Forlong Biotechnology, a clinical-stage biotech company focused on developing cytokine therapies for patients with severe unmet medical needs, announced the completion of an RMB 120 million, approximately $17.5 million, Series Pre-B financing round. The round was co-led by an undisclosed fund and Fudan Capital, with participation from Changshu Guofa Venture, Kunsheng Relay Fund, and other investors.
The company said the proceeds will support advancing FL115, its IL-15 superagonist candidate, into the pivotal clinical stage, and FL116, its PD-1/IL-18 bispecific antibody candidate, into the clinic.
Forlong previously raised RMB 110 million, approximately $16.2 million, in February 2023. Since then, the company has advanced FL115 into clinical trials and dosed 95 patients with advanced solid tumors or non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC). The company said the therapy has demonstrated best-in-class potential.
In addition, Forlong has developed a portfolio of interleukin-18 variants designed to fully escape IL-18BP neutralization. FL116 has demonstrated tumor-killing activity across multiple in vivo tumor models, supported by pilot toxicology studies in non-human primates. The company also said it continues early-stage research efforts focused on engineering additional cytokines.
The company noted that FL115 is expected to enter a Phase 3 pivotal study for BCG-unresponsive NMIBC, while FL115 and FL116 are both expected to advance into Phase 2a definitive studies for solid tumors in 2027.
KEY QUOTES:
“We are confident in Forlong Biotechnology’s leadership position in the cytokine therapeutics space. The company has established globally leading technology platforms including Fbody and Syntokine, validated through R&D collaborations with top-tier pharmaceutical companies such as Innovent and Henlius. Its lead asset, FL115, has demonstrated global best-in-class potential in Phase I clinical trials, with the bladder cancer indication already advancing into Phase II, underscoring a high probability of successful commercialization. We believe FL115 will emerge as a benchmark in tumor immunotherapy in the post-PD-1 era.”
Fudan Capital
“We welcome the new investors and appreciate the continuing support of existing investors. Exciting progress in the past 3 years have validated our cytokine-based portfolio strategy, R&D capability and efficiency. This round of financing will enable us to strengthen operational readiness and accelerate clinical development momentum to advance FL115 into Phase 3 pivotal study for BCG-unresponsive NMIBC, and FL115 as well as FL116 into Phase 2a definitive studies for solid tumors in 2027.”
Dong Wei, Ph.D., CEO of Forlong Biotechnology
“We are grateful to our new and existing investors for their confidence in the Forlong team, our technology platforms, and our product pipeline. Cytokine therapeutics have demonstrated breakthrough potential across multiple areas of significant unmet medical needs. Over the years, we are committed to synthetic immunology-driven original innovation, successfully building globally leading platforms including Fbody and Syntokine, and now advancing our lead asset FL115 into clinical validation. This financing will accelerate our core pipeline toward pivotal clinical stage. Looking ahead, we will continue to focus on unmet medical needs, advance novel products, and strive to bring safer and more effective cytokine therapies to patients.”
En Ji, Co-founder of Forlong Biotechnology