Biotechnology company Northwest Biotherapeutics (NW Bio) (OTCQB: NWBO) revealed on Monday that it has completed a USD15 million financing, bring the company's cash reserves to above USD20m.

This financing is in the form of a 22-month loan which requires no payments for eight months and then provides for a subsequent 14-month amortization period. The loan has a provision for prepayment, an annualized interest rate of 8% and OID of 10%.

NW Bio said it plans to use the funding to help accelerate its activities related to its brain cancer programme.

Following an announcement of the top line data (TLD) from the company's Phase III clinical trial of DCVax-L for Glioblastoma brain cancer, the lender will have a then-springing right to exchange the outstanding balance of the loan for common shares priced at the price of the first private placement transaction following TLD less a 12% discount, and to purchase another 50% of that number of shares at the same price. This then-springing right expires 14 days after that post-TLD private placement.

The company added that it is focused on developing personalised immunotherapy products designed to treat cancers more effectively than current treatments, without toxicities of the kind associated with chemotherapies and on a cost-effective basis, in both North America and Europe. It has a broad platform technology for DCVax dendritic cell-based vaccines and its lead programme is a 331-patient Phase III trial of DCVax-L for newly diagnosed Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), the most aggressive and lethal form of brain cancer. This Phase III trial has reached data lock and the company said it is actively continuing to move toward announcement of top line data.

In addition, the company has developed DCVax-Direct for inoperable solid tumor cancers. It has completed a 40-patient Phase I trial and plans to pursue Phase II trials, resources permitting. Previously, the company conducted a Phase I/II trial with DCVax-L for advanced ovarian cancer together with the University of Pennsylvania.