Fundraising Fox
ONL Therapeutics
Ann Arbor, US · Founded 2011 · Delaware corporation · 37 employees on LinkedIn · 10 known investors
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ONL Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing therapies to preserve sight by preventing Fas-mediated death of retinal cells, a cause of vision loss and blindness. Its lead candidate, xelafaslatide (formerly ONL1204), is a first-in-class small peptide targeting Fas-mediated signaling across multiple eye diseases.
Founders & leadership
ONL Therapeutics was founded in 2011 by David Zacks.
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David EspositoChief Executive OfficerDavid Esposito is a healthcare executive and combat veteran who has served as CEO of Armune BioScience (acquired by Exact Sciences in 2017) and as President of Phadia US/AB (acquired by Thermo Fisher Scientific in 2011). He currently leads ONL Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing retinal therapies.
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Constance ChangExecutive
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John K FreshleyExecutiveJohn K Freshley has served as CEO and later Chief Business Officer at Compendia Bioscience, a cancer genomics software company acquired by Life Technologies in 2012, and as Executive Officer and Director at ONL Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company. He is currently CEO of Curio Genomics and has founded, advised, and invested in multiple early-stage life science companies.
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Jeffrey A JamisonCo-Founder / Vice President, In Vivo Pharmacology2012–2019Jeffrey A Jamison has over two decades of experience in drug development, with expertise in ophthalmology, preclinical study design, biomarker validation, and regulatory compliance across multiple ophthalmic programs. He founded and operated a preclinical CRO, has received NIH SBIR funding, developed diagnostic devices, and co-founded several drug companies focused on ophthalmic therapeutics.
Board
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William BrinkerhoffBoard director
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Bill BurnsBoard director
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Loic CouraudBoard director
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Mark HooperBoard director
Investors · 10
ExSight Ventures✓ confirmed by ONL TherapeuticsNew York
How we know: ExSight Ventures's portfolio page · the company's own site · press coverage · open dataset · 5k.vc investor directory · Not right? Tell us
Invest Michigan✓ confirmed by ONL TherapeuticsNorthville · $100K – $250K
How we know: the company's own site · Not right? Tell us
Novartis Venture Fund✓ confirmed by ONL TherapeuticsBasel · $5M – $25M
How we know: Novartis Venture Fund's portfolio page · the company's own site · open dataset · 5k.vc investor directory · Not right? Tell us
Visionary Ventures✓ confirmed by ONL TherapeuticsNewport Beach · $5M – $15M
How we know: the company's own site · press coverage · Not right? Tell us
Bios Partners✓ confirmed by ONL TherapeuticsFort Worth
How we know: the company's own site · funding news · press coverage · Not right? Tell us
InFocus Capital Partners, LLC✓ confirmed by ONL TherapeuticsJericho
How we know: the company's own site · funding news · Not right? Tell us
Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JJDC✓ confirmed by ONL TherapeuticsNew Brunswick
How we know: the company's own site · a partner's Signal profile · funding news · press coverage · Not right? Tell us
Reported raises · per SEC filings
Form D private placements$111.5M disclosed across 10 rounds · 2014–2024
▶$60MraisedSep 2024 · 35 investors · BiotechnologyRule 506(b)
▶$60MraisedSep 2024 · 35 investors · Biotechnology
Rule 506(b)Officers, directors & promoters on the filing
- David EspositoExecutive Officer, Director
- Constance ChangExecutive Officer
- Aaron FletcherDirector
- Michal SilverbergDirector
- Bill BurnsDirector
- David ZacksExecutive Officer
- Marian NakadaDirector
- Offering amount
- $65M
- Amount sold
- $60M
- First sale
- Sep 2024
- Incorporated
- Corporation, Delaware
- Federal exemptions
- 06b
▶$10MraisedMar 2024 · 35 investors · BiotechnologyRule 506(b)
▶$10MraisedMar 2024 · 35 investors · Biotechnology
Rule 506(b)Officers, directors & promoters on the filing
- David EspositoExecutive Officer, Director
- Constance ChangExecutive Officer
- Bill BurnsDirector
- David ZacksExecutive Officer, Director
- Stella RobertsonDirector
- Mark HooperDirector
- Offering amount
- $10M
- Amount sold
- $10M
- First sale
- Feb 2024
- Incorporated
- Corporation, Delaware
- Federal exemptions
- 06b
▶$5MraisedMar 2023 · 30 investors · BiotechnologyRule 506(b)
▶$5MraisedMar 2023 · 30 investors · Biotechnology
Rule 506(b)Officers, directors & promoters on the filing
- Bill BurnsDirector
- Constance ChangExecutive Officer
- David EspositoExecutive Officer, Director
- Mark HooperDirector
- David ZacksExecutive Officer, Director
- Stella RobertsonDirector
- Offering amount
- $15M
- Amount sold
- $5M
- First sale
- Mar 2023
- Incorporated
- Corporation, Delaware
- Federal exemptions
- 06b
▶$26.8MraisedDec 2020 · 44 investors · BiotechnologyRule 506(b)
▶$26.8MraisedDec 2020 · 44 investors · Biotechnology
Rule 506(b)Officers, directors & promoters on the filing
- Bill BurnsDirector
- Stella RobertsonDirector
- David EspositoExecutive Officer, Director
- Mark HooperDirector
- David ZacksExecutive Officer, Director
- Offering amount
- $47.4M
- Amount sold
- $26.8M
- First sale
- Dec 2020
- Incorporated
- Corporation, Delaware
- Federal exemptions
- 06b
▶$2MraisedOct 2020 · 3 investors · BiotechnologyRule 506(b)
▶$2MraisedOct 2020 · 3 investors · Biotechnology
Rule 506(b)Officers, directors & promoters on the filing
- David EspositoExecutive Officer, Director
- Felicia David-VisserDirector
- Christine GibbonsDirector
- Mark HooperDirector
- David ZacksExecutive Officer, Director
- Offering amount
- $2M
- Amount sold
- $2M
- First sale
- Oct 2020
- Incorporated
- Corporation, Delaware
- Federal exemptions
- 06b
▶$3MraisedAug 2019 · 25 investors · BiotechnologyRule 506(b)
▶$3MraisedAug 2019 · 25 investors · Biotechnology
Rule 506(b)Officers, directors & promoters on the filing
- David ZacksExecutive Officer, Director
- Mark HooperDirector
- Christine GibbonsDirector
- Felicia David-VisserDirector
- David EspositoExecutive Officer, Director
- Offering amount
- $3M
- Amount sold
- $3M
- First sale
- Aug 2019
- Incorporated
- Corporation, Delaware
- Federal exemptions
- 06b
▶$639KraisedSep 2018 · 14 investors · BiotechnologyRule 506(b)
▶$639KraisedSep 2018 · 14 investors · Biotechnology
Rule 506(b)Officers, directors & promoters on the filing
- John FreshleyExecutive Officer, Director
- Felicia David-VisserDirector
- Christine GibbonsDirector
- Mark HooperDirector
- David ZacksExecutive Officer, Director
- Offering amount
- $1M
- Amount sold
- $639K
- First sale
- Sep 2018
- Incorporated
- Corporation, Delaware
- Federal exemptions
- 06b
▶$2.6MraisedMay 2017 · 19 investors · BiotechnologyRule 506(b)
▶$2.6MraisedMay 2017 · 19 investors · Biotechnology
Rule 506(b)Officers, directors & promoters on the filing
- Rafael CastillaDirector
- David ZacksExecutive Officer, Director
- John FreshleyExecutive Officer, Director
- Christine GibbonsDirector
- Mark HooperDirector
- Offering amount
- $4.3M
- Amount sold
- $2.6M
- First sale
- May 2017
- Incorporated
- Corporation, Delaware
- Federal exemptions
- 06b
Source: SEC EDGAR Form D. Amounts as filed; amended filings shown once at their latest values.
Founder mafia
2 people who came through ONL Therapeutics went on to found or lead other companies.
Related companies · 2
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BioworldBioWorld is a suite of daily news and data services covering therapeutics, medical technology, biopharma business transactions, and drug R&D, serving biopharmaceutical and medtech industry professionals. Owned by Clarivate, it publishes products including BioWorld, BioWorld Science, and BioWorld Asia with reporting from writers stationed globally.
Companies working in the same space as ONL Therapeutics.
Non-dilutive funding · 5 SBIR/STTR awards
Federal grants — no equity taken| Agency | Phase | Year | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| National Institutes of Health (NIH)National Institutes of Health | Phase IISTTR | 2020 | $1.1M |
| National Institutes of Health (NIH)National Institutes of Health | Phase ISTTR | 2018 | $300.2K |
| National Institutes of Health (NIH)National Institutes of Health | Phase II | 2017 | $1.2M |
| National Institutes of Health (NIH)National Institutes of Health | Phase II | 2014 | $1.4M |
| National Institutes of Health (NIH)National Institutes of Health | Phase I | 2012 | $421.6K |
Source: SBIR.gov award data (U.S. Small Business Administration). SBIR/STTR awards are competitive federal R&D grants and contracts — non-dilutive capital alongside any venture rounds above.
In the news
Frequently asked questions
- What does ONL Therapeutics do?
- ONL Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing therapies to preserve sight by preventing Fas-mediated death of retinal cells, a cause of vision loss and blindness. Its lead candidate, xelafaslatide (formerly ONL1204), is a first-in-class small peptide targeting Fas-mediated signaling across multiple eye diseases.
- Who founded ONL Therapeutics?
- ONL Therapeutics was founded by David Zacks in 2011.
- Who are ONL Therapeutics's investors?
- ONL Therapeutics's investors include ExSight Ventures, Invest Michigan, Novartis Venture Fund, Visionary Ventures, Bios Partners, InFocus Capital Partners, LLC, Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JJDC, Michigan Capital Network and 2 more.
- How much funding has ONL Therapeutics raised?
- ONL Therapeutics has disclosed $111.5M raised across 10 rounds.
- Where is ONL Therapeutics headquartered?
- ONL Therapeutics is headquartered in Ann Arbor, US.