Overview
- Kailera Therapeutics, which began trading Friday under KLRA, jumped about 62% to open at $26 after selling 39,062,500 shares at $16 to raise $625 million.
- The company says it will fund its three KaiNETIC Phase 3 trials for ribupatide with about $650 million and invest roughly $150 million to develop a once-daily oral version.
- Ribupatide is a dual GLP-1/GIP weight-loss drug now in a global Phase 3 study with primary results expected in 2028 after a late-stage success in China.
- The offering ranks among the largest U.S. biotech IPOs since 2021 and highlights a race led by Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk to capture a market that could exceed $100 billion a year.
- Founded in 2024 and backed by investors including Bain Capital after raising more than $1 billion privately, Kailera is led by Ronald Renaud, the former CEO of Cerevel Therapeutics.