On March 21, 2024, LENZ Therapeutics, Inc., a late clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing the first aceclidine-based eye drop that has been shown to improve near vision in people with presbyopia, announced the completion of its previously announced merger with Graphite Bio, Inc. The new combined company will operate under the name LENZ Therapeutics, Inc. and will commence trading on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “LENZ” on March 22, 2024. Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati advised LENZ Therapeutics on the transaction.

Concurrent with the closing of the merger, Graphite Bio completed a private placement of $53.5 million from a syndicate of healthcare investors led by LENZ’s existing investors and including participation from new investors. Following the merger, key healthcare investors in LENZ will include Versant Ventures, RA Capital Management, Alpha Wave Global, Point72, Samsara BioCapital, Sectoral Asset Management, RTW Investments, and others. The projected cash and cash equivalents as of the close of the business combination are expected to be approximately $210 million, which LENZ believes will be sufficient funds to build infrastructure and commercialize LENZ’s selected product candidate, subject to successful completion of the Phase 3 trials, NDA submission, and subsequent FDA approval.

The Wilson Sonsini team representing LENZ Therapeutics in the transaction includes:

Corporate
Dan Koeppen
Jennifer Fang
Rob Wernli
Ben Capps
Michael Brito-Stamm
Bridget Balisy

Mergers & Acquisitions
Ethan Lutske
Erin Malone-Shkurkin
Amanda Ryan
Matt Katona

Technology Transactions
Ian Edvalson
Shefali Tandon Lumb
Taylor Arterburn
Shivang Patel
Magnus Gan
James Dunlop
Jordin Wilcher
Tony Nguyen
Aleksandar Vitomirov

Patents and Innovations
Michael Hostetler
Gregory Mitchell
Madeline Hess
Tyler Bird
Rida Atif
Cassidy Evaristo

Delaware Law
Amy Simmerman
James Griffin-Stanco
Jason Schoenberg

Employee Benefits and Compensation
Scott McCall
Michael Klippert
Toni Hodge

Employment and Trade Secrets
Rebecca Stuart
Quinn Christie

Privacy and Cybersecurity
Matthew Staples
Michael O’Brien
Diya Jajal

Real Estate
Jim McCann
Martin Sul
Matthew Parsons

Regulatory
Eva Yin

Tax
Myra Sutanto Shen
Han Shen

Litigation
Ignacio Salceda
Stephen Strain
Shannon German
Joshua Manning

For more information, please see LENZ Therapeutics’ news release.