Lisata acquires Marea Therapeutics, raises $225M in private placement

Lisata Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: LSTA) announced the acquisition of Marea Therapeutics, Inc. and a concurrent $225 million private placement financing, according to a company press release dated Sept. 17, 2026.

The acquisition was structured as a stock-for-stock transaction in which Marea's equity interests were exchanged for a combination of 1,793,129 shares of Lisata common stock and 211,365.213 shares of Series C non-voting convertible preferred stock. Following the transactions, former Lisata stockholders will hold approximately 2.39% of the combined company, former Marea equity holders will hold approximately 59.54%, and private placement investors will hold approximately 38.07%, each on a fully-diluted, as-converted basis.

The private placement, issued at approximately $1,491.37 per preferred share, was oversubscribed and included participation from RA Capital Management, Forbion, Third Rock Ventures, Perceptive Advisors, Sofinnova Investments, Omega Funds, Surveyor Capital, Columbia Threadneedle Investments, and other institutional investors. The proceeds are projected to fund operations into 2028.

Lisata said it plans to use the net proceeds primarily to advance Marea's two clinical-stage drug candidates: MAR001/005, a monoclonal antibody targeting ANGPTL4 currently in a Phase 2b trial for severe hypertriglyceridemia, and MAR002, a growth hormone receptor antagonist antibody advancing into a Phase 2 study for acromegaly. Topline data from both studies are expected in the fourth quarter of 2027.

"This pipeline, led by MAR001, is designed to overcome the limitations of current treatment paradigms," said Dr. David J. Mazzo, CEO of Lisata.

Dr. Josh Lehrer, previously CEO of Marea, was named Chief Operating Officer and President of Lisata Therapeutics. Lisata will be required to hold a stockholder meeting to approve conversion of the Series C preferred stock into common shares.

H.C. Wainwright served as financial advisor to Lisata, while Leerink Partners advised Marea. Jefferies, Leerink Partners, Guggenheim Securities, Cantor, and LifeSci Capital acted as placement agents.

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