Platinum Program FAQs
2024
General Questions
July 15, 2024
We are an early-stage biotech fund with a strong preference for novel therapeutics that opportunistically invests in adjacencies including medtech and diagnostics. We are disease- and modality-agnostic.
We aim to make up to 6 investments in 2024.
Nope! We are investing in the best opportunities we find.
Eligibility Questions
Yes! Our investment model prioritizes our ability to get to know companies while they are in our affiliated labs as well as providing our entrepreneurs full access to the vibrant ecosystems within them, including other entrepreneurs and pharma partners. Entirely virtual companies are not eligible for a Platinum Ticket.
Early-stage companies and their teams can take many forms. We are looking for a team with at least 1 full-time dedicated person who will be advancing the science in our affiliated labs and responsible for developing the fundraising strategy and business model. In some situations, the Platinum Ticket award has served as the catalyst for converting someone responsible for these things to full-time. In other situations, there are several people already a part of the company who divide these responsibilities among themselves. We are happy to discuss this point further, so don’t hesitate to reach out!
Many of the Platinum Program companies are academic spin-outs. Academic spin-outs should understand the licensing requirements for any relevant IP. If a license from a university is required, there should be active discussions with the university about this. In some situations, our Platinum Ticket investments are in active negotiations for an Option or License at the time of investment, and in others, the Option and/or License has already been executed.
Award Questions
All applications will be reviewed by members of the Mission BioCapital investment team. A subset will advance as finalists that will have the opportunity to pitch virtually to Mission BioCapital, Lilly, Ono, and Alloy Therapeutics. Up to 6 investments will be selected from the finalists. All information in this process should be nonconfidential in nature.
Applicants that will move on as a finalist will receive information about the process in August 2024. All final decisions will be communicated by the end of September 2024.
The seed capital is provided via an uncapped SAFE (simple agreement for future equity). As with all investments, the terms can be, and are, individually negotiated.
For companies eligible for discovery services from Alloy Therapeutics, an equity for services agreement will be negotiated directly with Alloy Therapeutics and will be awarded in addition to the seed capital.
We aim to get the Platinum Ticket winners into the labs by the end of the first quarter of 2025. We recognize that some of the Platinum Ticket winners may not have incorporated yet and/or are actively spinning out of academic institutions. For these circumstances, we can be flexible according to each winner’s needs and support the launch of the company. Mission BioCapital will discuss this process and timeline with each winner.
Mission BioCapital Platinum Program Holding LLC is making the Platinum Ticket investment. When your company successfully raises an equity round, the SAFE investment will convert to equity and the Mission BioCapital Platinum Program Holding LLC will be the entity on the capitalization table. Any equity for services provided by Alloy Therapeutics will be treated separately.
- Up to $500,000 of seed capital provided as a SAFE investment
- Guaranteed lab space in one of Mission BioCapital’s affiliated labs located in 13 cities in the U.S. and Europe
- Drug discovery services from Alloy Therapeutics to enable companies with a derisked path to lead candidate—services include fully human monoclonal and bispecific antibody discovery, ML-driven antibody optimization and humanization, high-throughput antibody production and screening, and more.
- Mentorship from experts at Mission BioCapital, Lilly, Ono, Alloy Therapeutics, and other companies across Mission BioCapital’s corporate network
The Platinum Ticket guarantees a lab bench in our affiliated incubators, but rent is not included. Rent is negotiated through a lease with the incubator selected by the winner. Paying rent from the seed capital is an acceptable use of funds.
A typical lease is approximately 1 year and is individually negotiated with the incubator that the Platinum Ticket investment chooses.
