EIR Biopharma is hoping to bring in $17.1 million from an IPO on the New York Stock Exchange that could fund development of its preclinical eye disease drug.
The San Francisco-headquartered company is planning to offer 3.75 million shares priced between $4 and $5, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing. Assuming the final price falls in the middle of this range, EIR expects to bring in $14.9 million in net proceeds from the IPO.
If underwriters fully take up their option to pick up an additional 562,500 shares at the same price, the IPO haul would swell to $17.1 million.
The biotech has earmarked $2 million of the proceeds to take EIR-1003, its lead drug for eye conditions like glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy and uveal melanoma, through preclinical development. Another $5 million will be set aside to bankroll phase 1/1b clinical trials, which are penciled in for 2027, EIR explained in the filing.
“The remaining proceeds, if any, [will be used] for other research and development opportunities, developing our manufacturing capacity, working capital and general corporate purposes,” the company added.
EIR-1003 targets the Ephrin receptor in order to increase regeneration of the optic nerve. EIR licensed the peptidomimetic drug from the University of Miami, and the biotech expects the phase 1 study to be conducted at the university’s Bascom Eye Institute.
EIR’s other preclinical candidate is EIR-0205, a cyclodextrin licensed from Cornell University the biotech plans to develop for dry age-related macular degeneration.
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EIR’s current workforce consists of two part-time executive officers—CEO Anthony Cataldo and Chief Financial Officer and Chief Science Officer Martin Schroeder. Cataldo previously headed up immuno-oncology biotech GT Biopharma, where Schroeder once served as CSO.
While EIR’s leaders have provided a San Francisco office for use free of charge, the company describes itself as “semi-virtual.” The current preclinical lab work for EIR-1003 and EIR-0205 is being conducted at the University of Miami and Cornell University, respectively, and the biotech has no plans to recruit any full-time employees until the IPO has been completed.
After a muted year for biotech IPOs, 2026 is already shaping up to be a healthier year for listings, with the likes of radiopharma company Aktis Oncology and immunology biotech Eikon Therapeutics both posting larger public offerings than anything seen in 2025. Biotech leaders and advisors told Fierce last week that they expect this momentum to be sustained in the coming months.
