CRISPR Hits Wall Street as Editas Bags $94M in IPO
Summary
CRISPR Hits Wall Street as Editas Bags $94M in IPO Xconomy Boston — After a few years of explosive hype and no shortage of controversy, the gene editing system known as CRISPR-Cas9 has finally made its way to the public markets.It would have added to the worry if Editas, with high-profile backers and a seasoned management team led by former Avila Therapeutics CEO Katrine Bosley (pictured), had struggled to complete a deal or withdrew its IPO altogether.The Editas deal doesn’t cure all that’s ailing biotech, of course—not in an election year where drug pricing continues to be a hot topic—but its breakthrough in a tough environment, even at the low end of its projected $16 to $18 per share range, is something the sector needed.But even as Editas and its Boston-area rivals, CRISPR Therapeutics and Intellia Therapeutics—IPO candidates in their own right—continue to get more funding and attract industry partnerships with large pharmaceutical companies, the field is still early in its development.Spark Therapeutics (NASDAQ: ONCE), which could be the first company to win FDA approval of a gene therapy, is delivering its own treatment to the eye, for a form of genetic blindness different than the one Editas is targeting.