Kite raises $20 million in series A

Cancer immunotherapy company Kite Pharma Inc. (Los Angeles, Calif.) raised $20 million in a series A round. The company also converted $15 million in outstanding promissory notes from Kite's seed round into series A stock. New investor Alta Partners participated, along with existing investors including Arie Belldegrun, Kite founder and executive chairman; Pontifax; Commercial Street Capital; and other individual investors. Alta Partners' Farah Champsi and Pontifax's Ran Nussbaum joined Kite's board. ...