China virotherapy specialist Binhui Biopharm raises $47m
Binhui Biopharm, a Chinese biotech firm specialising in oncolytic virus immune-oncology, has raised CNY 300m (USD 47m) in an extended Series B round led by Yangtze River Pharmaceutical Group.
Other participants included DNV Capital, Jointown Pharmaceutical Group, Ming Capital, and Hubei Provincial High-Tech Industry Investment Group.
It follows a CNY 600m Series C raised in early 2021 with Shenzhen-based Share Capital taking the lead. That round also featured CICC Capital, Vertex Ventures China, and Qianhai FOF under Shenzhen Capital Group.
Established in 2010, Wuhan-based Binhui focuses on virotherapy, which involves using viruses to destroy cancer cells. In addition to single-drug therapies, it has developed combined therapies with various antibodies and launched clinical trials.
Founder Binlei Liu was previously chief scientist of molecular biology at UK-based Boivex in the 2000s. He has more than 20 years of research experience involving oncolytic viruses, participating in the development of T-Vec, the first oncolytic virus drug approved by the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA).
The new capital will support Binhui's treatment pipeline and accelerate clinical trials. The company's key product, known as OH2, is an oncolytic virus based on a strain of the herpes virus. It targets malignant solid tumours.
Last year, the company created additional platforms focused on nucleic acid drugs and protein drugs. The three platforms operate independently of each other, although there are synergies intended to improve drug efficacy.
A similar Chinese company, Virogin Biotech, received USD 62m in Series C funding in 2020. Both Binhui and Virogin believe that combination therapies are the future of cancer immunotherapy. Oncolytic virotherapy could feature prominently because it works well in combination with other treatments.
Other focal points in China's efforts in cell-based immunotherapies include CAR-T cell therapy, which involves extracting immune cells from a patient, modifying them, and then returning them to the host to attack tumours.
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