# Centessa Pharmaceuticals

Startup profile on Capital Atlas: https://capitalatlas.ai/startups/centessa-pharmaceuticals

- Industry: Biotechnology
- Headquarters: Boston, US
- Website: www.centessa.com/
- Total disclosed funding: $250M
- Latest round: Series A (Feb 16, 2021)
- Investors on record: 14

## About

Founded in 2021, based in Massachusetts, US, Centessa Pharmaceuticals Plc operates as a biopharmaceutical company that develops medicines and clinical programs to treat various diseases. In May 2021, Centessa became a public company with a total offering of USD 20.00 per ADS, under the ticker symbol CNTA.In March 2026, Eli Lilly and Company Limited agreed to fully acquire Centessa Pharmaceuticals Plc from Boxer Capital, Samsara BioCapital, LifeSci Partners, Janus Henderson Investors, Vida Ventures, Logos Capital, Cormorant Asset Management, Wellington Management, EcoR1 Capital, Franklin Templeton, BVF Partners, Venrock, General Atlantic, and T Rowe Price for approximately USD 6.3 billion plus an additional payment of around USD 1.5 billion upon achieving milestones. In June 2026, Farallon Capital Management acquired a 4,561,093 shares in Centessa Pharmaceuticals Plc. The investor owns total of 6.1% of minority stake and 9,370,093 shares in the company. Current CEO is Saurabh Saha.

The firm applies an asset-centric R&D model at scale to advance a portfolio of highly validated programs led by industry teams. Centessa Subsidiaries are comprised of ApcinteX, Capella BioScience, Janpix, LockBody, Morphogen-IX, Orexia Therapeutics, Palladio Biosciences, PearlRiver Bio, Pega-One, and Z Factor. The current company's portfolio consists of four clinical-stage programs, including two that are in late-stage clinical development, and more than 10 additional programs spanning diseases with unmet needs across oncology, hematology, immunology, inflammation, neuroscience, and rare diseases. Each program is developed by a Centessa Subsidiary and supported by a centralized infrastructure and the management team.
As a clinical-stage biotechnology company, Centessa's revenue historically has come primarily from financing activities, public market funding, strategic partnerships, licensing opportunities, and potential milestone payments associated with its drug development programs. Prior to its acquisition by Lilly, the company had not yet commercialized a major product and therefore relied largely on investor capital and collaboration-driven funding to support research and development activities.
The company plans to invest resources in accordance with a follow-the-data strategy, that will have consolidated capabilities to allow the advancement of each Centessa Subsidiary's respective programs. Manufacturing, legislative, and organizational resources are all available to facilitate and expedite the scientific execution of programs by subsidiary teams.The June 2026, acquisition will enable the company to accelerate its growth. The March 2026 acquisition enables Eli Lilly and Company Limited to accelerate the advancement of Centessa Pharmaceuticals plc’s orexin receptor 2 agonist portfolio across a broad range of sleep-wake and neuroscience indications by combining Centessa’s capabilities with its global research, clinical, regulatory, and commercial resources.

## Funding rounds

- Series A, Feb 16, 2021, $250M — T Rowe Price, General Atlantic, Venrock, Wellington Management, BVF Partners, EcoR1 Capital, Cormorant Asset Management, Franklin Templeton, Vida Ventures, Janus Henderson Investors, LifeSci Partners, Samsara BioCapital, Logos Capital, Boxer Capital

## Investors

- T Rowe Price (https://capitalatlas.ai/funds/t-rowe-price) — Series A
- General Atlantic (https://capitalatlas.ai/funds/general-atlantic) — Series A
- Venrock (https://capitalatlas.ai/funds/venrock) — Series A
- Wellington Management (https://capitalatlas.ai/funds/wellington-management) — Series A
- BVF Partners (https://capitalatlas.ai/funds/bvf-partners) — Series A
- EcoR1 Capital (https://capitalatlas.ai/funds/ecor1-capital) — Series A
- Cormorant Asset Management (https://capitalatlas.ai/funds/cormorant-asset-management) — Series A
- Franklin Templeton (https://capitalatlas.ai/funds/franklin-templeton) — Series A
- Vida Ventures (https://capitalatlas.ai/funds/vida-ventures) — Series A
- Janus Henderson Investors — Series A
- LifeSci Partners (https://capitalatlas.ai/funds/lifesci-partners) — Series A
- Samsara BioCapital (https://capitalatlas.ai/funds/samsara-biocapital) — Series A
- Logos Capital (https://capitalatlas.ai/funds/logos-capital) — Series A
- Boxer Capital (https://capitalatlas.ai/funds/boxer-capital) — Series A