Kirkland & Ellis advised Nextech, a global, cancer therapeutics-focused venture capital firm, in connection with a definitive agreement between its portfolio company, Silverback Therapeutics, Inc. (Silverback), and ARS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (ARS), under which ARS will merge with Silverback in an all-stock transaction. The combined company will focus on the potential regulatory approval and commercialization of neffy, ARS’s investigational epinephrine nasal spray for the treatment of Type I allergic reactions including anaphylaxis. The combined company is expected to have approximately $265 million in cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities at closing. Upon stockholder approval, the combined company is expected to operate under the name ARS Pharmaceuticals and trade on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the ticker symbol “SPRY.” The merger is currently expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2022. Read the joint press release The Kirkland team was led by corporate partners Dan Vaczy and Christian Atwood, tax partner Vincent Thorn, and investment funds partner Amala Ejikeme and associate Anna Alexandrou.