SMITHFIELD – Massachusetts-based Rubius Therapeutics Inc., which sold its Rhode Island facility earlier this month after reporting financial hardships, has filed for liquidation and dissolution, according to a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission report.
The company’s board of directors filed the liquidation and dissolution report on Feb. 20.
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The week prior, The Davis Cos., a Boston real estate investment, development and management firm, announced that it had purchased the company’s Smithfield biomanufacturing facility, in addition to a 15.5-acre parcel already approved to host another biotech manufacturing facility of up to 175,000 square feet.
In the filing, Rubius stated that it plans to hold a special stockholders meeting seeking approval for the liquidation and dissolution. A Rubius spokesperson did not respond to requests for more information on Tuesday or earlier in the month.
The biotech company’s work focused on biologically engineering red blood cells to treat cancer and autoimmune diseases.
In August, the company reported that it had experienced a $44.2 million loss for the second quarter, and a $96.7 million net loss for the first half of 2022. Rubius also experienced a $196.5 million loss in 2021, and a $167.7 million loss in 2020.
In September, the Cambridge, Mass.-based company announced it would lay off 75% of its workforce, including around 70 Rhode Island employees out of 160 companywide.
At the beginning of 2022, Rubius employed 101 people in Rhode Island, and 269 people overall.
State leaders initially had high hopes for Rubius, with the R.I. Commerce Corp. granting the company up to $9 million in tax credits and incentives in 2018. But Rubius failed to meet incentives, according to an R.I. Commerce spokesperson, and the state ultimately did not distribute the tax credits.
Jacquelyn Voghel is a PBN staff writer. You may reach her at Voghel@PBN.com.
