therapeutics
KaNDy Therapeutics Ltd. is a UK-based private clinical-stage biotech that was founded in 2017 as a spin-off from NeRRe Therapeutics Ltd. It is led by an experienced management team and backed by internationally recognised life sciences investors: Advent Life Sciences, Fountain Healthcare Partners, Forbion Capital Partners, OrbiMed and Longitude Capital. KaNDy Therapeutics is based at the state-of-the-art Stevenage Bioscience Catalyst, a leading location for companies to develop and commercialise cutting edge therapeutics.

About NT-814
NT-814 is a non-hormonal, orally administered, potent and selective small molecule dual antagonist of both the neurokinin-1 and 3 receptors. NT-814 addresses vasomotor symptoms by modulating a group of oestrogen sensitive neurones in the hypothalamus in the brain (the KNDy neurones), that in menopausal women due to the absence of oestrogen, become hyperactive and consequently disrupt body heat control mechanisms resulting in the debilitating vasomotor symptoms of hot flashes and night sweats.

SOURCE Advent Life Sciences