Benzinga | Jan 6, 2022 08:04AM EST

Sesen Bio 8-K Shows Co. To Receive $20M Milestone Payment Related To License Deal With F. Hoffman-La Roche

On January 6, 2022, Sesen Bio, Inc. ("Sesen Bio" or the "Company") disclosed that it will receive a $20 million milestone payment pursuant to the Company's exclusive license agreement with F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd and Hoffman-La Roche Inc. ("Roche") (the "Roche License Agreement"). Following this payment, Sesen Bio will have cumulatively received $50 million in upfront and milestone payments, with an additional $220 million in potential future milestone payments remaining under the Roche License Agreement. Upon receipt of the $20 million milestone payment from Roche, the Company currently expects that its cash and cash equivalents will be sufficient to fund its current operating plan into 2024. The Company plans to provide a further update on the Roche License Agreement in its Form 10-K for FY2021.



As previously disclosed, the Company entered into the Roche License Agreement in June 2016, pursuant to which the Company granted Roche an exclusive, worldwide license to develop and commercialize EBI-031 and all other Interleukin-6 ("IL-6") antagonist antibody technology owned by Sesen Bio. EBI-031 is a humanized monoclonal antibody that potently binds IL-6 and inhibits all known forms of IL-6 cytokine signaling, currently being developed by Roche for the potential treatment of ocular diseases. In addition to the milestone payments and the previously paid upfront payment, the Company is entitled to receive royalties on net sales of potential future products containing EBI-031 or any other potential IL-6 antagonist antibody technology owned by Sesen Bio.



The milestone payment from Roche will further strengthen the Company's balance sheet as it works toward an additional clinical trial for Vicineum(tm) for the treatment of BCG-unresponsive non-muscle invasive bladder cancer ("NMIBC"), followed by a potential resubmission of a Biologics License Application ("BLA").