With IPO, have the capital and resources for clinical studies: Bicara CEO

Claire Mazumdar, chief executive of Boston-based Bicara Therapeutics, said the company has sufficient funds and resources to carry out clinical studies after its recent $315 million initial public offering (IPO). Claire is the niece of Biocon chief Kiran Mazumdar Shaw.

The TPG-backed cancer therapy developer became a publicly listed company after getting listed on Nasdaq on September 13. Bicara is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company for bifunctional therapies for patients with solid tumors.

The IPO saw Bicara sell 17.5 million shares after increasing the size of its offer twice.


The company's lead drug, ficerafusp alfa, is currently in an early-stage study in the US to treat a type of head and neck cancer in combination with Merck's Keytruda. As per Reuters, it plans to use part of the IPO proceeds to fund its mid-to-late stage study, which is expected to start later this year or early 2025.

During an opening bell ceremony on Wednesday, Claire said, "Today has been incredibly exciting and a humbling moment for all of us at Bicara as we celebrate this pivotal milestone of becoming a public company...This reaffirms our commitment to improving outcomes for cancer patients. From day one Bicara was founded on the belief that innovative science with roots in India's emerging and dynamic biotech sector has the potential to save lives."

"Through my aunt Kiran, a pioneering biotech entrepreneur and husband Tom, a head and neck oncologist, I have been surrounded by individuals who've shaped my responsibility towards helping patients," she said.