Immuno-oncology startup launches with $150 million, ex-Surface, Bluebird exec as CEO

Robert Ross had thought he would take more time off after his previous company, Surface Oncology, was acquired in September. 

The immuno-oncology firm had just managed to weather the stormy public markets, which had battered its valuation. By the time it was acquired, Surface’s stock was trading at around $1 per share. But within a few months, Ross, an oncologist who previously worked at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute before working at cancer startups like Surface and Bluebird Bio, heard about a startup that grabbed his attention. It didn’t take long for him to get excited about the venture: Clasp Therapeutics. 

Clasp, which has dual headquarters in Cambridge, Mass., and Rockville, Md., is working on a new type of T-cell engager developed by Johns Hopkins researchers Bert Vogelstein and Drew Pardoll. The biotech has raised $150 million, it announced Wednesday, led by Catalio Capital Management, Third Rock Ventures, and Novo Holdings. Critically, that funding will be enough to bring the company into clinical trials and gather early proof-of-concept clinical data. 

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