Forbion led a $75 million Series B financing for Altesa BioSciences, with participation from Sanofi and existing investors, to fund the Phase IIb CARDINAL study of vapendavir — an oral antiviral targeting rhinovirus‑driven exacerbations in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Altesa said the randomized, placebo‑controlled trial will enroll about 900 patients across the U.S. and U.K. and begin in Q2. Altesa CEO Brett Giroir (former HHS official and acting FDA commissioner) framed vapendavir as a first‑in‑class approach that targets viral causes of inflammation and exacerbations. The company named Katherine Knobil, formerly GSK’s CMO, to lead the trial. The financing links a focused antiviral strategy to a high‑need clinical population and demonstrates Big Pharma–VC collaboration to advance antivirals beyond acute respiratory virus use cases.