Sidewinder Therapeutics Announces $137 Million Series B Financing to Advance Precision Bispecific ADCs into Clinical Development for Cancer

Financing co-led by Frazier Life Sciences and Novartis Venture Fund with significant participation from OrbiMed, Life Sciences at Goldman Sachs Alternatives, DCVC Bio, Samsara BioCapital, Longwood Fund and Astellas Venture Management

SAN DIEGO, CA – April 8, 2026 – Sidewinder Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company pioneering the development of next-generation bispecific ADCs (antibody-drug conjugates) for the treatment of cancer, today announced the closing of an oversubscribed $137 million Series B financing. The round was co-led by Frazier Life Sciences and Novartis Venture Fund, with participation from the sole Series A investor OrbiMed as well as new investors including Life Sciences at Goldman Sachs Alternatives, DCVC Bio, Samsara BioCapital, Longwood Fund, Astellas Venture Management and Alexandria Venture Investments. Concurrent with the financing, Daniel Estes, Ph.D., from Frazier Life Sciences, Michal Silverberg from Novartis Venture Fund, Josh Richardson, M.D., from Life Sciences at Goldman Sachs Alternatives and John Hamer, Ph.D., from DCVC Bio were named to the Board of Directors.

“We are pleased to receive the support of this exceptional group of investors and their shared enthusiasm in advancing Sidewinder’s mission to develop next-generation bispecific ADCs for difficult to treat cancers,” said Eric Murphy, Ph.D., Co-Founder and CEO of Sidewinder Therapeutics. “The ADC field is at an inflection point driven by technological breakthroughs enabling next-generation bispecific ADCs, and Sidewinder is eager to lead this wave of innovation and advance promising therapies for patients with cancer.”

Sidewinder’s mission focuses on developing bispecific ADCs designed to target receptor co-complexes that are highly expressed on certain solid tumors. The pipeline features bispecific antibodies engineered from internally discovered antibody sequences and finely tuned to target tumor-specific co-complexes consisting of an oncogenic driver receptor and an internalizing receptor. Precise targeting of these co-complexes enhances both tumor cell specificity and internalization, thereby improving the delivery of drugs to cancer cells while avoiding normal cells.  Sidewinder’s programs are designed to address oncology indications that have limited treatment options and affect substantial patient populations such as squamous cell carcinomas in lung and head and neck cancers as well as gastrointestinal cancers including colorectal cancer. The company expects to advance its lead program into clinical development in 2027.

“Founded on compelling science and a differentiated approach, Sidewinder’s novel bispecific ADC pipeline has the potential to address key hurdles limiting safety and efficacy for this class of therapeutics,” said Daniel Estes, Ph.D., General Partner at Frazier Life Sciences. “We believe that Sidewinder Therapeutics will significantly advance the ADC space and is well positioned to transform the treatment paradigm for cancer patients.”

About Sidewinder Therapeutics

Sidewinder Therapeutics is developing next-generation bispecific ADCs designed to expand the therapeutic window through enhanced tumor specificity and internalization. The company has partnered with Lonza to apply Synaffix’s site-specific linker-payload platform across multiple programs. Founded in 2023 with OrbiMed, Sidewinder is headquartered in San Diego and has raised a total of $162 million from a world-class investor syndicate. For more information, visit www.sidewinderbio.com.

Contacts

Media:
Inizio Evoke Comms
Katherine Smith
katherine.smith@inizioevoke.com

Investors:
Sidewinder Therapeutics
Eric Murphy
IR@sidewinderbio.com

Lonza’s Synaffix and Sidewinder Therapeutics Announce Multi-Target License Agreement to Advance Development of Next‑Generation Bispecific ADCs

  • Multi-target license agreement grants Sidewinder access to Lonza’s clinically validated ADC platform
  • Sidewinder’s pipeline of precision bispecific ADCs combined with Lonza’s clinically validated ADC platform will enable the development of first-in-class bispecific ADCs with enhanced tumor-cell internalization to treat solid tumor indications

Amsterdam, The Netherlands, and San Diego, CA, 7 January 2026 — Synaffix B.V. (“Synaffix”), a Lonza company (SWX:LONN) focused on commercializing its clinical-stage platform technology for the development of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) with best-in-class therapeutic index, and Sidewinder Therapeutics, a precision ADC therapeutics company with a pipeline of bispecific antibodies with enhanced tumor-cell specificity and internalization, today announced that they have entered into a multi-target licensing agreement to develop first-in-class bispecific ADC therapeutics to treat solid tumor indications.

Through the agreement, Sidewinder gains access to Lonza’s clinically validated, site-specific ADC technology platform including GlycoConnect® antibody conjugation technology, HydraSpace® polar spacer technology, and a toxSYN® linker payload. Under the terms of the agreement, Lonza is eligible to receive upfront, clinical, regulatory, and commercial milestone payments, plus royalties on net sales of resulting products. Lonza is responsible for manufacturing components that are related to its proprietary technologies, and Sidewinder is responsible for the research, development, manufacturing, and commercialization of the ADCs.

Peter van de Sande, Head of Synaffix at Lonza, commented:
“This collaboration brings together two cutting-edge platforms to enhance the therapeutic index of bispecific ADCs by minimizing impact on healthy tissue. We are confident that our technologies will help Sidewinder’s pipeline reach its full potential in maximizing tumor targeting, hence delivering new life-saving therapies for the benefit of patients with cancer.”

Eric Murphy, PhD, CoFounder and Chief Executive Officer of Sidewinder Therapeutics, said:
“The ADC field has reached an exciting moment fueled by multiple technology breakthroughs that enable the next generation of bispecific ADC innovation. Sidewinder’s bispecific antibody approach targeting tumor-specific receptor complexes combined with Synaffix’s clinically validated site-specific linker-payload platform creates an ideal synergy with the potential to greatly impact patient benefit. This collaboration advances our mission to reshape the cancer treatment landscape by improving tolerability for bispecific ADCs.”

About Lonza
Lonza is one of the world’s largest development and manufacturing organizations (CDMOs). Working across five continents, our global team of more than 19,000 colleagues works alongside pharma and biotech companies to turn their breakthrough innovations into viable therapies. We support our customers in bringing life-saving and life-enhancing treatments to patients worldwide with a combination of cutting-edge science, smart technology and lean manufacturing.

Our company generated sales of CHF 3.6 billion with a CORE EBITDA of CHF 1.1 billion in Half-Year 2025. Find out more at www.lonza.com.

About Synaffix
Synaffix B.V. is a biotechnology company that enables ADC product candidates using its clinical-stage, site-specific ADC technology platform based on GlycoConnect®, HydraSpace® and toxSYN® technologies, that together enable any company with an antibody to develop proprietary best-in-class ADC products under a single license from Synaffix.

The Synaffix platform enables a rapid timeline to clinic due to the established supply chain of technology components. Synaffix holds granted patents to its technology. The business model of Synaffix is target-specific technology out-licensing, as exemplified through its partner pipeline.

Synaffix was fully acquired by Lonza in June 2023.

About Sidewinder Therapeutics
Sidewinder Therapeutics is a biotechnology company developing next generation large molecule precision therapeutics using bispecific ADCs designed to expand the therapeutic window by targeting tumor-specific complexes to enhance specificity and internalization. Sidewinder has partnered with Lonza to apply Synaffix’s site-specific linker-payload platform across multiple programs. Sidewinder expects to initiate a clinical trial for a first-in-class bispecific ADC in 2026. The company was founded in 2023 with a Series A investment from OrbiMed and is headquartered in San Diego, CA. For more information, visit www.sidewinderbio.com.

For more information, please contact:

Synaffix B.V.
Anthony DeBoer
Head of Business Development
bd.synaffix@lonza.com

Optimum Strategic Communications
Nick Bastin, Vici Rabbetts, Joshua Evans
+ 44 (0) 20 3922 0891
Synaffix@optimumcomms.com

Sidewinder Therapeutics
Rob McRae
President and COO
Info@SidewinderBio.com

Inizio Evoke Comms
Jake Robison
Vice President
jake.robison@inizioevoke.com

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