Zymeworks Expects R&D Funds to Last Well Into 2027

By Bobby Samwell • Thursday, January 04 15:22 • Permanent Link

Zymeworks Inc. (NASDAQ: ZYME) has outlined its strategic priorities and outlook for 2024 and 2025, positioning the company for further progress and broadening of its R&D pipeline. The company reported cash resources of approximately $455 million as of December 31, 2023, and expects its cash runway, including proceeds from a recent private placement, to extend into the second half of 2027.

Kenneth Galbraith, Chair and CEO of Zymeworks, stated, "We begin 2024 in an exciting position, having met key objectives set for our programs in 2022 and 2023, including generating data supporting the clinical development of zanidatamab, identifying strong new preclinical product candidates, and ensuring that we continue to have the financial resources and leadership necessary to support the company's strategic objectives."

Galbraith also noted the company's expectations for 2024, stating, "We're looking forward to 2024 as we approach a pivotal phase 3 data readout this year with our partners Jazz Pharmaceuticals and BeiGene from the herizon-gea-01 clinical trial for our lead candidate, zanidatamab, in first-line gastroesophageal andenocarcinoma."

Chris Astle, SVP and CFO at Zymeworks, provided an update on the company's unaudited cash resources, stating, "Based on current operating plans and including the recent private placement with Ecor1 Capital, we expect to have cash resources to fund our R&D programs and business operations into the second half of 2027."

In addition to the financial update, the company outlined its key priorities for 2024 and 2025, including the progression of its differentiated portfolio of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) into clinical studies, with the potential best-in-class folate receptor-alpha-targeted ADC, zw191, expected to enter first-in-human studies during 2024.

Zymeworks emphasized its commitment to advancing its fully unencumbered development programs and executing its mission to improve the standard of care for difficult-to-treat diseases. The company also highlighted its legacy partnerships and future collaborations, indicating its intention to explore new opportunities for development collaborations in early-stage clinical programs.

The full 8-K submission is available here.

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