Lexeo raises $80 million to shore up gene therapy work after layoffs

US biotech Lexeo Therapeutics (Nasdaq: LXEO) has secured $80 million from a private placement, giving the company enough capital to push ahead with its cardiac gene therapy pipeline and fund operations into 2028.

The move comes just weeks after the New York-based company revealed it had cut 15% of its workforce to redirect $20 million from its earlier-stage pipeline to core cardiovascular programs. At the time, Lexeo said the cash redeployment would help accelerate development of LX2006 and LX2020, its two lead clinical candidates.

LX2006 is being developed for Friedreich's ataxia cardiomyopathy. The gene therapy uses an AAV vector to boost frataxin expression in the heart. Lexeo hopes to launch a registration trial for the therapy in early 2026, based on pooled data from two studies shared last month.