Inflammation biotech Electra raises $350 million in IPO, exceeding expectations

U.S. inflammation-focused biotech company Electra Therapeutics raised $350 million in its initial public offering (IPO), exceeding expectations.

According to Fierce Biotech on the 17th (local time), Electra raised $350 million in gross proceeds by selling 23.3 million shares at $15 per share in its Nasdaq listing that day.

That exceeded the $296.6 million in net proceeds the company had expected earlier this week. The initial target was to sell 21.7 million shares.

If underwriters exercise in full their option to purchase an additional 3.5 million shares at the same price, IPO proceeds could increase by as much as $52.5 million.

The shares are set to begin trading on Nasdaq on the morning of the 18th under the ticker symbol “ETRA.”

The IPO proceeds will be added to the $97.7 million in cash the company held at the end of June. The company raised $183 million in a Series C round last October.

The top priority for the funds is the drug candidate ipsoprubart. The drug selectively eliminates pathological immune cells by targeting signal regulatory protein (SIRP).

The company has already allocated $220 million for a global phase 2/3 trial of ipsoprubart in secondary hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (sHLH) and for a regulatory filing.

sHLH is a rare, severe inflammatory disease caused by immune system overactivation. It can be triggered by cancer, infection, autoimmune disease or immunotherapy, and requires immediate treatment after onset.

Electra CEO Cathy Dong told Fierce Biotech last year that patient enrollment in the phase 2/3 trial was expected to be completed in 2027.

In an earlier phase 1b trial in patients with cancer-associated HLH, the 8-week overall survival rate among 12 patients receiving first-line treatment was 100%.

Another $25 million is slated for a phase 1 trial in patients with natural killer (NK)/T-cell malignancies, while $50 million is earmarked for an early-stage trial of ELA822 in healthy participants and a phase 1/2 trial in patients with T-cell-mediated immune diseases.

Electra was founded in 2018 to explore a novel approach targeting SIRP. It currently has 46 full-time employees and said in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that it plans to expand its workforce.

Electra joins a group of biotech companies that have drawn strong interest in the IPO market this year. In the 2026 IPO market, Parabilis Medicines and Kylera Therapeutics recorded some of the largest listings ever.