Molecular Templates ($MTEM) announced a deal with Takeda Pharmaceutical ($TKPH) on 19 September, in which the two sides agreed to a joint development of MTEM’s CD38-targeted engineered toxin antibodies (ETBs) for the treatment of multiple myeloma and other diseases. Shares of MTEM rose well over 40%. Under the terms of the deal, Molecular Templates will receive $30 million upfront, and up to $632.5 million in milestones if it exercises its co-development option. Molecular Templates will still receive $337.5 million and royalties on net sales if it opts out.
Another part of the deal calls for Takeda to share development costs, thereby minimizing the cash outlay by Molecular Templates. Shortly after the partnership agreement became official, Molecular Templates announced a public offering of common stock intended to raise an additional $30 million. With the $60 million from both the Takeda deal and proposed offering, the company should have around $100 million in their balance sheet, enough runway to fund two years of operations.
Molecular Templates is focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of next generation immunotoxins called Engineered Toxin Bodies (ETBs) for the treatment of cancer.