StemCells raises $20 million in private placement

StemCells Inc. (NASDAQ:STEM) raised $20 million through the sale of 11.3 million units at $1.77 in a private placement to two institutional investors. Each unit comprises a share and a 13-month warrant to purchase 0.85 shares, with each whole warrant exercisable at $2.17. Ascendiant Capital Markets was the placement agent. The company proposed the offering on Tuesday.

StemCells jumped $0.52 (33%) to $2.09 on June 19 after reporting interim data from a cohort of seven evaluable patients with dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD) treated with its human neural stem cells (HuCNS-SC) cells in a Phase I/II trial. The purified human neural stem cells led to a 65% reduction in the rate of geographic atrophy in the treated eye compared to the expected natural history of the disease in the patients. This year, StemCells plans to start a Phase II trial to treat dry AMD (see BioCentury Extra, June 19). ...