The Perimeter

Pre-IPO Desk · Weekly recap

One pricing, a 44% debut, and a pipeline that finally looks balanced

Week of July 20–24, 2026 · Published Monday, July 27

The week in one line

One IPO priced, and it doubled as a test case — a small, early-stage gene-editing company opened 67% above its offer price, while the pipeline filled with names an order of magnitude larger.

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The deal that priced

Scribe Therapeutics (Nasdaq: SCTX) was the week's sole IPO, joined by four SPAC listings.

Scribe upsized to 8.58 million shares from the 7.15 million initially marketed, and priced at $15 — the top of a $13–$15 range — for gross proceeds of $128.7 million. Underwriters hold an option for approximately 1.3 million additional shares.

Shares opened Friday at $25 and closed at $21.65, up 44% from the offer price, valuing the company near $381 million at the close. Renaissance Capital put the pricing market cap at $273 million.

The Alameda, California company was co-founded by Nobel laureate Jennifer Doudna and is developing in vivo gene-editing therapies for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. It is the first gene-editing developer to price an IPO in more than two years, and the fourteenth biotech to price in 2026.

Two details in the structure are worth noting. Existing investor Eli Lilly indicated intent to purchase additional shares, targeting up to an 11% stake post-offering and after a related private placement. Sanofi affiliates committed roughly $7.5 million at the IPO price through that placement. Leerink Partners, Goldman Sachs, Guggenheim Securities and Wells Fargo led the offering.

Scribe is not profitable. For the quarter ended March 31, it reported a net loss of $17.4 million on collaboration revenue of $2.2 million, against a $3.5 million loss on $17.1 million of revenue in the prior-year quarter. First clinical data is expected in the first half of 2027.

The comparison that matters: biotechs pricing in 2026 have raised a median of more than $300 million. Scribe raised $129 million. An HSBC Innovation Banking report noted that this year's class averaged roughly five years between first venture funding and listing, with all but one holding assets in mid- or late-stage testing. Scribe is earlier than that cohort — which explains both the smaller raise and the sharper first-day move.

The pipeline that filled

Jersey Mike's (NYSE: JMKE) — The Blackstone-backed sandwich chain is offering approximately 43.5 million shares at $21–$25. At the top of the range, the deal raises about $1.09 billion at a roughly $7.94 billion valuation. Roughly 13.8 million shares are newly issued; existing holders are selling approximately 29.7 million. The company operates more than 3,300 locations in the U.S. and Canada. Blackstone affiliates are expected to retain majority voting control.

Reformation (NYSE: REF) — The Permira-backed womenswear retailer is offering approximately 14.1 million shares at $15–$17, seeking up to $239.1 million at a valuation of up to $1 billion. About 9.5 million shares are newly issued and 4.6 million are secondary; part of the primary proceeds is earmarked to repay term loans.

Lyntris (NYSE: LYNX) — The Trive Capital-backed defense-technology firm filed for a U.S. IPO. Revenue rose to $241 million in the six months ended June 30 from $179.1 million a year earlier, against a $13 million net loss. Share count and terms are undisclosed. Evercore ISI, Citigroup and Guggenheim Securities are among the underwriters.

AlphaSense — The AI-powered financial and enterprise research platform has reportedly begun preliminary listing preparations. Annual recurring revenue has reportedly passed $700 million after growing about 40% year over year. No venue, timetable, size or valuation has been disclosed.

Outside the U.S.

Amapá Minerals priced approximately 127.3 million shares at C$1.10 for C$140 million gross, with TSX conditional approval. Trading was expected to begin on an if-as-and-when-issued basis today under ticker AMAP, with closing expected July 30. The over-allotment covers roughly 19.1 million additional shares. The principal asset is a past-producing open-pit gold operation in northern Brazil.

Moonshot AI is restructuring its offshore corporate framework ahead of a possible Hong Kong listing, having engaged Goldman Sachs and China International Capital Corp. The company recently raised more than $2 billion at a valuation near $30 billion, and temporarily paused new subscriptions to its Kimi K3 model on demand.

AgiBot, a Chinese humanoid-robot maker, formally began its Hong Kong IPO process. No size, valuation or timetable disclosed.

TAWAL, the PIF-backed Saudi tower operator, is reportedly negotiating to acquire more than 10,000 tower sites from Mobily, with IPO preparation expected to follow completion and a possible listing in 2027 or 2028.

Pepkor will combine its Flash fintech unit with merchant-payments platform Shop2Shop, retaining 57.1% and implying roughly $1.3 billion in equity value for the combined business, with a separate listing intended over the medium term.

The week ahead

  • Two sizable IPOs and one direct listing are scheduled, with smaller deals likely to join the calendar.
  • Street research is expected on three companies.
  • Five lock-up periods expire.
  • The FOMC meets Tuesday and Wednesday. Rate expectations set the discount rate on every pre-revenue story in the pipeline.

Key takeaways

  1. A 44% first-day gain on a $129 million deal is a liquidity signal, not a valuation signal. The float was small and the raise was well below the 2026 biotech median.
  2. Strategic participation from Lilly and Sanofi did more to de-risk Scribe's book than the price range did.
  3. The pipeline is barbelling — one $8 billion consumer name, one $1 billion retailer, one defense-tech filer, and a set of Asia-Pacific and MENA candidates. That is a healthier mix than a single-sector window.
  4. Blackstone retaining majority voting control at Jersey Mike's is a governance term worth reading before the marketing does.

Sources: Renaissance Capital; IPOX; Reuters; Bloomberg; BioPharma Dive; Fierce Biotech; Endpoints News; IPOScoop; The Information; Newswire.ca; Semafor.

The Perimeter — Pre-IPO Desk is published weekly at PerimeterDesk.com.

This newsletter is published for informational purposes only. It is not investment advice and does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any security. No compensation was received from any company mentioned. Pre-IPO and newly listed securities carry elevated risk, including limited operating history and restricted liquidity. Consult a licensed financial professional before making investment decisions.