Lycia Therapeutics, a South San Francisco protein degrader company founded by Nobel laureate Carolyn Bertozzi, filed for a Nasdaq listing on October 20 seeking to raise up to $264.6 million by offering 14.7 million shares priced between $16 and $18 apiece, targeting a valuation of up to $937.7 million, Reuters reported. After underwriting discounts and expenses the company expects net proceeds of about $227.8 million, the figure carried by Fierce Biotech and Seeking Alpha. Jefferies, TD Cowen, Evercore ISI and Guggenheim Securities are joint bookrunners, and the shares will trade under the symbol LYCA.
The company develops LYTAC degraders, lysosome-targeting chimeras that tag extracellular proteins for destruction in the cell’s lysosomes. Its lead program, LCA-0061, is in an ongoing Phase 1 trial in food allergy and is positioned as a potential rival to Xolair: Lycia says it is designed to eliminate both total and free IgE by degrading extracellular IgE, and preliminary data cited in the filing show rapid, deep and sustained reductions in total and free IgE with no safety signals or dose-limiting toxicities. Beyond food allergy, Lycia said it needs $90 million to run a mid-stage study of LCA-0321, a degrader for Graves’ disease aimed at the pathogenic TRAb antibodies that drive it.
Lycia raised roughly $266.6 million from life sciences investors since its 2019 founding, including a $106.6 million Series C in 2024 and a $75 million raise in June, and entered the second half of 2026 with $148.1 million in cash. Major shareholders include Versant Ventures, Venrock Healthcare, Redmile Group, RTW Investments, Janus Henderson and Blue Owl. The listing continues a busy autumn for biotech paper: City Therapeutics and Nvidia-backed Iambic Therapeutics went public in New York the previous week, and Aspen Neuroscience and Bambusa Therapeutics filed earlier this month, while IPO strategists quoted by Reuters say investors are selective and quality names are drawing the bids.