Legend Biotech bags $150 million in Series A financing ahead of spinoff

Legend Biotech secured $150.5 million in Series A financing from investment groups such as Hudson Bay Capital, Lilly Asia Ventures, Vivo Capital, RA Capital Management, and JJDC Inc., the venture capital arm of Johnson & Johnson.

The cell therapy developer will use the funding for R&D, commercializing its pipeline programs, and expanding its manufacturing facilities. Legend's leading drug program — a CAR-T therapy called JNJ-4528 — has been in co-development with Johnson & Johnson since 2017 when the pharma giant signed a global collaboration deal with Legend.

The Nanjing-based biotech is slated to spin off from Genscript Biotech and list on a U.S. stock exchange after filing for an IPO last month.