RTW Biotech Opportunities on Monday told investors that its portfolio company Lycia Therapeutics (Nasdaq:LYCA) had sealed an upsized initial public offering on Nasdaq, raising approximately $318 million.
Lycia sold 17.6 million shares of common stock at $18 each, and, on Friday 23 October, the stock closed up 67% at $30 on its first day of trading on Nasdaq, under the ticker "LYCA".
RTW Biotech Opportunities, the London-listed investment company focused on transformative life sciences assets, highlighted that it first invested in Lycia's Series B round in September 2021, and went on to participate in its Series C in April 2024 and Series D in June 2026.
Lycia is a clinical-stage biotech developing medicines designed to remove disease-causing proteins from the bloodstream, with lead candidates targeting food allergies and Graves' disease.
The first-day closing valuation represents a 229% step-up from RTW Bio's prior holding value as at 30 September and a 233% step-up from cost, against a holding that accounted for 0.8% of the company's net asset value at that date.
Lycia is RTW Bio's sixth "go public" event from its portfolio in 2026, following the IPOs of Aktis in January and Kailera in April, alongside three reverse mergers announced or completed during the year.
Read more about Lycia Therapeutics
- 26/06/26RTW Bio adds $1.4m to Lycia Therapeutics Series D round targeting food allergy and Graves' disease
The company noted 27 biotech IPOs so far this year, against eight for the whole of the prior year, a recovery it linked to sustained strategic buying by large-cap pharmaceutical companies facing a cumulative $170 billion patent cliff by 2032.
"Lycia's catalytic degrader platform is truly novel and offers broad promise against difficult targets," said Rod Wong, chief investment officer of RTW Investments.
"In particular, its lead IgE degrader program has exciting potential in allergic disease. We're proud to have been able to support the company while private and to continue to do so as a public company."