Cogent Biosciences has secured a substantial $400 million debt financing facility with credit funds managed by SLR Capital Partners, positioning the biotechnology company to advance its lead precision therapy bezuclastinib through critical late-stage development milestones. The company drew an initial $50 million tranche at closing, with future funding tied to key clinical and commercial achievements.
The strategic financing comes as Cogent prepares for what CEO Andrew Robbins describes as "a transformative year," with three pivotal trial readouts expected in 2025. The company remains on track to announce top-line results from the SUMMIT trial in July, followed by APEX trial results in the second half of 2025, and PEAK trial results before year-end.
Milestone-Based Funding Structure
The financing agreement includes a tiered structure aligned with Cogent's development timeline. An additional $100 million becomes available during 2025 at the company's discretion, contingent on successful top-line data readouts from both the SUMMIT and PEAK bezuclastinib pivotal trials. Another $50 million tranche is accessible upon achieving early commercial success following the bezuclastinib launch, with the remaining $200 million available through mutual agreement between Cogent and SLR.
"This strategic financing with SLR provides substantial, non-dilutive capital at very attractive financial terms," said Robbins. "It enhances our financial flexibility and enables us to accelerate our bezuclastinib launch planning as we eagerly await the results from SUMMIT, APEX and PEAK pivotal trials this year."
Bezuclastinib Clinical Program
Bezuclastinib, Cogent's most advanced clinical program, is a selective tyrosine kinase inhibitor designed to potently inhibit the KIT D816V mutation and other mutations in KIT exon 17. The KIT D816V mutation drives systemic mastocytosis, a serious disease characterized by unchecked proliferation of mast cells, while exon 17 mutations are found in patients with advanced gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST).
The SUMMIT trial represents a registration-directed, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, global, multicenter clinical trial evaluating bezuclastinib in patients with NonAdvSM (non-advanced systemic mastocytosis). The APEX trial is a registration-directed, global, open-label study in patients with AdvSM (advanced systemic mastocytosis). The PEAK trial is a global, blinded, randomized Phase 3 clinical trial studying the combination of bezuclastinib and sunitinib versus sunitinib alone in patients with imatinib-resistant GIST.
Strategic Partnership
Anthony Storino, Partner and Head of Life Science Finance at SLR Capital Partners, emphasized the investment's alignment with the firm's strategy. "We're proud to partner with Cogent in advancing innovative therapies for patients with genetically driven diseases. This investment reflects our ongoing strategy to support high-potential biotech companies as they progress through late-stage development and commercial execution."
SLR Capital Partners, founded in 2006, operates as a diversified middle market private credit solutions platform, with its Life Science Finance business specifically providing financing solutions for later-stage bio-pharma companies from pre-revenue clinical to early commercial stage.
The facility provides Cogent with the financial resources to support the expected commercial launch of bezuclastinib in 2026, while maintaining the company's focus on developing precision therapies for genetically defined diseases. Leerink Partners served as the exclusive financial advisor to Cogent on the term loan financing.
