IPO end around

A trio of companies with ties to prostate cancer company Cougar Biotechnology Inc. have turned to the Form 10 pathway to list on U.S. markets at a time when biotech IPOs are difficult to complete. But this route may not be for most private biotechs, because investors typically commit financing prior to a listing, and a diversified shareholder base is required to move to a major exchange.

The pathway inverts the traditional IPO route: under Form 10-12G, companies raise money, become publicly reporting entities and then file to trade on the public markets...