China's Neurophth Biotechnology gets $97m Series C extension
Neurophth Biotechnology, a China-based gene therapy developer specialising in ocular diseases, has raised nearly CNY 700m (USD 97m) in an extended Series C round.
Three of the lead investors are government-linked funds or investment entities connected to the Wuhan East Lake High-tech Development Zone, also known as Optics Valley of China, which is in Hubei province. A fourth is Guangzhou Financial Holdings. Other participants include SDIC China Merchants Investment, TTGG Asset Management, and Changjiang Investment.
Neurophth has raised more than CNY 1.6bn to date. Northern Light Venture Capital, Suzhou Industrial Park, and Shenzhen Miracle Light Venture Capital – the VC arm of genome sequencing company BGI Group – were the earliest investors, providing a seed round in 2018.
Fosun Capital Group and Sequoia Capital China led a CNY 130m Series A two years later, and then Guofang Capital and InnoVision Capital took the lead in CNY 400m Series B in February 2021. A Series C of the same size closed in November 2021 with participation from SDIC China Merchants, Sequoia, Sunshine Life Insurance, and CMB International.
Headquartered in Wuhan with subsidiaries in Shanghai, Suzhou, and the US, Neurophth claims to be China's first gene therapy company for ophthalmic diseases.
Its technology is based on an in-house developed adeno-associated virus (AAV) platform. AAV is currently the main viral vector that researchers use for gene therapy because it is considered non-pathogenic to humans and not associated with DNA damage and unpredictable consequences.
The company has 10 treatments in its pipeline. The most advanced candidate, NR082, targets Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON), a maternally inherited degenerative disease that can lead to serious visual loss and for which there is currently no effective treatment.
NR082 is about to begin stage-three clinical trials in China and stage-one and stage-two trials in the US. The US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) has already granted it orphan drug designation.
The proceeds from the Series C extension will be used to support ongoing clinical trials, improve internal R&D capabilities, and build out the product pipeline, according to a statement.
More on Greater China
Latest News
Asian GPs slow implementation of ESG policies - survey
Asia-based private equity firms are assigning more dedicated resources to environment, social, and governance (ESG) programmes, but policy changes have slowed in the past 12 months, in part due to concerns raised internally and by LPs, according to a...
Singapore fintech start-up LXA gets $10m seed round
New Enterprise Associates (NEA) has led a USD 10m seed round for Singapore’s LXA, a financial technology start-up launched by a former Asia senior executive at The Blackstone Group.
India's InCred announces $60m round, claims unicorn status
Indian non-bank lender InCred Financial Services said it has received INR 5bn (USD 60m) at a valuation of at least USD 1bn from unnamed investors including “a global private equity fund.”
Insight leads $50m round for Australia's Roller
Insight Partners has led a USD 50m round for Australia’s Roller, a venue management software provider specializing in family fun parks.