Protagonist Therapeutics Secures $22 Million Equity Financing

NEWARK, Calif., Aug. 6, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq:PTGX), a biopharmaceutical company leveraging its proprietary technology platform to discover and develop novel peptide-based drugs, today announced that it has signed a securities purchase agreement with investors including BVF Partners L.P. and their affiliates for the sale of 2,750,000 shares of common stock for gross proceeds of $22 million. The investors also received five-year warrants to purchase 1,375,000 shares of common stock at $10.00 per share and 1,375,000 shares of common stock at $15.00 per share. The transaction is expected to close on Aug. 8, 2018.

Proceeds from the financing will be used to advance development of drug candidate PTG-100.

About Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc.

Protagonist Therapeutics is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company that utilizes a proprietary technology platform to discover and develop novel peptide-based drugs to transform existing treatment paradigms for patients with significant unmet medical needs. PTG-100 is an oral alpha-4-beta-7 integrin antagonist peptide that is under evaluation for potential treatment of inflammatory bowel diseases. The Company's interleukin-23 receptor antagonist peptide, PTG-200, is currently in a Phase 1 clinical trial in healthy volunteers to support a Phase 2 study in Crohn's disease. The IL-12/23 pathway blockade is an approach that has been validated through an FDA-approved injectable antibody drug. The company has entered into a worldwide license and collaboration agreement with Janssen Biotech for the clinical development of PTG-200. Protagonist has also applied its innovative peptide platform outside of gastrointestinal disease areas and is developing an injectable hepcidin mimetic, PTG-300, for the potential treatment of anemia and iron overload related to rare blood diseases with an initial focus on beta-thalassemia. The Company has completed a Phase 1 clinical trial with PTG-300, which established pharmacodynamic-based clinical proof-of-concept in normal healthy volunteers. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted Orphan Drug Designation to PTG-300 for beta-thalassemia. Treatment of patients with myelodysplastic syndromes, hereditary hemochromatosis and polycythemia vera represent additional opportunities for future development of PTG-300.

Protagonist is headquartered in Newark, California, with pre-clinical and clinical staff in California and discovery operations in both California and Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. 

Cautionary Note on Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include statements regarding our intentions or current expectations concerning the advancement of development of our drug candidates and the anticipated closing of the financing. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those anticipated, including, but not limited to, our ability to develop and commercialize our product candidates and the satisfaction of the conditions to closing of the financing.  We discuss many of the risks we face in greater detail under the heading "Risk Factors" contained in our quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the three months ended March 31, 2018 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking statements that we make in this press release speak only as of the date of this press release. We assume no obligation to update our forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date of this press release.

Contact:
Solebury Trout
Rich Allan (media)
Tel: +1 646-378-2958
Email: [email protected]

Marcy Nanus (investors)
Tel: +1 646-378-2927
Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.protagonist-inc.com