Two pharma companies have made an offer for Sorrento Therapeutics that could triple the pain management and immune-oncology specialist's value but the San Diego-based group is holding firm.

Only 16 drug developers that went public in the US during the first three quarters are trading in positive territory. While the IPO queue keeps growing, ADC Therapeutics and Monopar cite "market conditions" as they postpone their offerings.

While the proposed Bristol/Celgene merger nears an April vote, Celgene continues a recent spate of deal-making, paying $25m up front to Exscientia to discover small molecule candidates for cancer and autoimmune disease.

Derived from Strategic Transactions, Informa’s premium source for tracking life sciences deal activity, the Venture Funding Deals column provides a comprehensive monthly review of emerging biopharmaceutical companies that have received venture funding. This month’s column covers deals announced August and September.