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Gilead Sciences to acquire OSE portfolio company for approximately $405m

Oxford Science Enterprises (OSE) announced its life sciences portfolio company MiroBio is to be acquired by the global biopharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences for approximately $405 million in cash, subject to customary adjustments.

Key highlights:

MiroBio was spun out of the University of Oxford in 2019 to develop a new class of medicines, called immune checkpoint agonists, to treat autoimmune diseases by restoring balance to the immune system. The company was co-founded by OSE and Tim Funnell, OSE’s entrepreneur in residence at the time, and Samsara BioCapital, working closely with MiroBio’s scientific founders – Simon Davis, professor of Molecular Immunology, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, and Richard Cornall, Nuffield professor of Clinical Medicine. 

OSE has backed MiroBio since inception, providing strategic and operational support as well as funding. OSE co-led MiroBio’s £27 million Series A investment with Samsara BioCapital in 2019, bringing in several other top tier global life science investors. The company also participated in MiroBio’s recent £80 million Series B round, led by Medicxi, which further strengthened its global investor base.

Following its acquisition by Gilead, MiroBio will continue its operations in Oxford, UK. 

Katya Smirnyagina, senior partner, Life Sciences at OSE, said: “OSE is proud to have played a key role in the creation of MiroBio and to have supported its successful development through to its acquisition by Gilead. Combining MiroBio’s innovative technology with that of a world-leading company should allow its pipeline to truly flourish. This is a great example of our model in action, where OSE has worked with leading Oxford academics to set their breakthrough science on a trajectory to where it can have a positive impact – in this case to develop much-needed new therapies for patients with debilitating autoimmune diseases.

"We are delighted with the outcome, not just for the founders and everyone at MiroBio, but also because it provides us with a strong return on our investment, providing additional funds to re-invest into Oxford spinouts.”

Closing of the transaction is subject to expiration or termination of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act and other customary conditions.

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