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Syndax Pharmaceuticals
Syndax Pharmaceuticals, led by CEO Briggs Morrison, is a Waltham-based biotech advancing menin-inhibitor oncology drugs toward FDA approval.
Syndax Pharmaceuticals
Syndax Pharmaceuticals incorporated in Delaware in 2005 and established its operational base in Waltham, Massachusetts. The company was co-founded by a syndicate of venture investors including MPM Capital and Avalon Ventures to pursue a hub-and-spoke model of drug development. Morrison, who previously oversaw global medicines development at AstraZeneca, joined in 2022 alongside President Michael Metzger, a veteran of Mersana Therapeutics and the investment banking group at Morgan Stanley. The company's clinical pipeline concentrates on small-molecule and antibody-based drugs for hematologic malignancies and solid tumors. Its two lead assets illustrate the strategy: revumenib, a menin inhibitor licensed from the University of Michigan, targets KMT2A-rearranged and NPM1-mutant acute leukemias; axatilimab, an anti-CSF-1R antibody acquired from UCB, addresses chronic graft-versus-host disease. Syndax runs registrational trials in the United States and partners with groups like the Australasian Leukaemia and Lymphoma Group for global enrollment. PDUFA dates for both drugs stand in 2023 and 2024, making this a decisive regulatory period. As a public company since its 2016 reverse merger with a development-stage entity, Syndax held roughly $580M in cash and equivalents at the end of 2023. The balance sheet has been funded through equity offerings and partnerships, including a global license agreement with Incyte for axatilimab. The firm operates from its single office in Waltham with a lean team that contracts extensively with clinical research organizations. There are no adjacent philanthropic or multi-family-office vehicles. In September 2024, the company reported that the FDA had accepted its New Drug Application for revumenib with priority review, putting the therapy on track for a potential first approval. Syndax is structurally distinct from most biotech peers in that its pipeline is almost entirely externally sourced and advanced through partnerships rather than internal academic discovery. This makes the firm a translational layer: it bridges the gap between university labs and full pharma commercialization by owning the crucial Phase 2-to-registration development window. The dual-asset portfolio concentrates the firm's risk on binary regulatory outcomes in the near term, a posture that makes it a bet on FDA execution rather than on a broad discovery engine.
General information
Firm type
Asset Manager
Year founded
2005
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Waltham
Corporate office
Waltham, MA, United States
Principals
Briggs W. Morrison
Chief Executive Officer
Michael A. Metzger
President & Chief Operating Officer
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who makes the final investment decisions on which drug programs Syndax advances?
Briggs Morrison, as CEO and a former head of global medicines development at AstraZeneca, leads pipeline prioritization alongside the board and scientific leadership. Michael Metzger, the president and COO, oversees capital allocation and corporate strategy. Major in-licensing or acquisition decisions require board approval; the board includes representatives from founding investors like MPM Capital.
Does Syndax originate its own drug candidates or acquire them externally?
The firm has historically acquired or in-licensed its pipeline assets. Revumenib was licensed from the University of Michigan, and axatilimab was acquired from UCB. This external sourcing model means Syndax's competitive advantage rests on clinical execution and regulatory strategy, not on proprietary discovery platforms.
What is Syndax's relationship with Incyte?
Syndax and Incyte entered a global co-development and co-commercialization agreement for axatilimab in 2021. Incyte holds rights outside the United States, while Syndax retains U.S. commercial rights. Incyte also made an equity investment in Syndax as part of the transaction.
What regulatory milestones are expected in the near term?
The FDA accepted the New Drug Application for revumenib with priority review in September 2024, with a target action date in early 2025. Axatilimab's Biologics License Application for chronic graft-versus-host disease was accepted in August 2024 with a PDUFA date in the first half of 2025.
How is Syndax structured from an operating-company perspective compared to a typical venture-backed biotech?
Syndax trades on Nasdaq under the ticker SNDX and maintains a lean internal team that outsources most clinical operations to contract research organizations. This structure keeps fixed costs low while concentrating internal expertise on regulatory and medical affairs. The firm does not fund an internal discovery engine.
Which cancers does Syndax's pipeline target?
The two lead programs target hematologic conditions. Revumenib addresses KMT2A-rearranged and NPM1-mutant acute leukemias. Axatilimab targets chronic graft-versus-host disease, an immune complication of allogeneic stem cell transplants. The firm also evaluates solid tumor applications for its menin inhibitor.
Who are Syndax's key institutional shareholders?
Public filings have shown significant ownership by life-science specialist funds including RA Capital Management, Perceptive Advisors, and founding-linked backers like MPM Capital. Incyte holds an equity stake tied to the axatilimab collaboration. Exact holdings fluctuate and are disclosed in quarterly 13F filings.
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.
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