Munich, Germany, September 10, 2026
Ethris GmbH and the European Investment Bank (EIB) have signed a €30 million financing agreement under the HERA Invest program to support the further clinical development of Ethris’ broad-spectrum nasal antiviral candidate. The financing, backed by the European Union through InvestEU, is intended to advance the company’s innovative RNA-based antiviral platform and support clinical development of a nasal therapy designed to provide broad protection against respiratory viral infections. The agreement represents an important investment in European health security and the development of medical countermeasures against emerging respiratory pathogens.
Ethris Advances Broad-Spectrum Nasal Antiviral
The financing will support Ethris’ ongoing development of a broad-spectrum nasal antiviral designed to act directly at the site where respiratory viruses typically enter the body. Unlike conventional systemic antiviral approaches, the investigational therapy is administered intranasally, with the goal of establishing an antiviral barrier within the upper respiratory tract. Ethris is developing the candidate using its proprietary RNA platform, which combines messenger RNA technology with advanced delivery and stabilization approaches. The company’s strategy is intended to enable rapid development of therapies that can respond to a broad range of viral threats, including pathogens with pandemic potential. The nasal delivery approach is particularly relevant to respiratory infections because the nasal and upper respiratory tract can serve as an initial site of viral replication and transmission. By delivering the therapeutic directly to this location, Ethris aims to provide early antiviral activity before infection progresses to the lower respiratory tract. The company has been evaluating its broad-spectrum antiviral approach through preclinical and clinical development, with the new EIB financing expected to provide additional resources for advancing the program through further clinical studies.
€30M HERA Invest Financing Supports Clinical Development
The €30 million EIB financing is being provided through HERA Invest, an initiative designed to strengthen Europe’s capacity to develop and manufacture medical countermeasures against major health threats. HERA Invest is part of the European Union’s broader efforts to support innovative companies developing technologies relevant to pandemic preparedness and health security. The financing is backed by the European Commission through InvestEU, allowing the EIB to provide long-term funding for projects considered strategically important to European healthcare resilience. For Ethris, the financing provides capital to continue advancing its antiviral program while supporting the company’s broader RNA-based technology development. The funding is particularly significant because development of novel antiviral therapies can require substantial investment across clinical trials, manufacturing, regulatory activities and technology scale-up. The agreement also highlights the growing role of public-private financing in supporting European biotechnology companies working on technologies with potential applications beyond individual diseases. Broad-spectrum antiviral approaches could be particularly valuable during future outbreaks when the specific causative pathogen may initially be unknown.
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RNA Platform Targets Future Respiratory Threats
Ethris has developed a proprietary mRNA and RNA-based technology platform focused on the development of vaccines and therapeutics. The company’s technology is designed to support the production of therapeutic proteins directly within cells, potentially enabling rapid development and manufacturing of different RNA-based medicines. The company’s antiviral strategy focuses on developing treatments that can potentially address multiple respiratory viruses, rather than targeting only a single pathogen. Such an approach could provide an additional tool for managing seasonal respiratory infections as well as newly emerging viral threats. The broad-spectrum nasal antiviral is being developed as a potential first-line intervention that could be administered directly through the nose. If clinical development demonstrates safety and efficacy, the approach could potentially complement existing vaccines and systemic antiviral treatments by providing localized protection at the respiratory entry point. The EIB financing marks a significant milestone for Ethris’ clinical development strategy and reinforces European support for innovative antiviral technologies. Future clinical data will be important in determining whether the candidate can demonstrate meaningful antiviral activity and establish a favorable safety profile in humans. The investment also underscores the importance of pandemic preparedness, RNA therapeutics and broad-spectrum antiviral development as Europe seeks to strengthen its ability to respond rapidly to emerging infectious disease threats.
Source: Ethris press release
