Futu news on October 22nd, this Thursday$Yao Ming Gu Nuo-B (02126.HK) $According to the announcement, the company plans to issue 97.692 million shares from October 22 to 28, of which 9.77 million shares will be sold publicly and 87.922 million shares will be offered internationally at an issue price of HK $20 to HK $23.80 per share.

It is reported that Yao Ming Gunuo is a leading clinical and preclinical cell therapy company in China, and it is also the first company in China to obtain the clinical approval of CAR-T cell therapy product IND targeting CD19. Founded in April 2016, it was jointly established by Wuxi Apptec and American Giant Nuo Company. In the past financing records, the company has won the favor of well-known investment institutions such as Temasek and Sequoia.

The company has established an integrated platform focusing on the development, manufacture and commercialization of breakthrough cellular immunotherapy for hematological cancer and solid tumors, and has a rich research and development pipeline in the field of CAR-T therapy. Its main product relma-cel is expected to become the first approved first class biological product CAR-T therapy and the best CAR-T therapy in China.

In terms of financial data, the company currently has no approved commercial sale of its products and no revenue from product sales. The company has not made a profit and has made a pre-tax loss every year since its opening. The net losses in fiscal year 2018 and fiscal year 2019 were 273 million yuan and 633 million yuan respectively. For the six months ended June 30, 2020, the company had a net loss of 650 million yuan. The vast majority of the company's operating losses come from losses on the fair value of preferred shares and warrants, R & D expenses and general and administrative expenses.

In terms of industry, the global CAR-T market has increased from about US $13 million in 2017 to about US $734 million in 2019, and is expected to grow further to US $4.7 billion in 2024 and to US $18.1 billion in 2030. The compound annual growth rate is 45.3% from 2019 to 2024 and 25.0% from 2024 to 2030.

Although there are no approved CAR-T products in China, the CAR-T market in China is expected to grow to Rmb600m in 2021 due to the expected imminent launch of new products. Due to the rise in diagnosed cancer patients, increased affordability and favorable regulatory environment, China's CAR-T market is expected to grow to 5.4 billion yuan in 2024 and to 24.3 billion yuan in 2030. The compound annual growth rate from 2024 to 2030 is 28.7%.

As for cornerstone investors, the company has entered into cornerstone investment agreements with a number of investors, including Rock Springs Capital Master Fund LP and Four Pines Master Fund LP, Oaktree, Platinum Investment Management Limited, VAM LLP, RWC Asset Advisors (US) LLC, Gaoling Fund, L.P. And YHG Investment, L.P., Taiping Asset Management (Hong Kong) Limited, AVICT Global Holdings Limited, LVC Mi Holding Limited and Aranda have agreed to subscribe for a certain number of offer shares that can be purchased at the issue Price for a total of US $150 million subject to certain conditions.

In terms of fund-raising purposes, the company intends to use the net proceeds from the share sale for the following purposes: 40 per cent will be spent on research and development activities related to relma-cel; 34 per cent will be spent on other candidate products; 16 per cent will be spent on potential pipeline products; and 10 per cent will be used for working capital and general corporate purposes.