- Companies
- Kymab
Kymab Acquisition, Valuation, Funding & Investors
Kymab was acquired by Sanofi for $1.4B in January 2021.
Cumulative funding Kymab raised
$190M
across 3 funding rounds
Key investors in Kymab
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Woodford Investment Management
Wellcome Trust
Malin Corporation
ORI Capital
Hepalink
About Kymab
Kymab is a Cambridge-headquartered biopharmaceutical firm established in 2010, engineering fully human antibodies via IntelliSelect transgenic mice platforms. These encode complete human variable gene repertoires for therapeutics targeting immune diseases like atopic dermatitis with KY1005 and immuno-oncology assets. Acquired by Sanofi in 2021, research continues across multiple preclinical pipelines.
Founded
2010
HQ
Website
Status
Acquired
Customer focus
B2B
Revenue model
Product sales
Valuation
$1.4B (acquired Jan 2021)
Sectors
Kymab Acquisition
Kymab was acquired by Sanofi for $1.4B on 11 January 2021.
Before the acquisition Kymab had raised $190M across 3 funding rounds.
| Acquirer | Date | Type | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 Jan 2021 | Strategic M&A | $1.4B |
Kymab Funding History
Kymab has raised a total of $190M across 3 funding rounds.
Kymab's first fundraising round was a $40M Series B in May 2014. The most recent completed round was a $100M Series C in November 2016.
Kymab funding rounds
| Date | Stage | Investors | Raised | Deal Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 2016 | Series C | ORI Capital (lead); Hepalink; Wellcome Trust; Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; Malin Corporation; Woodford Investment Management | $100M | Kymab, a UK-based biopharmaceutical company spun out from the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, develops fully humanized monoclonal antibodies using its Kymouse platform for immuno-oncology, hematology, autoimmune diseases, and infectious diseases. The Series C round on November 24, 2016, raised $100 million, led by ORI Healthcare Fund (ORI Capital) with participation from Shenzhen Hepalink, Malin Corporation, Wellcome Trust, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and Woodford Investment Management (including CF Woodford Equity Income Fund and Woodford Patient Capital). This brought total funding to about $220 million since 2010, following a $90 million Series B in 2015. The proceeds were allocated to advance Kymab's product pipeline toward development and commercialization of monoclonal antibody medicines. ORI Fund, a $200 million debut vehicle, made this its largest investment, with follow-on investments in 2019 and 2020. Investors like Hepalink provided global reach and US biologics manufacturing capabilities. ORI later exited its stake to Sanofi in a 2021 deal valued at $1.1 billion upfront plus up to $350 million in milestones, delivering a 2.8x to 2.88x return on investment. |
| May 2015 | Series B | Malin Corporation (lead); Woodford Investment Management | $50M | - |
| May 2014 | Series B | Wellcome Trust (lead); Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation | $40M | Kymab is a UK-based biopharmaceutical company spun out from the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, specializing in the discovery, development, and commercialization of fully human monoclonal antibody therapeutics using its proprietary Kymouse platform—a genomically engineered mouse enabling production of high-affinity human antibodies for diseases with high unmet needs, including cancer and inflammation. On May 16, 2014, Kymab raised $40 million in a Series B financing round, with $20 million each from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Wellcome Trust, matching the query's specified investors and lead. This followed a 2010 Series A of approximately $30 million (£20 million) solely from the Wellcome Trust. The funds supported advancement of clinical development of antibody therapeutics and expansion of its 10 therapeutic antibody discovery programs. Kymab demonstrated strong traction with a 2014 Nature Biotechnology paper on its breakthrough mouse genome humanization technology. Subsequent milestones included a 2015 $50 million investment, 2016 Series C of $100 million, 2019 $60 million financing, successful Phase 2a trial for OX40L blocker KY1005 in 2020, and acquisition by Sanofi in 2021 for $1.1 billion upfront plus up to $350 million in milestones. |
Who has invested in Kymab?
6 investors have backed Kymab across its funding rounds, including Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Woodford Investment Management, Wellcome Trust, Malin Corporation, ORI Capital and Hepalink.
Lead investors include ORI Capital, Malin Corporation and Wellcome Trust.
Kymab Investors
| Investor | HQ | Rounds | Role | First check |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Lead | May 2014 | ||
| 2 | Participant | May 2014 | ||
| 2 | Lead | May 2015 | ||
| 2 | Participant | May 2015 | ||
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Benchmark 350K+ Funding Rounds and Disclosed VC Valuation Multiples
Sign up to see data on 350K+ funding rounds and disclosed revenue and EBITDA valuation multiples, from seed, through growth stage, to pre-IPO.
Start Free TrialKymab Competitors
Kymab competitors include listed companies like BeBetter Med, Ultragenyx, Ascentage Pharma Group and Avalyn Pharma, and private ones like Anew Labs and Kardigan.
| Company | HQ | Status | Revenue | EBITDA | Valuation | Revenue Multiple |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Publicly listed | - | ($21M) | $1.4B | - | ||
| Publicly listed | $673M | ($499M) | $1.4B | 1.6x | ||
| Publicly listed | $86M | ($176M) | $1.4B | 13.2x | ||
| Publicly listed | - | ($91M) | $1.5B | - | ||
| Private | - | - | $1.5B | - | ||
| Private | - | - | $1.5B | - |
Kymab Public Comps
Kymab is no longer listed, but its public comps include BeBetter Med, Ultragenyx, Ascentage Pharma Group, Avalyn Pharma, Xeris Biopharma, Pharma Mar, Damora Therapeutics, Bicara Therapeutics, Pacific Shuanglin and First Tracks Biotherapeutics.
| Last FY | EV/Revenue | EV/EBITDA | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | EBITDA | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | |
| - | ($21M) | - | - | (56.8x) | - | |||
| $673M | ($499M) | 1.7x | 1.6x | (2.3x) | (2.6x) | |||
| $86M | ($176M) | 17.0x | 13.2x | (8.3x) | (9.8x) | |||
| - | ($91M) | - | - | (12.5x) | (10.1x) | |||
| $292M | $38M | 5.7x | 4.6x | 44.1x | 28.2x | |||
| $255M | $77M | 5.3x | 5.5x | 17.5x | 27.5x | |||
| - | ($211M) | - | - | (4.7x) | (6.1x) | |||
| - | ($155M) | - | - | (6.4x) | (5.4x) | |||
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all Kymab competitors and their valuation data. Start Free Trial | ||||||||
Common questions about Kymab
| When was Kymab founded? | Kymab was founded in 2010. |
| Where is Kymab headquartered? | Kymab is headquartered in Cambridge, United Kingdom. |
| Is Kymab publicly listed? | No, Kymab was acquired by Sanofi in January 2021. |
| Who acquired Kymab? | Kymab was acquired by Sanofi in January 2021. |
| How much was Kymab acquired for? | Kymab was acquired for $1.4B in January 2021. |
| How much funding has Kymab raised? | Kymab has raised $190M across 3 funding rounds. |
| What was Kymab's last funding round? | Kymab's last funding round was a $100M Series C in November 2016, led by ORI Capital. |
| Who are Kymab's investors? | Kymab's investors include Wellcome Trust, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Malin Corporation, Woodford Investment Management, Hepalink and ORI Capital. |
| Which companies are comparable to Kymab? | Companies comparable to Kymab include BeBetter Med, Ultragenyx, Ascentage Pharma Group, Avalyn Pharma, Anew Labs and Kardigan. |
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