Bambusa IPO: Shares in the atopic dermatitis treatment developer are now available

Pre-market trading in shares of Bambusa Therapeutics, a developer of a new treatment for atopic dermatitis, has begun on the Freedom client trading platform. The startup was founded in 2024 by former top executives from Germany’s BioNTech and China’s Biotheus; the company acquired its technology from the latter. Later on October 30, Bambusa shares will begin trading on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol BBTX.

Biotechnology company Bambusa Therapeutics raised $168.9 million in its IPO on Nasdaq. It sold 10.55 million shares at $16 each—the midpoint of its previously announced price range. As a result, the company’s total valuation stands at $815 million, according to Bloomberg’s calculations.

The underwriters for the offering were BofA Securities, Evercore ISI, UBS Investment Bank, and Cantor. They were granted a 30-day option to purchase up to 1.58 million shares.

The company plans to use the funds raised to continue clinical trials of its two main products: BBT001 for atopic dermatitis and chronic spontaneous urticaria, as well as BBT002, which the company is studying in patients with respiratory diseases, according to the IPO prospectus the company submitted to the regulator. Both drugs are currently in early-stage clinical trials.

Bambusa Therapeutics is a very young company. It was founded in 2024 by former top executives from the Chinese company Biotheus and the German company BioNTech (which, together with Pfizer, developed the COVID-19 vaccine)—just a few months before BioNTech announced its acquisition of Biotheus. The goal of this deal was to acquire the Chinese company’s oncology portfolio, primarily its drug in development known as the “potential Keytruda killer”—the flagship drug of the American company Merck.

At the same time, Biotheus was developing a portfolio of anti-inflammatory drugs based on the same technology. Bambusa acquired the rights to two compounds from this portfolio—BBT001 and BBT002. Later, in collaboration with BioNTech Zhuhai (the name Biotheus adopted after a change in ownership), the startup identified two additional drug candidates and plans to begin clinical trials for one of them by the end of 2026, and the other in 2027.

As of June 30, 2026, the company had raised $136.1 million from investors, including the venture capital fund Athos, the hedge fund BVF Partners, and the investment platform Dawn Biopharma, which is controlled by KKR, according to the IPO filing.

Bambusa's investment appeal stems from the popular field of developing next-generation antibodies for the treatment of inflammatory diseases, a sector currently dominated by blockbuster drugs such as Dupixent from Sanofi and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, according to the International Financing Review (IFR).

The main risk for Bambusa lies in poor research results or regulatory rejection of its developments, says Freedom analyst Alem Bektemirov. The brokerage firm has set a price target of $18.1 for the startup’s shares—13% above the offering price.

IFR sees risks in the company’s financial position. Although the company states that the $71.5 million it has in its accounts will be sufficient to finance its operations for at least the next 12 months, the prospectus contains information raising doubts about the company’s ability to continue as a going concern, IFR notes. At the same time, Bambusa expects that the proceeds from the IPO, combined with its existing funds, will be sufficient to finance its operations through the end of 2028.

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Freedom Broker clients will be able to trade Bambusa shares before the main trading session opens. Trading will begin in the early pre-market session 2–3 hours before the U.S. markets open (from 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Astana time). To participate, click on theBBTX tickerat .