Newton, MA— Swiss-American biotech firm GlycoEra AG has secured $130 million in an oversubscribed Series B funding round to accelerate the development of its novel protein degradation therapies for autoimmune diseases.
The financing was led by Novo Holdings and included strong support from new investors Catalio Capital Management, LifeArc Ventures, and the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), alongside existing backers Sofinnova Partners, 5AM Ventures, Roche Ventures, and Bristol Myers Squibb. Additional new investors include Agent Capital, MP Healthcare Venture Management, and Sixty Degree Capital.
GlycoEra will use the funds to advance its lead program, GE8820, an IgG4-targeted protein degrader, through first-in-human clinical trials expected to begin later this year. The financing will also support the development of a second clinical candidate and the continued expansion of its pipeline in precision immunology.
“Our lead program has shown rapid and deep IgG4 degradation in preclinical studies and offers the potential to transform treatment for several autoimmune conditions,” said Ganesh Kaundinya, Ph.D., CEO of GlycoEra. “This investment reflects strong validation of our science and enables us to push forward with our goal of delivering next-generation therapies for patients.”
GlycoEra’s proprietary platform creates bispecific protein degraders that target extracellular disease-causing proteins with exceptional precision. Unlike traditional therapies that may cause off-target effects or require complex chemical synthesis, GlycoEra’s degraders are produced through a one-step recombinant process that is highly scalable and modular.
GE8820 is designed to selectively degrade pathogenic IgG4 autoantibodies, which are implicated in diseases such as pemphigus, MuSK myasthenia gravis, autoimmune encephalitis, and primary membranous nephropathy. The treatment has demonstrated potent and sustained IgG4 depletion in preclinical models, without the broad immunosuppression associated with many current therapies.
Max Klement, Partner at Novo Holdings, called the therapy a “paradigm-shifting opportunity” in autoimmune disease treatment. “GlycoEra’s deep scientific expertise and unique approach to precision protein degradation make it a standout player in immunology.”
GlycoEra also announced the appointment of Max Klement (Novo Holdings), Matthew Hobson (Catalio Capital Management), and Sohaib Mir (LifeArc Ventures) to its board of directors as part of the financing.
Founded to transform how autoimmune diseases are treated, GlycoEra is focused on building a pipeline of extracellular degraders that provide targeted, durable treatment without compromising immune function.
