August 2026
Sole Financial Adviser and Sole Placement Agent
€30m (Deal value) and €40m (PIPE)
Acquisition of Etherna and PIPE
Valerio Therapeutics
Van Lanschot Kempen Deal Alert | Sole Financial Adviser to Valerio Therapeutics on the acquisition of Etherna Immunotherapies and Sole Placement Agent in its €40m private placement
Transaction highlights
- Valerio Therapeutics (Euronext: ALVIO) announced signing of the definitive agreement for the acquisition of Etherna Immunotherapies and completed a €40 million private placement, to fund the acquisition and advance the combined company’s targeted RNA medicines pipeline
- The combination creates a leading targeted nucleic acid therapeutics platform, integrating nucleic acid chemistry, LNP delivery and targeted moiety engineering within a fully integrated biotech with in-house manufacturing capabilities. This positions Valerio to accelerate the development of next-generation RNA medicines targeting tissues beyond the liver
- The €30 million enterprise value (cash and shares) includes certain Etherna shareholders electing to convert part of their cash consideration into shares of the combined company, demonstrating strong support for the proposed combination
- Following the announcement of the proposed acquisition on July 1st, Valerio’s share price increased >265% (+€287 million market cap) showing strong conviction in the value of the combined company and supporting a €40 million financing backed by existing and new global investors, including Invus
- Van Lanschot Kempen acted as Sole Financial Adviser and Sole Placement Agent, leveraging its deep life sciences expertise, integrated ECM and M&A advisory capabilities and ability to engage a wide range of high-quality global healthcare investors
- This transaction further reinforces Van Lanschot Kempen's leading position in the French biotech ecosystem. Since 2025, the firm has supported French healthcare clients in raising more than €2 billion across nine financing transactions, including equity offerings, royalty financing and venture debt. Measured by both deal count and capital raised, Van Lanschot Kempen has been the most active adviser to French healthcare companies over that period
“The Valerio team extends gratitude to the Van Lanschot Kempen team: we are very appreciative of Van Lanschot Kempen's support during Etherna's acquisition by Valerio. Their professionalism, extensive market knowledge, and experienced M&A and capital markets team played a crucial role in guiding us through all phases of the deal. I especially want to thank them for their strategic insights and commitment, which consistently boosted our confidence at every step” – Gilles Besin, Chief Executive Officer, Valerio Therapeutics
Company description
Valerio Therapeutics (Euronext: ALVIO) is a biotechnology company pioneering next-generation precision-guided RNA therapeutics. Valerio Therapeutics is headquartered in Villejuif, France, and is listed on the Euronext Paris Growth.
Background Van Lanschot Kempen Life Sciences & Healthcare
In the last twelve months, Van Lanschot Kempen has successfully completed a large number of transactions in its Life Sciences & Healthcare franchise. Recent transactions include:
- Sole Financial Adviser to Basic Pharma and its shareholders in its sale to SHS Capital
- Lead Manager in the oversubscribed and upsized US Offering of USD 920 million by Abivax
- Joint Bookrunner in the up to € 84 million Capital Increase by Valneva
- Joint Bookrunner in the SEK 350 million Capital Increase by Egetis Therapeutics
- Joint Book-Running Manager in the USD 200 million IPO by Agomab Therapeutics
- Sole Global Coordinator and Joint Bookrunner in the €105 million Capital Increase by Transgene
- Co-manager in the USD 110 million financing by Oculis
- Co-Lead Manager in the USD 149 million Public Offering by enGene
- Joint Bookrunner in the SEK 672 million Capital Increase by Hansa BioPharma
- Joint Bookrunner in the USD 345 million Capital Increase by uniQure
- Joint Bookrunner in the SEK 720 million sale of existing shares by BioArctic shareholders
- Co-Manager in the USD 748 million Capital Increase by Abivax
- Joint Bookrunner in the USD 201 million Capital Increase by Pharvaris
- Financial Adviser in the €37.5 million Venture Debt financing by MaaT Pharma
- Lead Manager in the USD 345 million Capital Increase by Merus
- Strategic Adviser to Genewity, Byondis and Iteos Therapeutics