China's METiS Pharmaceuticals raises $150m
METiS Pharmaceuticals, a Hangzhou-based drug formulation company has raised USD 150m through two funding rounds led by PICC Capital and China Life PE.
Other investors include Sequoia Capital China, 5Y Capital, CMB International Capital, Lightspeed China Partners, Monolith, and FreesFund.
The proceeds will go to develop artificial intelligence (AI)-driven drug delivery systems, while expanding collaborations with partners to advance clinically valuable drug pipelines in the field of small molecule and nucleic acid drugs.
METiS was incubated by XtalPi, an AI-driven drug developer which has raised a USD 319m Series C led by Vision Fund in 2020. METiS focuses on the lipid nanoparticle (LNP) delivery system design. LNP is a carrier vehicle that protects mRNA from degradation and aids intracellular delivery and endosomal escape.
The company secured USD 86m in a Series A co-led by PICC and China Life that also featured Sequoia China, Lightspeed, 5Y, FreesFund, and CMB in December 2021. This followed an extended angel round led by Sequoia and a pre-Series A round led by Lightspeed in late 2020. FreesFund led a separate angel round with participation from Source Code Capital and XtalPi in March 2020.
METiS has several patented technologies and has developed several pipelines for small molecule and nucleic acid drugs. The fastest progressing of these are expected to enter clinical trials in 2023.
Earlier this month, CDH Investments and Huaxing Healthcare Fund led a USD 120m Series B for InnoRNA, a China-based mRNA drug developer focusing on LNP technology.
China Renaissance serves as the exclusive financial advisor of METiS’s new round.
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