Dortmund, Germany, March 17, 2026 – iDEL Therapeutics today announced the closing
of a EUR 9 million seed financing, establishing its operations and leadership team. The
company is pioneering a pipeline of cancer therapeutics that are delivered directly into
the cytosol of tumor cells. iDEL’s new approach is compatible with both large and small
molecules and aims to unlock historically undruggable intracellular targets and broaden
therapeutic windows across cancer indications. The financing was led by BiomedVC with
participation from NRW.Venture, Gründerfonds Ruhr and the KHAN Technology Transfer
Fund II.

The proceeds will be used to advance iDEL Therapeutics’ two proprietary lead programs
towards clinical evaluation. Leveraging different modalities with the potential to address
a range of solid tumors, the pipeline candidates are based on the company’s proprietary
shuttling technology. This pan-cancer platform enables evasion of endosomal
entrapment and prevents subsequent degradation of the transported compound, a factor
that can impair drug delivery and treatment efficacy, particularly for large molecules such
as antibodies and their derivatives.

“iDEL Therapeutics’ concept to unlock new cancer treatments represents an exciting new
opportunity with the potential to significantly impact the oncology landscape,” said
Marcus Kostka, PhD, Co-Founder and CEO of iDEL Therapeutics. “Our technology’s
broad applicability to a range of drug classes harbors the potential to improve treatment
outcomes for patients living with a range of high-need cancer indications. Together with
the leadership team, I look forward to expanding our preclinical proof-of-concept data,
advancing our lead candidates toward the clinic and exploring additional possibilities for
improved cancer treatments.”

Concurrent with the financing, iDEL Therapeutics announced its leadership team which
combines decades of expertise in biopharma, drug development and company building.
“Despite continuous advancements and a deeper understanding of cancer in our
industry, current treatment options still face challenges related to on-target specificity
and achieving a durable anti-tumor effect,” said Aristotelis Nastos, PhD, Managing
Partner and Investment Director at BiomedVC. “We believe that iDEL Therapeutics’
differentiated strategy has the potential to address these limitations by improving
intracellular delivery, increasing target engagement and prolonging tumor retention. With
an exceptional leadership team and a cutting-edge technology, the company is well
positioned to advance this new therapeutic approach to deliver meaningful clinical
benefit for cancer patients, and we fully support the team on this journey.”

About iDEL Therapeutics
iDEL Therapeutics’ pioneering pipeline delivers drug payloads directly into the cytosol of
tumor cells in patients, leveraging a unique pan-cancer uptake mechanism that achieves
high intracellular drug exposure and sustained tumor retention. Our synthetic shuttle
technology platform evades endosomal trapping and is compatible with both large and
small molecules, including nanobodies against oncogenes and tumor-targeted cytotoxic
payloads. We are focused on advancing our pipeline towards the clinic and creating
scalable value through partnerships. Our mission is to transform the cancer treatment
paradigm by unlocking historically undruggable intracellular targets, broadening
therapeutic windows, and increasing treatment flexibility for expanded patient benefit
across cancer indications.

Find more information at www.idel-tx.com.

About BiomedVC
BiomedVC is a leading Swiss early-stage VC at the center of European biotech. BiomedVC
builds companies around the most intriguing innovations. We strive to enable founders
and their ideas. We work together on a basis of equality – as a team and with
entrepreneurs. We focus on scientific excellence, building strong companies to create
medical and commercial value and bring new medicines to market that improve patient’s
lives.

About NRW.Venture
NRW.Venture is the venture capital fund of NRW.BANK. In this way, the promotional bank
for North Rhine-Westphalia responds to the scarce supply of financing for young,
innovative and often technology-oriented companies, which often do not have sufficient
access to loans. Their main asset is a new market idea – which is why their chances of
success are often difficult to assess. Together with private-sector investors, NRW.Venture
invests up to 15 million euros of equity in such start-ups over several financing rounds –
typically from the second round onwards – with NRW.BANK taking a minority stake with a
term of three to seven years. But the Bank not only provides capital – an experienced team
is the key to joint success. NRW.Venture’s investment professionals have many years of
venture capital experience, often complemented by technology and start-up experience,
and use their expertise and network to ensure that start-ups have the best chances of
success.

About Gründerfonds Ruhr
Gründerfonds Ruhr is a private venture capital investor backing technology driven
startups across various industries. As a fund, we are committed to support ambitious
founders from day one in building companies that drive meaningful innovation and
change, with a particular focus on the Ruhr area. We provide capital, entrepreneurial
expertise and industry access needed for emerging startups to reach commercial
success. To complement this, we work closely with a broad network of leading
international companies and investors.

Further information on the Gründerfonds Ruhr can be found at www.gruenderfonds-
ruhr.com

About KHAN Technology Transfer Fund II (KHAN-II)
KHAN-II is an early-stage life sciences venture fund focused on first-in-class therapies for
high unmet medical needs, partnering with academic innovators across Europe.
Managed by Khanu Fondsverwaltung GmbH, a world-class drug discovery team, it
leverages unique access to Max Planck and leading European research, and utilizes the
Lead Discovery Center GmbH for effective drug development. KHAN-II is backed by the
European Investment Fund (InvestEU Equity and ERP-EIF Facility), Akros Pharma, Max
Planck Foundation, and Thyssen’sche Handelsgesellschaft.

Further information at: info@khanu.de

Contact
info@idel-tx.com
+49 231 292927-00

Media requests
Trophic Communications
Marie Weickert, PhD / Adolfo Luna
+49 151 598 624 18 / +49 151 626 743 95
iDEL@trophic.eu