Lyell Immunopharma, Inc. (Nasdaq: LYEL), a clinical-stage cell therapy company based in South San Francisco, California, announced the closing of an additional USD 50 million tranche of its equity private placement on March 9, 2026. This second tranche brings total gross proceeds from the placement to approximately USD 100 million. The initial USD 50 million tranche closed in July 2025. Lyell Immunopharma stated the proceeds, combined with existing cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities, are expected to fund working capital and capital expenditure needs into the second quarter of 2027. The company simultaneously announced the appointment of Smital Shah as Chief Financial and Business Officer, effective March 9, 2026.
The second tranche was triggered by the achievement of a clinical milestone within Lyell's PiNACLE pivotal trial evaluating rondecabtagene autoleucel (ronde-cel). Under the terms of the securities purchase agreement from July 2025, Lyell held the right to require investors to purchase an additional USD 50 million of common stock upon reaching this milestone. Investors purchased shares at a price of USD 25.61 per share. The press release did not disclose the identities of the participating investors, nor were warrants referenced as part of the transaction structure. The investors received customary resale Form S-3 registration rights for the shares issued. Shah previously served as Chief Business and Financial Officer at ProQR Therapeutics (Nasdaq: PRQR) from 2014 to 2022 and held positions at Gilead Sciences, Leerink Partners, and J.P. Morgan.
Company Overview and Pipeline
Lyell Immunopharma is developing a pipeline of next-generation chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapies for hematologic malignancies and solid tumors. The company's lead asset is LYL314, also known as rondecabtagene autoleucel (ronde-cel), a dual-targeting CD19/CD20 CAR T-cell therapy under evaluation for patients with relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma (LBCL). In a Phase I/II trial (NCT05826535), LYL314 demonstrated an 88% overall response rate and a 72% complete response rate in CAR T-naïve patients in the third-line or later setting, with 71% of complete responses maintained for at least six months. The company has since advanced ronde-cel into a Phase III trial (NCT07188558), designated PiNACLE-H2H, which is a head-to-head comparison of ronde-cel against investigator's choice of approved CD19 CAR T-cell therapies axicabtagene ciloleucel (Yescarta) and lisocabtagene maraleucel (Breyanzi). The Phase III trial targets enrollment of 400 patients, with an estimated primary completion date in January 2032 and a primary endpoint of event-free survival.
Beyond LYL314, Lyell holds global rights (excluding Greater China) to LYL273, a CAR T-cell therapy targeting colorectal cancer, licensed from Innovative Cellular Therapeutics in November 2025 under a deal valued at up to approximately USD 860 million, including an upfront payment of approximately USD 40 million in cash plus approximately 2 million shares of Lyell stock, with up to USD 820 million in development, regulatory, and commercial milestone payments and tiered royalties up to 10%. Earlier-stage programs LYL797 (ROR1-targeting CAR T for solid tumors) and LYL845 (tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte therapy) have been terminated. Lyell acquired its LYL314 program through the all-stock acquisition of ImmPACT Bio in October 2024. The company operates the LyFE Manufacturing Center, which has commercial launch capability and capacity to manufacture more than 1,200 CAR T-cell doses at full capacity.
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