NewCo Services

Many promising clinical and preclinical assets are under-partnered: the originator lacks the capital or the team to develop them globally. A NewCo turns one of those assets into a US company: investors fund it, an experienced US team runs global development, and the originator keeps its home-market rights plus cash, equity, milestones and royalties. We source under-partnered assets worldwide, across the growing pool of licensable clinical and preclinical programs. We assess whether each one fits a NewCo, a straight license or a co-development deal, and work on both sides of the transaction: packaging assets, and connecting them with the investors, founders and pharma partners who build around them.

Asset owners

Get your asset in front of the right US capital

  • Assess whether an asset fits a NewCo, a straight license or a co-development deal.
  • Prepare an anonymous one-page teaser and an investor-grade data package in English.
  • Introduce you to US VCs, company-creation firms and management teams, and support term-sheet discussions (upfront, equity, milestones, royalties, territory).
Email bd@inlightbio.com
US investors & NewCo founders

Source assets worth building a company around

  • Curated, pre-screened deal flow by modality and indication, starting from non-confidential teasers.
  • Fast access to clinical data, CMC status and IP position under NDA, including data from trials run outside the US.
  • Diligence support and coordination with the licensor's team, including cross-border, multilingual coordination where needed.
Email bd@inlightbio.com
Pharma BD

Option, partner or acquire later

  • Track under-partnered assets, including global programs, and NewCos in your therapeutic areas.
  • Early look at teasers that match your search criteria.
  • Structures that fit pharma: options, co-funding, and acquisition paths once the NewCo has generated global data.
Email bd@inlightbio.com

How the NewCo model works

NewCo model An asset owner (licensor) grants rights outside its home market to a US NewCo in return for upfront cash or equity, milestones and royalties. Investors fund the NewCo with a Series A; a US management team runs it; the NewCo exits through pharma M&A or IPO. Asset licensor Originator biotech/pharma Keeps home-market rights + NewCo equity stake US NewCo Delaware company Ex-home-market rights Global development Investors / VCs Series A and later rounds US management team CEO, CMO, BD Exit / value event Pharma acquisition IPO or later financing Pharma partnership License (ex-home market) Upfront (cash/equity) milestones, royalties capital leads Value realized shared by investors and licensor (equity)

An originator licenses rights outside its home market (for example, ex-US or ex-Asia territorial rights) to a newly formed company (usually a Delaware corporation). Investors fund the NewCo, typically a Series A sized to reach a clinical inflection point, and recruit a US leadership team. The licensor is paid an upfront amount (cash and/or NewCo equity), development, regulatory and sales milestones, and royalties, and keeps its home-market rights. Value is realized when the NewCo raises later rounds, lists, or is acquired by a pharma company: Aiolos Bio (Hengrui asset) was acquired by GSK, and Ouro Medicines (Keymed asset) by Gilead; see the deal table.

Typical trade-offs: a licensor gives up near-term cash compared with a big-pharma license in exchange for equity upside and a dedicated global team; investors get a de-risked, often clinical-stage asset at a lower entry price than building from discovery. In many recent deals the upfront plus equity has been a small fraction of the headline value, so milestone design and governance matter.

Process

  1. ScreenNon-confidential review of the asset: mechanism, stage, existing clinical data, competitive landscape, IP and CMC status, and whether the relevant territorial rights are free.
  2. Anonymous teaserA one-page blinded profile (modality, indication, stage, headline data already public) shared with selected investors and founders.
  3. NDA and deep diveInterested parties sign an NDA with the licensor; full data, regulatory history and CMC are reviewed with both teams.
  4. Term sheetTerritory, upfront (cash/equity), milestones, royalties, supply, governance and technology-transfer plan.
  5. Company formationNewCo incorporation, Series A close, management recruitment, license execution.
  6. Global developmentUS IND, bridging or global trials, and continued data sharing with the licensor's home-market program.

Confidentiality tiers

TIER 0

Public

Published papers, conference abstracts, company announcements. Used for screening.

Gate: none
TIER 1

Anonymous teaser

One page, licensor not named. Only information that is already public or approved by the owner for blinded circulation.

Gate: owner sign-off
TIER 2

NDA package

Licensor identified; non-public data summary, development plan, IP overview and indicative terms.

Gate: signed NDA with the asset owner
TIER 3

Data room

Full clinical, preclinical, CMC and regulatory documents, plus management Q&A, for serious bidders.

Gate: NDA + term-sheet stage, owner approval

What we need from each side

Asset owners

  • Rights available (territory, field) and any existing partners or options.
  • Stage and public data references; what can be shown blinded.
  • Your preferred structure: license, NewCo, co-development; equity expectations.
  • A decision-maker who can approve teaser circulation and NDAs.

Investors & founders

  • Search criteria: modality, indication, stage, geography of data.
  • Check size and whether you lead, co-lead or follow.
  • Whether a CEO or team is already in place.
  • Timeline and decision process.

Pharma BD

  • Therapeutic areas and modalities of interest; exclusions.
  • Preferred deal types: option, license, co-fund, later acquisition.
  • Stage gates you need to see before engaging.
  • A named contact for teaser review.

Submit a non-confidential asset teaser

Please do not send confidential information before an NDA is in place. Send only information that is already public or that you are willing to circulate without restriction. We will not forward anything that identifies your company without your written approval.

Email bd@inlightbio.com with the subject “NewCo inquiry [EN] - Non-confidential asset teaser” and these fields:

  • Modality (small molecule, antibody, bispecific/TCE, ADC, siRNA, cell/gene therapy, other)
  • Target / mechanism (or “undisclosed”)
  • Lead indication(s)
  • Development stage and where trials ran
  • Headline data that is already public, with references
  • Rights available (e.g., global, ex-US, regional)
  • Patent status in one line (filed / granted; regions)
  • CMC / supply status in one line
  • Preferred deal type (NewCo, license, co-development, open)
  • Contact person and role

Recent NewCo deals

15 deals
NewCo / assetLicensorInvestors / financingUpfrontMilestones / totalDateLater outcomeSources
SentiveraUndisclosed preclinical small molecule (type 2 inflammation)Haisco PharmaceuticalARCH Venture Partners, Population Health Partners (founders); $83M committed capital$40M cash + 17.5% equity (~$75.9M combined)Up to $1.46B milestones + royalties (>$1.5B)Aug 2026—Haisco / PR NewswireFierce Biotech
Avere TherapeuticsAVR-001 (HS-20118), oral IL-23R antagonistHansoh Pharma$320M private placement led by Fairmount and Hansoh; reverse merger with NextCure (Nasdaq: AVRX)$120MUp to $2.18B milestones + royaltiesJul 2026—Fierce BiotechHansoh
R1 TherapeuticsAP306, pan-phosphate transporter inhibitor (hyperphosphatemia in dialysis)Alebund Pharmaceuticals$77.5M Series A co-led by Abingworth, DaVita Venture Group, F-Prime; with Curie.Bio, SymBiosis, US Renal CareNot disclosed (Alebund receives equity)Milestones up to low triple-digit $M + low double-digit royaltiesMar 2026—AllSci
Braveheart BioHRS-1893 / BHB-1893, cardiac myosin inhibitor (HCM)Jiangsu Hengrui$185M Series A led by a16z Bio + Health, Forbion, OrbiMed; with Enavate Sciences, Frazier Life Sciences$65M ($32.5M cash + $32.5M shares) + up to $10M near-termUp to $1.013B milestones + royaltiesSep 2025—HengruiBraveheart
Vor Bio (recapitalized, NewCo-style)Telitacicept (BLyS/APRIL fusion protein)RemeGen$175M private placement (PIPE)$45M cash + $80M in warrantsUp to $4.105B milestones + tiered royaltiesJun 2025—Vor Bio 8-K, SECRemeGen HKEX
Ollin BiosciencesVBS-102 / OLN102, TSHR×IGF-1R bispecific (thyroid eye disease)VelaVigo$100M launch led by ARCH Venture Partners, Mubadala Capital, Monograph CapitalNot disclosed (cash + equity)Up to ~$440M incl. upfront + royaltiesApr 2025Launched publicly Sept 2025VelaVigo / PR NewswireBioPharma Dive
Windward BioHBM9378/SKB378 (WIN378), long-acting anti-TSLP antibodyHarbour BioMed & Kelun-Biotech$200M Series A led by OrbiMed, Novo Holdings, Blue Owl; with SR One, Omega, RTW, Qiming, Quan Capital, Pivotal$45M upfront + near-term (cash + parent equity)Up to $970M incl. upfront + royaltiesJan 2025—Harbour BioMed / PR NewswireWindward Bio
Verdiva BioOral ecnoglutide (XW004, weekly oral GLP-1) + 2 amylin agonistsSciwind Biosciences$411M Series A co-led by Forbion, General Atlantic; with RA Capital, OrbiMed, Logos, Lilly Asia Ventures, LYFE~$70M>$2.4B milestones + royaltiesJan 2025—SciwindBioPharma Dive
Timberlyne TherapeuticsCM313, anti-CD38 antibodyKeymed Biosciences$180M Series A co-led by Abingworth, Bain Capital Life Sciences, Venrock HCP; with Boyu, Lilly Asia Ventures, Braidwell, 3H; formed by Mountainfield VP$30M upfront + near-term + equityUp to $337.5M milestones + royaltiesJan 2025—Keymed HKEXTimberlyne / PR Newswire
Ouro MedicinesCM336 / OM336, BCMA×CD3 T-cell engagerKeymed BiosciencesMonograph Capital (42% at closing)$16M upfront + near-term + minority equity (~15%)Up to $610M milestones + royaltiesNov 2024Acquired by Gilead (closed Jun 2026): $1.675B upfront + up to $500M; Keymed received ~$257MKeymed HKEX 2024Keymed HKEX 2026
Belenos BiosciencesCM512 and CM536, bispecific antibodiesKeymed BiosciencesFunds affiliated with OrbiMed (50.26% at closing)$15M upfront + near-term + 30.01% equityUp to $170M milestones + royaltiesJul 2024—Keymed HKEX
Kailera Therapeutics (Hercules CM NewCo)GLP-1 portfolio incl. HRS9531 (GLP-1/GIP) and HRS-7535 (oral GLP-1)Jiangsu HengruiBain Capital Life Sciences, Atlas Venture, RTW, Lyra Capital ($400M)$110M upfront + near-term + 19.9% equityUp to $200M dev./reg. + $5.725B sales milestones + royalties (~$6.0B)May 2024$400M Series A (Oct 2024); Nasdaq IPO 2026CooleyKaileraJ.P. Morgan (IPO)
Avenzo TherapeuticsAVZO-021 (ARTS-021), CDK2 inhibitor + option on a second programAllorion Therapeutics$150M Series A-1 (Mar 2024) led by NEA, Deep Track, Sofinnova Investments, Sands Capital$40M>$1B potential (both programs) + royaltiesJan 2024—Avenzo / PR NewswireAvenzo financing
Aiolos BioSHR-1905 / AIO-001, long-acting anti-TSLP antibodyJiangsu Hengrui$245M Series A co-led by Atlas, Bain Capital Life Sciences, Forbion, Sofinnova Investments; with RA Capital$25M upfront + near-term (reported)Up to ~$1B milestones + royalties (reported)Aug 2023Acquired by GSK (Jan 2024): $1B upfront + up to $400MBusiness WireGSKVCBeat
ArriVent BiopharmaFurmonertinib, EGFR TKI (NSCLC)Allist PharmaceuticalsUp to $150M Series A led by Hillhouse; with Lilly Asia Ventures, OrbiMed, Octagon, Boyu/Zoo, Lyra$40M + equityUp to $765M milestones + up to double-digit royaltiesJun 2021—ArriVent / GlobeNewswireAllist

Amounts are as disclosed and are not comparable one-to-one: some include equity or warrants, and milestones are contingent. “Reported” means figures come from press coverage rather than a company filing. Date = license announcement (month). Corrections: contact@inlightbio.com.

Engagement

Engagement terms are agreed case by case; contact bd@inlightbio.com.

Important notice

InLight Bio provides information and introductions only. It is not a broker-dealer, investment adviser or placement agent, and nothing on this site is an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any securities.

Have an asset, or looking for one?

Asset owners, investors and NewCo founders: bd@inlightbio.com. We typically reply within 2 business days.

Email bd@inlightbio.com