Immuno-oncology biotech Salspera files for a US IPO
IPO Overview
Salspera, a clinical-stage cancer biotech developing live biopharmaceuticals to stimulate an immune response, filed on Monday with the SEC for an initial public offering. The company filed with an $85 million placeholder for the deal size; however, we estimate it may raise up to $50 million.
Salspera aims to develop a new class of immunotherapeutics for the treatment of solid tumors, which it refers to as “live biopharmaceuticals,” or genetically modified biological agents that have the capability of expressing select anti-tumoral agents within the tumor’s microenvironment. Lead program Saltikva is an attenuated strain of Salmonella Typhimurium that is non-toxic and orally administered, engineered to express the human gene interleukin-2, or Salmonella-IL2, which may increase populations of NK and CD8+ cytotoxic T cells in tumor microenvironments and in the peripheral blood. The company is initially targeting pancreatic cancer, having conducted a Phase 2 trial for patients with Stage IV metastatic pancreatic cancer.
The Cambridge, MA-based company was founded in 2017 and plans to list on the Nasdaq under the symbol TKVA. Salspera filed confidentially on September 12, 2025. Kingswood Capital Markets is the sole bookrunner on the deal. No pricing terms were disclosed.
About the Company
Our company is focused on the development and commercialization of a new class of immunotherapeutics for the treatment of solid tumors. This new class of drugs, sometimes referred to as “live biopharmaceuticals” are genetically modified biological agents which have the capability of expressing select anti-tumoral agents within the tumor’s microenvironment. Our lead program, Saltikva, is an attenuated strain of Salmonella Typhimurium that is non-toxic and orally administered. This strain of Salmonella Typhimurium is engineered to express the human gene interleukin-2, or Salmonella-IL2. The natural activity of IL-2 is to increase populations of NK and CD8+ cytotoxic T cells in tumor microenvironments as well as in the peripheral blood. Both of these cell types have the unique property of indiscriminately killing cancer cells. Saltikva is being developed for the treatment of multiple oncology indications, including pancreatic cancer and osteosarcoma. We conducted a Phase 2 clinical trial in humans for Saltikva for Stage IV metastatic pancreatic cancer, where we observed lower tumor burden and increase Progression Free Survival （“PFS”） and Overall Survival （“OS”） in patients when administered in conjunction with modified chemotherapy, FOLFIRINOX. Our Company is entering into pivotal Phase 3 clinical trials for our Saltikva product in the treatment of Stage IV metastatic pancreatic cancer patients.