REG - Syncona Limited - Syncona launches Slingshot Therapeutics

SynconaAnnouncement

14/11/2024 07:00

For best results when printing this announcement, please click on link below:
https://newsfile.refinitiv.com/getnewsfile/v1/story?guid=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20241114:nRSN1663Ma&default-theme=true

RNS Number : 1663M  Syncona Limited  14 November 2024

14 November 2024

 

Syncona Limited

 

Syncona launches new portfolio company Slingshot, the Syncona Accelerator

 

·      Slingshot, the Syncona Accelerator, is focused on accumulating
and developing a pipeline of early-stage programmes identified from academia

·      Slingshot's first programme, Apini, is a small molecule programme
targeting inflammatory disease, sourced from The University of Manchester

·      Syncona has launched Slingshot with an initial commitment of
£12.5 million, which will be used to support the development of Apini, as
well as Slingshot's operational build and platform development

·      Syncona will have an 100% stake in Slingshot 1  with a current
holding value of £5.6 million following investment of the first tranche of
the total commitment

 

Syncona Ltd, ("Syncona") a leading life science investor focused on creating,
building and scaling global leaders in life science, today announces that it
has launched a new portfolio company Slingshot Therapeutics ("Slingshot"), the
Syncona Accelerator. Syncona has provided an initial commitment of £12.5
million to Slingshot and will have a 100% stake in the business once all
current commitments are invested. Following investment of the first tranche of
the commitment Syncona's current holding value is £5.6 million.

 

Slingshot will benefit from Syncona's expertise in creating and building
companies from early-stage science. It will focus on accumulating a pipeline
of early-stage programmes, identified from academia, and accelerating their
development towards the clinic. Through a high-quality management team,
Slingshot will offer academic founders access to development expertise that is
rarely available to singular early-stage programmes, as well as centralised
resource, funding and operational support. This will enable them to
efficiently advance their programmes and creates a variety of options to
further progress programmes through the clinic and ultimately to patients.
Syncona will utilise Slingshot to advance multiple pre-clinical programmes
under one pipeline, with this centralised structure providing a capital
efficient and de-risked way to gain more exposure to the returns available
from translating highly innovative science into promising biotech assets.

 

The initial £12.5 million commitment from Syncona will be used to build
Slingshot's operations, team and platform. It also incorporates capital
committed to Slingshot's first programme, Apini (SSTX-001), a small molecule
programme focused on inflammatory disease, identified from the University of
Manchester.

 

Slingshot is led by Syncona Investment Management Limited's (SIML) Managing
Partner Edward Hodgkin, who will act as Executive Chair of the company, and
Richard Wooster who has joined the company as Chief Scientific Officer, having
joined SIML as an Executive Partner in August 2024. SIML's Chief Financial
Officer, Kate Butler has joined Slingshot's Board of Directors. Additional
appointments have also been made to support Slingshot's operations and the
development of its pipeline.

 

Edward Hodgkin, Managing Partner at SIML and Executive Chair of Slingshot,
said: "Slingshot is an exciting addition to the Syncona portfolio, focused on
accelerating exceptional academic science into attractive biotech assets ready
for the clinic, creating an opportunity for a variety of paths to take
medicines to patients. Slingshot represents an opportunity to bridge the gap
between academic innovation and clinical development of a novel medicine,
whilst presenting Syncona with a capital efficient way to access the returns
available from translating early innovation into promising biotech assets.
Slingshot looks to partner with outstanding scientific researchers who possess
unique insights into the relationship between drug targets and disease
outcomes. We are very excited to be able to announce our first programme,
Apini, and continue our work to actively source additional opportunities for
Slingshot across a broad range of therapeutic areas."

 

 ENDS 

 

Enquiries

 

Syncona Ltd

 

Natalie Garland-Collins / Fergus Witt

Tel: +44 (0) 20 3981 7912

 

FTI Consulting

 

Ben Atwell / Tim Stamper

Tel: +44 (0) 20 3727 1000

 

About Syncona

 

Syncona's purpose is to invest to extend and enhance human life. We do this by
creating, building and scaling companies to deliver transformational
treatments to patients in areas of high unmet need.

We aim to build and maintain a diversified portfolio of 20-25 globally leading
life science businesses, across development stage, modality and therapeutic
area, for the benefit of all our stakeholders. We focus on developing
treatments that deliver patient impact by working in close partnership with
world-class academic founders and experienced management teams. Our balance
sheet underpins our strategy, enabling us to take a long-term view as we look
to improve the lives of patients with no or poor treatment options, build
sustainable life science companies and deliver strong risk-adjusted returns to
shareholders.

Syncona Limited seeks to achieve returns over the long term. Investors should
seek to ensure they understand the risks and opportunities of an investment in
Syncona Limited, including the information in our published documentation,
before investing.

 

About Slingshot

Slingshot Therapeutics Limited ("Slingshot"), the Syncona Accelerator, was
built to identify and advance de-risked therapeutic programmes from the work
of leading academic researchers.

Slingshot provides an innovative platform with access to centralised
expertise, resource, funding and operational support to accelerate exceptional
academic science into attractive biotech assets ready for clinical
development. Slingshot aims to accumulate a pipeline of small molecule
programmes across a range of therapeutics areas where there is significant
unmet medical need, identified from world-leading academic institutions in the
UK, US and Europe. For more information please visit:
slingshot-accelerator.co.uk (http://www.slingshot-accelerator.co.uk/)

 

 1  Reflecting ownership at the point full current commitments are invested

This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact
rns@lseg.com (mailto:rns@lseg.com)
 or visit
www.rns.com (http://www.rns.com/)
.

RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services. For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange use the personal data you provide us, please see our
Privacy Policy (https://www.lseg.com/privacy-and-cookie-policy)
.   END  PFUFLFSALLLVLIS