China's Lynk Pharmaceutical increases Series C to $44m
China-based drug developer Lynk Pharmaceuticals has closed a second tranche of Series C funding, taking the overall size of the round to CNY 322m (USD 44m).
Investors include China Grand Prosperity Investment – which is deploying Shaoxing Binhai New Area Biomedical Industry Equity Investment Fund – Haibang Venture, Howbuy Primary Fund, New Alliance Capital, and Lilly Asia Ventures (LAV).
The first tranche of the Series C, worth CNY 200m, closed in May with contributions from China Grand Prosperity, Hangzhou Tailong Venture Capital, and Liandong Investment, according to AVCJ Research.
LAV led a USD 50m Series B in 2021, supported by New Alliance Capital, Hangzhou Heda Industry Fund Investment, Legend Capital, and Med-Fine Capital. Before that, Lynk received USD 10m in seed funding in 2018 from Kaitai Capital, Med-Fine, and Sinopharm Capital, a Series A led by Decheng Capital in 2019, and a USD 20m Series A extension in late 2020 led by Legend.
Lynk was founded in 2018 by a four-person team whose members had previously worked for the likes of Merck, Johnson & Johnson, and Pfizer. It focuses on small-molecule treatments for autoimmune disease, inflammation, and cancer.
There is a particular interest in tissue-specific JAK inhibitors, which influence immune responses by interfering with the signalling pathways in certain types of enzymes. Frost & Sullivan estimates the global market for JAK1 inhibitors will be worth USD 30.5bn by 2030.
Lynk recently completed phase-two clinical trials for LNK01001, a JAK1 inhibitor used to target different forms of arthritis and atopic dermatitis, or eczema. Ex-China rights were out-licensed to EQRx in 2020, while the China rights were granted to Simcere Pharmaceutical in 2022.
There are seven more drugs in Lynk’s pipeline. It currently holds global rights to all of them. Two treatments are in phase-one trials: LNK01002, which targets a rare bone marrow cancer, and LNK01003, which mitigates inflammatory bowel disease.
“We are pleased to see that even amidst the current challenges in the biopharmaceutical capital landscape, Lynk Pharmaceuticals continues to gain support from both new and existing shareholders, demonstrating the capital market's recognition of our team,” said Zhao-kui Wan, chairman and CEO of Lynk, in a statement.
“During this rapid growing stage, we will need to consolidate resources from various aspects, further invest in clinical development, R&D teams, and technology platforms, aiming to provide safer and more effective innovative drugs to patients as early as possible.”
HaoYue Capital served as the exclusive financial advisor for the Series C extension.
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