Adial Pharmaceuticals Acquires Azora Therapeutics and Raises $64M

Adial Pharmaceuticals has acquired Azora Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company developing treatments for serious inflammatory diseases. The acquisition brings Azora's lead asset AT177, a proprietary colon-targeted aryl hydrocarbon receptor agonist designed to enable localized activation with limited systemic exposure, into Adial's pipeline. Concurrent with the acquisition, Adial entered into a definitive agreement for a concurrent private placement of up to $64M in gross proceeds to Adial, before deducting placement agent and other offering expenses. The private placement is composed of an initial upfront financing of approximately $32M in gross proceeds in exchange for pre-funded warrants to purchase 11,780,948 shares of Adial's common stock, representing a purchase price of $2.7489 for each pre-funded warrant sold at the initial closing and the potential for up to an additional $32 million in gross proceeds upon Phase 1 clinical study initiation in exchange for pre-funded warrants to purchase up to 11,780,948 shares of common stock and common warrants to purchase up to 11,780,948 shares of common stock at a combined purchase price of $2.7489 for each pre-funded warrant and accompanying common warrant sold at milestone closings. The financing was led by Coastlands Capital with participation from Boxer Capital Management, Stonepine Capital Management, AuGC BioFund and other biotech specialists and institutional investors along with insiders and management. The combined company expects to use the proceeds from the private placement primarily to advance Azora's AT177 lead colon-targeted AhR program through key clinical milestones, including IND-enabling studies and the Phase 1a and Phase 1b studies in ulcerative colitis