Dice Therapeutics Acquisition, Valuation, Funding & Investors

Dice Therapeutics was acquired by Eli Lilly for $2.4B in June 2023.

Dice Therapeutics acquisition price

$2.4B

Acquired by Eli Lilly · Jun 2023

Cumulative funding Dice Therapeutics raised

$187M

across 5 funding rounds

Key investors in Dice Therapeutics

  • RA Capital Management
  • Northpond Ventures
  • OUP (Osage University Partners)
  • Sands Capital Ventures
  • Janus Henderson
  • New Leaf Venture Partners
  • Logos Capital
  • Deep Track Capital

Dice Therapeutics Overview

About Dice Therapeutics

DICE Therapeutics is a San Francisco-based biopharmaceutical company developing oral small molecules for immunology using its DELSCAPE platform to target protein-protein interactions. Lead program DC-806 antagonizes IL-17 for plaque psoriasis, with additional candidates against α4β7 integrin for inflammatory bowel disease and αV integrins for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. Eli Lilly acquired the company in 2023.


Founded

2013

HQ

United StatesSan Francisco, CA

Status

Acquired

Customer focus

B2B

Revenue model

Licensing

Valuation

$2.4B (acquired Jun 2023)

Dice Therapeutics Acquisition

Dice Therapeutics was acquired by Eli Lilly for $2.4B on 20 June 2023.

Before the acquisition Dice Therapeutics had raised $187M across 5 funding rounds.

Eli Lilly agreed to acquire Dice Therapeutics, a San Francisco-based biopharmaceutical company, for $2.4 billion in an all-cash transaction announced on June 20, 2023. Dice develops novel oral therapeutic candidates using its proprietary DELSCAPE technology platform, with a focus on oral IL-17 inhibitors for chronic immunology and inflammatory diseases. The acquisition gave Lilly access to Dice's clinical pipeline, particularly lead candidate DC-806, an oral small-molecule antagonist of IL-17 in Phase 2 trials for psoriasis, which showed a 43.7% reduction in psoriasis area and severity in Phase 1 results. The transaction structure involved Lilly commencing a tender offer to acquire all outstanding shares of Dice at $48 per share in cash, representing a 40% premium to Dice's 30-day volume-weighted average trading price as of June 16, 2023. The deal was approved by the boards of both companies and was not subject to financing conditions, with expected closing targeted for the third quarter of 2023 subject to customary closing conditions including antitrust clearance and tender of a majority of outstanding shares. The acquisition reflected Eli Lilly's strategic expansion in oral IL-17 inhibitors as a complement to its injectable IL-17 medicine Taltz and fit within a broader wave of big pharma M&A activity in 2023. Dice had ended March 2023 with $554.5 million in cash and equivalents and did not require financial bailout, positioning the deal as a strategic pipeline acquisition rather than a distressed transaction.

Dice Therapeutics acquisition details
AcquirerDateTypePrice
20 Jun 2023Strategic M&A$2.4B

Dice Therapeutics Funding History

Dice Therapeutics has raised a total of $187M across 5 funding rounds.

Dice Therapeutics' first fundraising round was a $3M seed round in February 2014. The most recent completed round was a $60M Series C in August 2021.

Dice Therapeutics funding rounds

Dice Therapeutics funding rounds
DateStageInvestorsRaisedDeal Summary
Aug 2021Series CRA Capital Management (lead); Sands Capital Ventures (lead); Northpond Ventures; Eventide; Soleus Capital; Janus Henderson; New Leaf Venture Partners; Deep Track Capital; Logos Capital; Driehaus Capital Management; Asymmetry Capital Management; OUP (Osage University Partners)$60MDiCE Molecules is a biopharmaceutical company leveraging its proprietary DNA-encoded library (DELSCAPE) platform to discover and develop next-generation oral therapeutics, initially focused on chronic diseases in immunology. The company's lead therapeutic candidate, S011806, is an oral antagonist of interleukin-17 (IL-17), with additional programs targeting α4β7 integrin and αVβ1/αVβ6 integrin for inflammatory bowel disease and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. On August 24, 2021, DiCE Molecules announced the completion of its $60 million Series C-1 financing round led by RA Capital Management and Sands Capital, with participation from new investors Janus Henderson Investors, Deep Track Capital, and Logos Capital, alongside existing investors Northpond Ventures, Eventide Asset Management, Driehaus Capital Management, Soleus Capital, New Leaf Venture Partners, Osage University Partners, and Asymmetry Capital Management. With this round, the company had raised approximately $200 million cumulatively to that date. The proceeds were intended to support advancement of its pipeline of novel oral therapeutic candidates designed to modulate protein-protein interactions as effectively as systemic biologics.
Jan 2021Series CRA Capital Management (lead)$80MDiCE Molecules (later DICE Therapeutics) is a biopharmaceutical company using its proprietary DNA-encoded library (DELSCAPE) platform to develop oral small-molecule therapeutics targeting protein-protein interactions, primarily in immunology for chronic diseases. The company focuses on oral alternatives to systemic biologics, with lead candidate S011806 as an oral IL-17 antagonist and others targeting α4ß7 integrin for inflammatory bowel disease and αVß1/αVß6 for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. On August 24, 2021, it announced a $60 million Series C-1 financing led by RA Capital Management and Sands Capital, with participation from new investors Janus Henderson Investors, Deep Track Capital, Logos Capital, and existing investors including Northpond Ventures, Eventide Asset Management, Driehaus Capital Management, Soleus Capital, New Leaf Venture Partners, Osage University Partners, and Asymmetry Capital Management. This brought total funding to approximately $200 million. Proceeds were to support advancement of its pipeline. RA Capital later held a significant stake, owning 16.10% or 7.66 million shares per SEC filings.
Jul 2018Series BNorthpond Ventures (lead)$41MDice Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing oral small molecule therapeutics, particularly for immunology and inflammation. Northpond Ventures participated as a lead investor and early shareholder, later holding approximately 800,000 shares as of 2023 with a reported value tied to stock price movements. Northpond Ventures GP, LLC's ongoing ownership in DICE Therapeutics Inc., with holdings valued at around $38 million as of mid-2023 at a share price of $47.55, representing a 10% stake. Insider transactions include a significant sale of 2,492,871 shares in June 2023 for approximately $116 million.
Jun 2015Seed-$4M-
Feb 2014Seed-$3M-

Who has invested in Dice Therapeutics?

12 investors have backed Dice Therapeutics across its funding rounds, including RA Capital Management, Northpond Ventures, OUP (Osage University Partners), Sands Capital Ventures, Janus Henderson and New Leaf Venture Partners.

Lead investors include RA Capital Management, Sands Capital Ventures and Northpond Ventures.


Dice Therapeutics Investors

Investors in Dice Therapeutics by funding rounds participated
InvestorHQRoundsRoleFirst check
Northpond VenturesUnited StatesWashington, DC2LeadJul 2018
RA Capital ManagementUnited StatesBoston, MA2LeadJan 2021
EventideUnited StatesBoston, MA1ParticipantAug 2021
Soleus CapitalUnited StatesGreenwich, CT1ParticipantAug 2021
Sands Capital VenturesUnited StatesWashington, DC1LeadAug 2021
Janus HendersonUnited StatesLondon1ParticipantAug 2021
New Leaf Venture PartnersUnited StatesNew York City, NY1ParticipantAug 2021
Deep Track CapitalUnited StatesGreenwich, CT1ParticipantAug 2021
Logos CapitalUnited StatesSan Francisco, CA1ParticipantAug 2021
Driehaus Capital ManagementUnited StatesChicago, IL1ParticipantAug 2021

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Dice Therapeutics Competitors

Dice Therapeutics competitors include listed companies like Bavarian Nordic, ABL Bio, China Res Double-Crane and Nektar Therapeutics, and private ones like Cambrian Biopharma and Sail Biomedicines.

Public and private companies comparable to Dice Therapeutics
CompanyHQStatusRevenueEBITDAValuationRevenue Multiple
Bavarian NordicDenmarkDenmarkPublicly listed$961M$383M$2.4B2.2x
ABL BioSouth KoreaSouth KoreaPublicly listed$58M($27M)$2.4B32.0x
China Res Double-CraneChinaChinaPublicly listed$1.6B$404M$2.4B1.4x
Nektar TherapeuticsUnited StatesUnited StatesPublicly listed$55M($139M)$2.3B37.8x
Cambrian BiopharmaUnited StatesNew York City, NYPrivate--$2.5B-
Sail BiomedicinesUnited StatesBoston, MAPrivate--$2.6B-

Dice Therapeutics Public Comps

Dice Therapeutics is no longer listed, but its public comps include Bavarian Nordic, ABL Bio, China Res Double-Crane, Nektar Therapeutics, Vera Therapeutics, Mineralys Therapeutics, SELLAS Life Sciences, Granules India, Viridian Therapeutics and ACROBiosystems.

Last FYEV/RevenueEV/EBITDA
RevenueEBITDALast FYLTM2027ELast FYLTM2027E
Bavarian Nordic$961M$383M2.1x2.2x5.2x6.7x
ABL Bio$58M($27M)39.6x32.0x(86.3x)(45.8x)
China Res Double-Crane$1.6B$404M1.4x1.4x5.8x6.0x
Nektar Therapeutics$55M($139M)31.3x37.8x(12.5x)(8.2x)
Vera Therapeutics-($316M)-115.4x(6.5x)(4.8x)
Mineralys Therapeutics-($171M)--(10.6x)(5.7x)
SELLAS Life Sciences-($28M)--(77.5x)-
Granules India$557M$119M4.6x4.2x21.2x18.4x

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Common questions about Dice Therapeutics

When was Dice Therapeutics founded?Dice Therapeutics was founded in 2013.
Where is Dice Therapeutics headquartered?Dice Therapeutics is headquartered in San Francisco, CA, United States.
Is Dice Therapeutics publicly listed?No, Dice Therapeutics was acquired by Eli Lilly in June 2023.
Who acquired Dice Therapeutics?Dice Therapeutics was acquired by Eli Lilly in June 2023.
How much was Dice Therapeutics acquired for?Dice Therapeutics was acquired for $2.4B in June 2023.
How much funding has Dice Therapeutics raised?Dice Therapeutics has raised $187M across 5 funding rounds.
What was Dice Therapeutics' last funding round?Dice Therapeutics' last funding round was a $60M Series C in August 2021, led by RA Capital Management and Sands Capital Ventures.
Who are Dice Therapeutics' investors?Dice Therapeutics' investors include Northpond Ventures, RA Capital Management, Eventide, Soleus Capital, Sands Capital Ventures, Janus Henderson, New Leaf Venture Partners, Deep Track Capital, Logos Capital, Driehaus Capital Management and 2 others.
Which companies are comparable to Dice Therapeutics?Companies comparable to Dice Therapeutics include Bavarian Nordic, ABL Bio, China Res Double-Crane, Nektar Therapeutics, Cambrian Biopharma and Sail Biomedicines.

See companies similar to Dice Therapeutics

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