Drug developer ADARx seeks $1.74 billion valuation in US IPO

By Pragyan Kalita

Sept 21 (Reuters) - ADARx Pharmaceuticals, ‌which develops ​RNA-based drugs ​for rare diseases, said on Monday that it was targeting a valuation of up to $1.74 billion, as it joins a wave ‌of biotech companies planning for a US IPO.

Drugmaker AbbVie has ⁠agreed to invest up to $100 million in a concurrent private placement, which would give it ‌a roughly 4.9% stake post-IPO, ‌ADARx said. AbbVie had paid the company $335 million in May 2025 for a research collaboration.

The investment provides external validation of ADARx's technology, said IPOX ​Research Associate Lukas Muehlbauer.

ADARx's experimental drugs target diseases related to immunity, kidney, cardiovascular and neurological systems. Three of its programs are in clinical testing ⁠and two in advanced preclinical development.

The company's most advanced candidate, onvuzosiran, is in late-stage testing for hereditary ​angioedema, a rare genetic disorder that causes sudden swelling attacks.

San Diego-based ADARx, founded in 2019, is aiming to raise up ​to $371.9 million by offering 21.9 million shares ‌priced between $15 and $17.

BIOTECH MOMENTUM CONTINUES

The IPO comes even as a sharp rise in Treasury yields and higher interest rates have ⁠nudged some prospective issuers to the sidelines, although biotech offerings have broadly rebounded from year-ago levels.

Drug developers Retension Pharmaceuticals and TRex Bio filed for their listings on Friday ⁠while Electra Therapeutics debuted in the market after raising $350 million in an upsized IPO.

According ​to Muehlbauer, however, the reopening of the biotech IPO market is still selective — favouring companies with later-stage assets, upcoming catalysts and exposure to areas such as obesity and oncology.

"Sentiment ‌has also been helped by big pharma's appetite for external innovation," he said. Prospects of acquisitions of even relatively new ‌biotechs mean a potential route to returns for investors despite higher rates.

JPMorgan, Morgan ⁠Stanley, TD Cowen, among others, ‌are the underwriters for the ​offering. It will list on the Nasdaq under the symbol "ADRX."

(Reporting by Pragyan Kalita in Bengaluru; Editing by Joyjeet Das and ‌Sahal Muhammed)

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