BRIEF — IPO to offer acid test of BioNTech's early valuations

Few biotechs have emerged in recent years with the hype that German company BioNTech has attracted.

BioNTech, which has big ambitions in cancer immunotherapy and its mRNA-based medicines, in particular, raised $270 million in Series A financing in January 2018 that took its total fundraising to around $950 million. At that time, the firm was valued at $2.3 billion.

Now the company’s true worth will be put to the test with news reported by Reuters that BioNTech is hiring banks to prepare for an IPO worth up to $800 million. The transaction could value BioNTech at roughly $4 billion, sources told the news source.