VCs back $60m round for US, China-based Singlera Genomics
Chinese VCs Green Pine Capital Partners and Prosperico Ventures have led a $60 million Series A investment in US and China-based cancer diagnosis specialist Singlera Genomics.
Other participants included UCF Medical Investment, Jointown Pharmaceutical Group, and Lilly Asia Ventures (LAV). It extends a $20 million Series A investment provided by a group including LAV, Green Pine and CDBI Partners in 2016.
The capital will be used to expand development and commercialization efforts around the company’s non-invasive genetic tests for early-stage cancer detection. This work will include clinical validation studies. New product lines related to cancer detection and personalized treatment will also be developed via two existing in-house research platforms.
“Singlera is working to change the paradigm of cancer detection and may lead to important advances in oncology,” Luo Fei, a managing partner at Green Pine, said in a statement.
Founded in 2014, Singlera develops proprietary cancer analysis technologies, including single cell sequencing, DNA methylation sequencing, and machine learning. Focus areas include tumor diagnosis and personalized treatment, non-invasive prenatal diagnosis, pre-implantation genetic screening, and other genetic disease diagnosis, as well as customized technology and scientific research services.
Shenzhen-based Green Pine has invested at least RMB7 billion ($1.1 billion) in almost 400 companies across a range of sectors since 2007. The firm claims to have managed RMB15 billion in assets under across 21 funds. It was active in the medical technology space earlier this year with participation in a RMB288 million investment in China’s Suzhou Kintor Pharmaceuticals.
Prosperico is a healthcare-focused firm based in Shanghai that has backed at least 30 companies in China and abroad. Focus areas include diagnostics, drug discovery and development, healthcare service, and medical devices. Last month, it participated in a $4.7 million round for Fourier Intelligence, a Chinese technology developer focused on advanced medical braces including exoskeleton robotics.
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