C4X Discovery Holdings PLC provided a comprehensive business update alongside full-year figures that revealed the value of its drug development partnerships now stands at US$1.2bn.
Last month it unveiled a licensing agreement with AstraZeneca for its NRF2 activator programme - its third such tie-up with a major drug developer.
The AZ deal is worth up to US$402mln and includes pre-clinical milestone payments of up to US$16mln, with US$2mln upfront.
It also includes potential development, regulatory, and commercialisation milestones, as well as the potential for tiered single-digit royalties.
In addition, C4X Discovery has reported significant progress in its MALT-1 inhibitor program for haematological and solid tumours, with compounds that match the leading clinical candidate in terms of in vitro and in vivo profile.
The company has also transitioned two chemical series into lead optimization.
C4X said its partner, the FTSE 250 drug group Indivior, was making progress with C4X_3256 for the treatment of addiction, with the commencement of a multiple ascending dose study in the third quarter.
The company has also achieved its first milestone payment of £2.6mln (€3mln) from French giant Sanofi under a licensing agreement for its IL-17A inhibitor program.
Turning to the financials, the group exited the year ended July 31 with £5.1mln in the bank. This was supplemented by £5.7mln of proceeds from a share placing, a £2.6mln milestone payment from Sanofi and £2.1mln in research and development tax credits.
As would be expected of a company spending heavily on R&D, C4X was loss-making – to the tune of £8.2mln for the 12 months.
“C4XD is in its strongest position ever, with supportive investors and a reputation for unique expertise in Drug Discovery, attracting world-class partners in the pharmaceutical industry," said chief executive Clive Dix.