Utrecht, the Netherlands and Cambridge, Massachusetts – Gilde Healthcare, the transatlantic growth capital firm specialized in the healthcare sector, announces that its portfolio company ProQR Therapeutics priced its initial public offering of 7,500,000 ordinary shares at an initial public offering price of $13.00 per ordinary share. In addition, ProQR has granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 1,125,000 ordinary shares from ProQR at the public offering price, less underwriting discounts and commissions.
After deducting the underwriting discounts and commissions and other estimated offering expenses payable by ProQR, the net proceeds of the initial public offering are expected to be approximately $88.4 million. ProQR’s ordinary shares are trading under the symbol “PRQR”.
“We are very pleased that our portfolio company ProQR Therapeutics successfully achieved a listing on NASDAQ,” commented Arthur Franken from Gilde Healthcare. “We have supported ProQR since April 2014 and in this short period the company has shown significant progress. It has prepared its lead product QR010 to enter a first-in-man trial and initiated development of their First non-CF Program, QR-110, in Leber’s Congential Amaurosis. With this IPO, ProQR Therapeutics will advance its lead product QR010 into clinical development and increase investment in early-stage research capabilities.”
Including ProQR, three Gilde Healthcare-backed companies realized an IPO at NASDAQ in the last 12 months. Both uniQure, from the Netherlands and US based Conatus Pharmaceuticals effectuated a successful listing.
The IPO of ProQR Therapeutics also marks the first IPO within the Gilde Healthcare III fund (GHC III), Gilde Healthcare’s latest transatlantic growth capital fund with $200 million under management. The fund targets investments in innovative businesses in therapeutics, medical devices, diagnostics and home and digital health, both in the United States and in Europe. GHC III is backed by a balanced mix of international corporate and institutional investors including (public) fund-of-funds, family offices, entrepreneurs and Gilde partners.
Leerink Partners and Deutsche Bank Securities act as joint book-running managers for the offering. JMP Securities acts as lead manager, and H.C. Wainwright & Co., LLC acts as co-manager for the offering.
This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation, or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction.
About ProQR Therapeutics N.V.
ProQR, which was founded in 2012, is a Dutch biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery and development of RNA-based therapeutics for the treatment of severe genetic disorders. ProQR is developing a disease-modifying therapy for the treatment of Cystic Fibrosis, the most common fatal inherited disease in the western world, which affects an estimated 70,000 to 100,000 patients worldwide.
ProQR is also developing a treatment for Leber’s Congenital Amaurosis, or LCA, the leading genetic cause of blindness in childhood. ProQR will use its RNA repair technologies to treat a broad range of other severe genetic diseases that are currently untreatable or have limited effective treatment options and has to date identified more than 50 potential target indications.
For more information on ProQR Therapeutics, please visit the company’s website at proqr-tx.com
About Gilde Healthcare
Gilde Healthcare (Utrecht, The Netherlands and Cambridge, Massachusetts) is a transatlantic growth capital investor focused on private healthcare companies. It has over €450 million ($600 million) under management and is actively looking to lead new investments in therapeutics, diagnostics, medical devices and healthcare services. For a list of Gilde’s portfolio companies please visit the website at www.gildehealthcare.com.
For more information
Pieter van der Meer / Arthur Franken
Gilde Healthcare
Tel: +31.30.219.2533
http://www.gildehealthcare.com