Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Daily Business Update

 
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EDITORIAL EMAIL PUBLISHED BY   Boston.com
Daily Business Update Wed. May. 15, 2013
 
Algeta’s prostate cancer drug gets FDA approval
Algeta ASA, a Norwegian company with its US operational center in Cambridge, said Wednesday that its injectable drug for a certain kind of prostate cancer has been granted approval by the US Food and Drug Administration. The drug, called Xofigo, has been approved to treat patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer, or CRPC, that has spread to the bones but not to other organs. According to Algeta’s press release, Xofigo is the first alpha particle-emitting radioactive therapeutic agent approved by the FDA. The commercial production of Xofigo is already underway, the company said, and the first doses are expected to be ready for patient treatment within a few weeks. According to Algeta, the FDA approval is a major milestone for the company.
State Street CEO Jay Hooley sounds optimistic note on the economy
State Street Corp. chief executive Jay Hooley sounded a more optimistic tone on the economy than he has in some time at the company’s annual shareholder meeting Wednesday, saying the recovery is “perhaps a little better than advertised.” Hooley said the economy is still “not where we want it to be’’ and said customers are “still pretty risk averse.” However, the Boston financial services giant is continuing to invest “for greater growth going forward,’’ he said. It was a notably short meeting with few questions – a change for State Street since the financial crisis, when its meetings have been attended by protesters and activist investors. It’s likely a surging stock price has helped: State Street shares were up nearly 33 percent for the 12-month period ended March 31.
IRobots could help provide security when the pope visits Brazil
Bedford’s iRobot Corp. said Wednesday that it has been awarded contracts totaling $7.2 million from the Brazilian government for robots that can help provide security as Brazil gears up for a World Cup soccer tournament, a scheduled papal visit this summer, and the 2016 Olympics. The company makes several kinds of robots. Some, such as the Roomba vacuum-cleaning robot, are designed for home use by consumers. Another line is designed to let doctors interact with patients remotely. The company’s military and law-enforcement robots, meanwhile, can perform such tasks as battlefield reconnaissance and detecting explosive devices. Following big cuts in Pentagon spending, iRobot has generally been putting more emphasis on its nonmilitary robots. In any case, Brazil represents an important international market for the company’s unmanned ground vehicles.
Fidelity: Couples will need $220,000 to cover medical expenses throughout retirement
A 65-year-old couple retiring in 2013 is estimated to need $220,000 to cover medical expenses throughout retirement, according to a health care cost analysis by Fidelity Investments, a Boston-based financial services company whose investment products include retirement savings plans. Fidelity’s estimates for such costs had increased an average of 6 percent annually between 2002 and 2012, but the 2013 figure is 8 percent lower than a year ago. A change in demographics as well as smaller payment increases to doctors and hospitals were among reasons Fidelity cited for the decrease. “It is extremely important that health care costs are factored into retirement savings strategies today so that retirees can be prepared to pay their medical bills throughout retirement,” said Brad Kimler, executive vice president of Fidelity’s Benefits Consulting business.
Acacia Communications closes a $20m round
Acacia Communications Inc., a Maynard-based provider of infrastructure equipment and services for the telecommunications industry, said it has closed a new $20 million round of financing. The round was led by Summit Partners. Other participants in the round included existing investors Matrix Partners, Commonwealth Capital Ventures, and Egan Managed Capital. Summit Partners managing director Peter Chung will join Acacia’s board of directors. In a statement, Acacia president and chief executive Raj Shanmugaraj said: “Enthusiastic investor support culminates an exciting year of growth across all dimensions of our business and validates the market momentum we’ve established in the fast-growing coherent 100G transceiver market. Acacia has developed fundamentally innovative technologies that dramatically drive down the costs, size and power of high-speed fiber optics communication equipment.”
QuickBase is relocating from Waltham to the Alewife section of Cambridge
QuickBase, a database software brand of Intuit Inc., said it will relocate its Waltham offices to the Alewife section of Cambridge in the fall. The new office will have 60,884 square feet of space at 150 CambridgePark Drive, which is owned by Equity Office. QuickBase and other Intuit units have about 200 employees in about half the space in Waltham; the new space in Cambridge can accommodate an additional 100 employees. And it’s one block away from the MBTA Alewife Station. The new office space features such perks as a yoga and meditation room, locker room with showers, game room with ping pong and Xbox Kinect, and bocce ball court. QuickBase chose Alewife because of its proximity to public transportation and easy access to nearby universities.
Tokai Pharmaceuticals raises $35.5m as it works on experimental drug for prostate cancer
Tokai Pharmaceuticals Inc., a Cambridge biopharmaceutical company, said Wednesday that it has raised $35.5 million in a Series E financing based on encouraging clinical progress in its development of a potential treatment for prostate cancer. The financing round included both current investors, Apple Tree Partners and Novartis Venture Funds as well as undisclosed angel investors, the company said in its press release. Tokai was founded by Apple Tree Partners. Tokai calls its drug candidate galeterone (TOK-001). The proceeds of the Series E financing will be used to expand the ongoing ARMOR2 Phase 2 clinical trial of galeterone in patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer, or CRPC. “We are extremely encouraged by the maturing data we are seeing from the ARMOR2 clinical trial,” Tokai chairman Seth Harrison said.
 
 

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