Key Investor Signals
Repeat founders behind €125M+ CellPoint exit
Maarten Zandvliet and Tol Trimborn co-founded CellPoint, acquired by Galapagos for €125M upfront plus up to €100M in milestone payments, demonstrating prior CAR-T company-building and exit execution.
CellPoint CAR-T entered two Phase 1/2a studies
The founders' CellPoint platform entered two Phase 1/2a studies in relapsed/refractory lymphoma and CLL, demonstrating experience taking CAR-T programs into clinical development.
RA and MS disclosed as autoimmune CAR-T programs
Circle Bio's current website names rheumatoid arthritis and multiple sclerosis as CAR-T programs and describes an autologous platform using two validated targets and mild conditioning.
Team
Maarten Zandvliet
Co-founder
- Co-founded CellPoint and served as CDO; Galapagos acquired it for €125M upfront plus up to €100M in milestone payments.
- Helped take CellPoint's decentralised CAR-T platform into two Phase 1/2a studies in lymphoma and CLL.
- Previously worked at T-Knife and Gadeta, adding direct experience across engineered T-cell therapies for cancer.
Tol Trimborn
Co-founder
- Co-founded and led CellPoint as CEO through its 2022 acquisition by Galapagos for €125M upfront plus up to €100M in milestone payments.
- Led CellPoint's decentralised CAR-T platform into two Phase 1/2a studies in lymphoma and CLL.
- Former COO of Gadeta during its strategic collaboration with Kite/Gilead on gamma-delta T-cell receptor therapies for cancer.
Product
Circle Bio is developing autologous CAR-T therapies for rheumatoid arthritis and multiple sclerosis. Its platform combines two validated targets with mild conditioning, lean automated processing and a digitally driven workflow designed to simplify treatment for patients and clinicians.
Two validated autoimmune targets
The company says its platform uses two validated targets to pursue deeper remissions, while adding novel targets intended to extend the approach into major autoimmune indications.
Autologous CAR-T with mild conditioning
Circle Bio uses a patient's own T cells and pairs them with mild conditioning, aiming to preserve the immune-reset potential of CAR-T while reducing treatment intensity.
Lean, automated treatment workflow
The platform is built around lean, automated processing and a digitally driven workflow. Circle Bio also describes the procedure as rapid and non-invasive for patients and clinicians.
Market Overview
Rheumatoid arthritis affects 18 million people worldwide, while multiple sclerosis affects about 2.8 million. Both are chronic immune-mediated diseases that can cause lasting disability, while current treatments generally manage disease activity rather than reliably delivering durable, treatment-free remission.
CAR-T is moving from cancer into autoimmune disease because deep depletion of disease-driving B cells may allow the immune system to rebuild without the same autoreactive population. Early human studies have produced drug-free remissions, but safety, conditioning intensity and treatment logistics remain important hurdles.
WHO estimate of people living with rheumatoid arthritis worldwide in 2019.
WHO estimate of people living with multiple sclerosis worldwide.
Patients in a 2024 NEJM case series treated once with CD19 CAR-T across three severe autoimmune diseases.
All 15 patients in the NEJM case series discontinued immunosuppressive therapy during follow-up.
Comparable Outcomes
Kyverna Therapeutics
Kyverna develops cell therapies for autoimmune diseases, with its lead autologous CD19 CAR-T candidate advancing across rheumatology and neurology. Kyverna completed its Nasdaq IPO in February 2024 at $22 a share, raising $366.9M in gross proceeds.
Cabaletta Bio
Cabaletta Bio develops engineered T-cell therapies for B-cell-mediated autoimmune disease, led by an autologous CD19 CAR-T program spanning several indications. The company completed its Nasdaq IPO in October 2019 at $11 a share, raising about $66.2M in net proceeds.
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Sources
This profile was built from public company materials, ecosystem sources, market references, and professional profiles.