Updated:
MacroGenics
Scott Koenig's MacroGenics designs antibody-based cancer therapies from Rockville, leveraging its DART platform in partnerships with Gilead and Janssen.
MacroGenics
Scott Koenig founded MacroGenics in 2000, anchoring the firm in Rockville, Maryland, with a dual focus on antibody-based cancer therapies. The company went public in 2013, listing on Nasdaq as MGNX, and has since operated as a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company with a pipeline built around its proprietary Dual-Affinity Re-Targeting (DART) platform and Fc engineering technology. Unlike traditional asset managers, MacroGenics generates value through discovery, development, and licensing of therapeutic candidates rather than portfolio allocation. The firm's strategy centers on developing immunotherapies for cancer and autoimmune diseases. Its pipeline includes clinical-stage candidates like vobramitamab duocarmazine, which targets solid tumors, and MGD013, a bispecific checkpoint inhibitor. The platform has attracted significant pharmaceutical partnerships, including deals with Gilead Sciences for bispecific antibodies and Janssen Biotech. MacroGenics also spun out a separate entity, Tizona Therapeutics, to advance certain immunology assets. The company's geographic footprint is concentrated in the United States, with clinical trial sites extending into Europe and other global regions through its partners. MacroGenics employs a lean operational model, driving value through strategic collaborations rather than building a large sales force. Its revenue depends on milestone payments, upfront fees, and royalties from partners. In October 2023, MacroGenics restructured its collaboration with Gilead, regaining rights to certain programs while Gilead took full ownership of others (per Fierce Biotech, October 2023). The firm has previously partnered with major players including Servier and Incyte. MacroGenics stands apart structurally because it marries a public-company operating model with a science-first, platform-licensing ethos more typical of a private venture than a listed biotech. The firm's succession and governance are concentrated around Koenig's long tenure, but the pipeline's value depends on big pharma partners converting candidate milestones into regulatory approvals and eventual commercialization — a structure that makes it a bet on translational oncology science more than a conventional therapeutics company.
General information
Firm type
Asset Manager
Year founded
2000
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Rockville
Corporate office
Rockville, MD, United States
Principals
Scott Koenig
President and CEO
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
What is the DART platform that MacroGenics centers its strategy around?
DART stands for Dual-Affinity Re-Targeting. It is MacroGenics' proprietary protein engineering platform designed to create bispecific antibody molecules that bind to two different targets simultaneously. The platform is used to redirect immune cells to kill cancer cells or to block multiple disease pathways at once, forming the technical backbone for its pipeline and partnerships with firms like Gilead and Janssen.
How does MacroGenics generate revenue?
As a clinical-stage biotechnology company, MacroGenics generates revenue primarily through upfront payments, milestone payments, and royalties from pharmaceutical partners who license its pipeline candidates or platform technologies. It does not have directly marketed products, so its income is tied to the progress and success of partnered programs — a structure that can produce lumpy financial results year to year.
Who runs investment decisions at MacroGenics?
MacroGenics is not an investment firm — it is a publicly traded biotechnology company. Capital allocation decisions, including how to fund its clinical programs and which partnerships to pursue, rest with CEO and founder Scott Koenig and the board of directors. The firm's 'investment' decisions are scientific portfolio priorities, not fund deployment.
What is the firm's relationship with Tizona Therapeutics?
Tizona Therapeutics was spun out of MacroGenics to develop certain immunology and cancer immunotherapy assets independently. The separation allowed Tizona to pursue its own financing, including a deal with AbbVie, while MacroGenics retained a focus on its core DART and Fc-engineering platforms.
What is the status of MacroGenics' most advanced clinical program?
MacroGenics has several clinical-stage programs. Vobramitamab duocarmazine, an antibody-drug conjugate targeting solid tumors, has been in Phase 2/3 studies, and the bispecific checkpoint inhibitor MGD013 has been evaluated in combination trials. Program statuses evolve with trial readouts and regulatory interactions, so current timetables should be verified through the firm's public disclosures or clinical registries.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
Need institutional-grade insight on family offices?
Altss delivers:
Prefer a guided tour?
We’ll walk you through: