HMNC Brain Health secures USD 50 million to advance dual depression programs toward Phase III

Germany-based HMNC Brain Health (HMNC Holding GmbH) has announced a USD 50 million first closing of its Series B financing round, paired with a strategic licensing agreement granting MEDICE – The Health Family exclusive European commercialization rights for its oral ketamine candidate Ketabon (KET01). The dual transaction positions the clinical-stage neuroscience company to advance both of its lead depression programs toward Phase III readiness.

MEDICE, a family-run pharmaceutical company with an established commercial presence in mental health and a market-leading position in ADHD across several European countries, led the round as the main investor. Existing investor The Maschmeyer Group also participated. Financial terms of the licensing agreement include tiered double-digit royalties on net sales and success-based commercial milestone payments, though specific figures were not disclosed. The company said proceeds will fund late-stage clinical development activities for both Ketabon (KET01) and nelivabon (BH-200), including Phase III readiness work for each program. No prior funding round details were disclosed in the announcement, and the total target size of the Series B has not been specified.

Ketabon is an oral prolonged-release ketamine formulation developed as a scalable alternative to existing intravenous and intranasal ketamine-based therapies for treatment-resistant depression (TRD). The compound is being developed through a joint venture between HMNC and Develco Pharma. Ketabon is an oral prolonged-release ketamine formulation intended as an at-home alternative to Johnson & Johnson's Spravato (esketamine), which requires supervised administration. The program has reported Phase II antidepressant activity and is being advanced toward late-stage development.

Nelivabon (BH-200) is a first-in-class oral vasopressin V1b receptor antagonist being developed as a biomarker-guided precision therapy for biologically defined depressive disorders. The compound targets hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis dysfunction, a stress-response pathway implicated in a subset of patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). HMNC is co-developing a proprietary genetic companion diagnostic designed to identify patients with stress-axis biology most likely to respond to the drug. Earlier this year, the company presented positive Phase IIb data from the OLIVE trial at the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology Annual Meeting, with larger effects observed in the genetically defined responder subgroup targeted by the companion diagnostic strategy.

The treatment-resistant depression space has grown more competitive following the 2019 US FDA approval of esketamine (Spravato) by Johnson & Johnson. KET01's differentiation rests on its oral, at-home format, which contrasts with the supervised clinic-based administration required for Spravato. In the precision psychiatry space, the vasopressin V1b receptor remains a relatively unexplored target; no approved therapies currently act through this mechanism in depression, giving nelivabon first-in-class potential in a biomarker-defined patient population.

The licensing agreement gives HMNC access to an established European mental health commercialization platform while preserving economics through milestone payments and royalties. MEDICE operates across multiple European countries with a particular focus on neuropsychiatry, and the company's managing partner, Dr. med. Katja Pütter-Ammer, cited the biomarker-guided approach behind nelivabon as indicative of where the broader field is heading. For HMNC, the partnership reduces the capital and operational burden of building a European commercial organization independently, while providing milestone-linked economics tied to KET01's development and sales trajectory.

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