Xencor Signs Four Commercial License Agreements with Selexis SA to Advance its Pipeline of XmAb Bispecific Antibody Drug Candidates

Expanded Partnership Leverages Selexis’ Expertise in Recombinant Therapeutic Development Solutions

GENEVA—(BUSINESS WIRE)—Selexis SA, a pioneering life sciences company and a global leader in mammalian cell line generation technology, today announced that it has signed four commercial license agreements (CLAs) with Xencor, Inc.(NASDAQ: XNCR), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing engineered antibodies for the treatment of autoimmune diseases, asthma and allergic diseases and cancer. The CLAs extend the companies’ previous agreementthrough which Selexis is providing Xencor with access to its SUREtechnology Platform™, as well as cell line development-related services that include personnel, laboratory equipment and laboratory space.

“The execution of these four CLAs represents a very important milestone in the continuum of the strategic agreement we signed with Xencor in 2016 in that it provides a means for Selexis to continue to help Xencor as Xencor advances its clinical candidates towards commercialization,” said Yemi Onakunle, PhD, MBA, Selexis vice president, licensing and business development. “This deepening relationship is a testament to the ability of our robust and predictable cell line platform to rapidly and reliably establish production-ready cell lines to advance Xencor’s pipeline of bispecific antibodies. We are excited by the opportunity to continue to grow with their business and witness the power of our synergistic technologies.”

The strategic business relationship between Selexis and Xencor began with a service agreement in 2011. In 2016, the two entered a new agreement through which Selexis scientists are collaborating with Xencor scientists and project leaders on selected multi-specific antibody gene expression and cell line development programs.

“Speed, reliability and flexibility are critical factors that we consider when seeking a partner to help us advance our programs,” said Edgardo Baracchini, PhD, MBA, chief business officer, Xencor. “Our relationship with Selexis has been very successful to date, so the decision to continue our work with the team was simple. Overall, the use of Selexis’ technologies and services significantly reduces the time, effort, and costs associated with developing high-performance cell lines. Their technology allows us to focus on leveraging the ‘plug-and-play’ nature of our bispecific antibody platform to deliver new treatment options to patients facing life-threatening diseases.”

About Xencor, Inc.
Xencor is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing engineered monoclonal antibodies for the treatment of autoimmune diseases, asthma and allergic diseases and cancer. Currently, 12 candidates engineered with Xencor's XmAb® technology are in clinical development internally and with partners. Xencor's internal programs include: XmAb®5871 in Phase 2 development for the treatment of IgG4-Related Disease, and also for the treatment of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus; XmAb®7195 in Phase 1 development for the treatment of asthma and allergic diseases; XmAb®14045 in Phase 1 development for acute myeloid leukemia; XmAb®13676 in Phase 1 development for B-cell malignancies; XmAb®18087 in Phase 1 development for the treatment of neuroendocrine tumors; and XmAb®20717, XmAb®22841 and XmAb®23104 in pre-clinical development for the treatment of multiple cancers. Xencor's XmAb antibody engineering technology enables small changes to the structure of monoclonal antibodies resulting in new mechanisms of therapeutic action. Xencor partners include Novartis, Amgen, MorphoSys, Merck, CSL/Janssen, Alexion and Boehringer Ingelheim. For more information, please visit www.xencor.com.