Two clinical-stage biopharmaceutical companies closed major financing rounds this week, with both companies’ fresh capital set to push late-stage and early-stage oncology and autoimmune disease programs respectfully.

Sling Therapeutics closes $123 million Series C

Sling Therapeutics announced the close of it’s $123 million Series C financing. The financing was led by Forbion and included participation from existing investor TPG Life Sciences Innovations and a new investor, Sectoral Asset Management.¹

In conjunction with the financing, Regina Salvat, Ph.D., of Forbion and François Beaubien, Ph.D., CFA of Sectoral Asset Management have been appointed to Sling's board of directors.

Proceeds from the financing are expected to support the continued clinical advancement of linsitinib, an oral small molecule inhibitor of IGF-1R (insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor), a validated target for the treatment of thyroid eye disease (TED).¹ Sling has already commenced the global Phase III Orbit pivotal trial for adults with moderate to severe active TED, with alignment on the pivotal Phase III study design being secured during a successful end-of-Phase II meeting with FDA earlier this year.¹

In a conversation with Pharmaceutical Executive, David Jimenez, president of Janssen Immunology, spoke about his work bringing care to patients from diverse communities, noting innovation in the immunology treatment space: "Looking ahead, what's exciting is that we are in a promising time as it relates to scientific innovation in immunology. This could mean additional advancements in treatment and care, including the opportunity to maximize the potential of medicines and apply them to many diseases."

The pivotal Phase III Orbit trial builds upon Sling's previously completed Phase IIB/III Lids trial, which met its primary endpoint of proptosis (eye bulging) reduction in patients with moderate-to-severe TED and exhibited a differentiated safety profile, particularly in IGF-1R areas of interest such as hearing impairment, glycemic changes, and menstrual cycle changes.¹

Ryan Zeidan, Ph.D., president and chief executive officer of Sling Therapeutics, said: "This financing reinforces our conviction in linsitinib's potential to transform the treatment landscape for people living with TED as the first and only oral IGF-1R inhibitor in late-stage development. The data generated to date give us confidence in linsitinib's potential to meaningfully address important limitations of current TED therapies and offer patients an effective, convenient oral treatment option that could be used earlier and more broadly in the treatment journey. With the support of a high-quality investor syndicate, we are well positioned to advance linsitinib toward commercialization with urgency and purpose for the TED community."

Circle Pharma raises oversubscribed $92.5 million Series E

Circle Pharma announced an oversubscribed $92.5 million Series E financing. The financing was led by The Column Group and included participation from other existing and new investors including Nextech Invest, RA Capital Management, Euclidean Capital, and Eli Lilly and Company.²

Proceeds from the financing are set to drive the advancement of CID-165, a first-in-class oral macrocyclic cyclin D1 RxL inhibitor, through early clinical development for ER-positive breast cancer, while also supporting the continued development of Circle Pharma's broader pipeline of cyclin-targeted macrocycles.²

In preclinical studies, CID-165 has been shown to potently and selectively disrupt the cyclin D1-Rb interaction, allowing Rb to remain active and suppress cancer cell proliferation, and has demonstrated robust anti-tumor activity in cyclin D1-driven preclinical cancer models, including in combination with other therapies such as CDK4/6-dual inhibitors, CDK4-selective inhibitors and endocrine therapies.²

David J. Earp, J.D., Ph.D., president and chief executive officer of Circle Pharma, says: "This financing marks a significant milestone as we execute upon our vision of harnessing the power of macrocycles to transform the treatment of cancer. Momentum around our cyclin D1 program has continued to build as CID-165 advances toward the clinic. We believe CID-165 has the potential to become a new backbone therapy for ER-positive breast cancer and this financing provides us with the resources to generate meaningful clinical data to validate that potential. Progress across our pipeline underscores the ability of our platform to generate first-in-class compounds across the previously undrugged family of cyclins, the master regulators of the cell cycle. We are grateful for the commitment and support of our existing and new investors."

Sources

1. Sling Therapeutics Announces $123 Million Series C Financing to Advance Phase 3 Development of its Oral Small Molecule IGF-1R Inhibitor for Thyroid Eye Disease Sling Therapeutics September 16, 2026, https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260916604221/en/Sling-Therapeutics-Announces-%24123-Million-Series-C-Financing-to-Advance-Phase-3-Development-of-its-Oral-Small-Molecule-IGF-1R-Inhibitor-for-Thyroid-Eye-Disease
2. Circle Pharma Announces $92.5 Million Series E Financing to Advance First-in-class Cyclin D1 Program into Clinical Development Circle Pharma September 16, 2026, https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260915467443/en/Circle-Pharma-Announces-%2492.5-Million-Series-E-Financing-to-Advance-First-in-class-Cyclin-D1-Program-into-Clinical-Development