Memo Therapeutics secures up to CHF 265 million collaboration with CSL

Swiss biotech company Memo Therapeutics has entered into a strategic research collaboration with Australian biopharmaceutical group CSL, centred on the development of a first therapeutic product based on Memo’s proprietary antibody technology.

Under the terms of the collaboration and option agreement, CSL may pay Memo Therapeutics up to CHF 265 million for the development and commercialisation of an initial product. The agreement also includes an exclusive option and licence covering Memo’s recombinant polyclonal IgG technology.

The partnership provides CSL with access to Memo’s technology platform and includes funding for research and development activities carried out by Memo. If CSL exercises its option, the agreement foresees a licence fee as well as development and commercial milestone payments. In addition, Memo would receive a licence payment in the low single-digit million Swiss franc range.

At the core of the collaboration is Memo’s Dropzylla technology, an antibody discovery platform designed to copy entire antibody repertoires using high-throughput screening. The platform retrieves and expresses antibody genes from millions of B cells at single-cell resolution while preserving the natural pairing of heavy and light chains. This approach enables the development and production of recombinant polyclonal human immunoglobulin G (IgG) therapies.

Memo Therapeutics, which has been ranked among the Top100 Swiss Startups for several consecutive years, positions Dropzylla as the foundation of its antibody discovery and development capabilities.

Christoph Esslinger (Founder and CSO), Lars Spenger (CFO), and Jürgen Beck (CMO)