Public Company Edition: Fourth quarter 2023 fundraising fell 25.1% from Q4 2022, including a 24.2% drop in follow-on dollars, but recent activity has been robust, including $300m and $350m offerings by 4DMT and Autolus. Also, BMS sold $13bn in notes to fund Karuna and RayzeBio deals.

More than 100 biopharma executives and experts told Scrip their predictions for therapeutic area advances in the coming year. The recent commercial success of GLP-1s in diabetes and obesity and their potential in further disease areas fuelled excitement around the metabolic space. Expectations were also positive in neurology following the launch of Leqembi for Alzheimer’s disease in 2023, while the multiple opportunities to improve cancer treatment kept oncology top of the pile overall.

SR One will keep investing in a mix of new companies, early-stage firms and later opportunities with its second fund, raised even as biotech continues to endure challenging financial times.

Public Company Edition: Aileron, Talaris and Frequency said they will reduce expenses and seek options for maximizing shareholder returns under tough stock market conditions. However, CureVac and Supernus are among firms recently able to access new cash – $250m and $150m, respectively.