ADC Therapeutics SA announced a $100 million private investment in public equity (PIPE) financing that will extend the company's cash runway into 2028 while supporting continued development of its CD19-directed antibody drug conjugate ZYNLONTA and advancing a promising PSMA-targeting ADC program.
The commercial-stage biotechnology company entered into securities purchase agreements with institutional investors led by Redmile Group, selling 13.0 million common shares at $3.53 per share and pre-funded warrants to purchase 15.7 million common shares at $3.43 per warrant. The financing is expected to close on June 16, 2025, subject to customary closing conditions.
Strategic Restructuring to Optimize Operations
Concurrent with the financing, ADC Therapeutics announced a comprehensive restructuring plan designed to position the company for long-term growth with significantly reduced operating expenses. The company will shut down its UK facility and reduce its global workforce by approximately 30%, with completion expected by September 30, 2025.
The restructuring is estimated to incur one-time cash charges of $6-7 million for employee severance, benefits and related termination costs, with the majority recognized in the second quarter of 2025. Beyond ZYNLONTA development, the company will advance its preclinical exatecan-based ADC targeting prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) while discontinuing early development efforts for remaining preclinical programs in solid tumors.
Key Clinical Development Milestones
The financing will support multiple clinical catalysts for ZYNLONTA, which has received accelerated approval from the FDA and conditional approval from the European Medicines Agency for treating relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma after two or more lines of systemic therapy.
LOTIS-7 Combination Trial
The LOTIS-7 Phase 1b trial is evaluating ZYNLONTA plus glofitamab in patients with relapsed/refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). Fuller, more mature data from the dose expansion arm is expected in the second half of 2025, with enrollment expanding to 100 patients at the recommended dose. Full enrollment is anticipated in the first half of 2026, with potential publication and compendia inclusion in the first half of 2027.
LOTIS-5 Confirmatory Trial
The pivotal LOTIS-5 Phase 3 confirmatory trial is evaluating ZYNLONTA in combination with rituximab in patients with relapsed/refractory DLBCL. The company expects to reach the pre-specified number of progression-free survival events by the end of 2025, with topline results anticipated in late 2025 or first half of 2026.
Success in LOTIS-5 could lead to a biologics license application submission to regulatory authorities in the first half of 2026, with potential confirmatory approval in second-line or later DLBCL treatment and publication and compendia inclusion in the first half of 2027.
Expanding Treatment Applications
ADC Therapeutics is also pursuing opportunities in indolent lymphomas, with potential publication and compendia inclusion for relapsed/refractory marginal zone lymphoma expected in the first half of 2027. The company's PSMA-targeting ADC program is expected to complete IND-enabling activities by the end of 2025.
ZYNLONTA Mechanism and Approval Status
ZYNLONTA (loncastuximab tesirine-lpyl) is a CD19-directed antibody drug conjugate that delivers a pyrrolobenzodiazepine (PBD) payload directly to CD19-expressing cells. Once internalized, enzymes release the potent payload, which binds to DNA minor groove with minimal distortion, remaining less visible to DNA repair mechanisms and ultimately resulting in cell cycle arrest and tumor cell death.
The drug's current approval covers treatment of adult patients with relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma after two or more lines of systemic therapy, including DLBCL not otherwise specified, DLBCL arising from low-grade lymphoma, and high-grade B-cell lymphoma. Clinical trials included heavily pre-treated patients with a median of three prior lines of therapy, including those who had received stem cell transplant and CAR-T therapy.
Jefferies, Guggenheim Securities, Cantor and RBC Capital Markets served as placement agents for the PIPE financing, with Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP and Homburger AG acting as legal advisors to ADC Therapeutics.
