# Be Biopharma

**Source:** https://geo.sig.ai/brands/be-biopharma  
**Vertical:** BioTech  
**Subcategory:** Engineered B Cell Therapy  
**Tier:** Emerging  
**Website:** be.bio  
**Last Updated:** 2026-04-14

## Summary

$274M total raised including $92M Series C with Bristol Myers Squibb. Phase 1/2 active for BE-101 in Hemophilia B. CRISPR-engineered B cells as continuous protein factories.

## Company Overview

Be Biopharma uses CRISPR to engineer a patient's own B cells into continuous protein-secreting factories — a one-time treatment designed to replace lifelong enzyme replacement therapy for rare metabolic diseases. The company has raised $274 million in total financing including a $92 million Series C co-led by Nextech Invest and Bristol Myers Squibb, with ARCH Venture Partners as a continuing investor, and has an active Phase 1/2 trial (BeCoMe-9) for BE-101 in Hemophilia B.

B cells are uniquely suited for this approach: they naturally produce antibodies in large quantities, are long-lived in vivo, and can be engineered ex vivo without the viral vector constraints of other gene therapy approaches. By replacing the B cell's antibody-producing program with a therapeutic protein payload via CRISPR, Be Bio creates a personalized, long-duration protein delivery system that the patient's own immune architecture sustains.

Bristol Myers Squibb's co-investment is the most significant commercial signal: BMS has one of the world's largest rare disease and hematology portfolios, and its investment thesis is likely rooted in the platform's potential to replace BMS's existing enzyme replacement therapy products with a one-time cure approach. Hemophilia B data from the Phase 1/2 trial in 2026 will be the first human validation of engineered B cell protein secretion durability.

## Frequently Asked Questions

### What does Be Biopharma do?
Engineers patients' own B cells via CRISPR to become continuous protein factories — one-time treatment replacing lifelong enzyme replacement therapy for Hemophilia B and other rare metabolic diseases.

### How much has Be Biopharma raised?
$274M total including $92M Series C with Bristol Myers Squibb and ARCH Venture Partners. Phase 1/2 (BeCoMe-9) active for BE-101 in Hemophilia B.

### Why B cells for protein delivery?
B cells naturally produce proteins in large quantities, are long-lived in vivo, and can be engineered ex vivo — making them ideal continuous protein factories that the patient's immune system maintains.

### What is the Bristol Myers Squibb connection?
BMS co-invested in the Series C — likely viewing Be Bio's platform as a potential one-time cure replacement for existing BMS enzyme replacement therapy products in hematology.

### What diseases could engineered B cells treat?
Be Biopharma's engineered B cell platform is applicable to any disease requiring sustained delivery of a therapeutic protein — recombinant proteins (clotting factors for hemophilia), antibodies (monoclonal antibodies for cancer or autoimmune disease), or enzyme replacement therapies. B cells can be engineered to secrete proteins indefinitely after engraftment, potentially providing a one-time treatment replacing repeated protein infusions. Initial programs target rare diseases where current protein replacement is burdensome.

### How does Be Biopharma engineer B cells?
Be Biopharma uses ex vivo gene editing (CRISPR or other nucleases) to modify a patient's own B cells, inserting therapeutic gene sequences into B cell-specific genomic loci that drive long-term antibody gene expression. The edited B cells are then expanded and reinfused into the patient, where they mature into long-lived plasma cells that secrete the therapeutic protein continuously. The B cell biology provides natural durability — plasma cells are designed to produce antibodies for years to decades.

### How does the Bristol Myers Squibb collaboration affect Be Biopharma?
Bristol Myers Squibb's collaboration with Be Biopharma (through its investment arm and a research partnership) provides both capital and validation that a major pharma with significant oncology and immunology programs sees the B cell engineering platform as strategically relevant. BMS's portfolio includes multiple proteins and antibodies where B cell-mediated delivery could provide durable alternatives to repeated infusions — the collaboration likely focuses on applying Be's platform to BMS drug candidates.

### What is the manufacturing model for engineered B cell therapies?
Like CAR-T cell therapies, Be Biopharma's initial approach is autologous — using each patient's own B cells — which requires per-patient manufacturing (apheresis, ex vivo editing, expansion, quality testing, reinfusion). The manufacturing complexity and cost are significant, similar to CAR-T at $200,000-400,000 per patient. Be Biopharma is simultaneously developing allogeneic (off-the-shelf) B cell platforms that could dramatically reduce manufacturing cost and complexity if immunological tolerance challenges can be solved.

## Tags

healthtech, b2b

---
*Data from geo.sig.ai Brand Intelligence Database. Updated 2026-04-14.*