Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Spero Therapeutics (Nasdaq: SPRO) announced a USD 105 million non-recourse, non-dilutive royalty financing with affiliates of HealthCare Royalty (HCRx), a business of KKR. The transaction is designed to fund Phase II development of SP001, Spero's newly in-licensed immunology candidate, by monetizing future milestone and royalty streams from Utebzi (tebipenem pivoxil), the oral carbapenem antibiotic that received FDA approval last month for complicated urinary tract infections. The deal extends Spero's cash runway guidance into the second half of 2029.
Under the agreement, HCRx will provide USD 105 million at closing, net of original issue discount and applicable fees, in exchange for rights to a portion of future GSK-sourced milestone and royalty payments tied to Utebzi sales. HCRx will receive quarterly principal and interest payments derived solely from GSK's payments to Spero until the loan balance is repaid. Spero retains 35% of subsequent GSK payments after full repayment, preserving meaningful long-term upside from the asset. The transaction carries no recourse to Spero beyond the assigned royalty streams and imposes no shareholder dilution. The financing was executed concurrently with Spero's exclusive license agreement with Innovent Biologics for SP001.
The primary use of proceeds is to advance SP001 into a Phase II trial targeting IgG4-related disease, with trial initiation expected in Q2 2027. SP001 is a third-generation, Fc-silent anti-CD40L monoclonal antibody in-licensed from Innovent Biologics under a deal valued at up to approximately USD 1.1 billion in milestones and royalties. Spero holds exclusive global rights to SP001 outside Greater China. The molecule has completed Phase I single- and multiple-ascending-dose studies in healthy volunteers and a Phase Ib study in Sjögren's disease patients, with data presented at EULAR 2026. The CD40L pathway is a validated upstream target in autoimmune biology, and SP001's Fc-silent design is intended to address platelet activation concerns associated with earlier anti-CD40L antibodies. Royalty monetization as a non-dilutive financing mechanism has been used by peers including Zymeworks, which raised USD 250 million from Royalty Pharma in March 2026 backed by Ziihera royalties, illustrating active investor appetite for royalty-backed structures tied to commercially partnered assets. GSK holds exclusive commercialization rights to Utebzi in all territories except certain Asian markets, where Meiji holds rights.
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