TargED Biopharmaceuticals raises EUR 39 Million in Series A financing to bring groundbreaking thrombolytic treatment to patients
- Financing with equal contribution by an international investor syndicate comprising of Andera Partners, Fund+, Hadean Ventures, Inkef Capital and Sunstone Life Science Ventures
- Funds will accelerate development of first-in-class targeted thrombolytic treatment into clinical development
Utrecht, the Netherlands, 22 February 2022 – TargED Biopharmaceuticals (“TargED”), a private biotechnology company focused on developing improved treatments for thrombotic diseases, today announces it has raised Series A financing of EUR 39 million to accelerate development of its lead compound, Microlyse. The financing was led with equal contribution by an international syndicate comprising Andera Partners, Fund+, Hadean Ventures, Inkef Capital and Sunstone Life Science Ventures, and joined by existing investors FIRST (Managed by BioGeneration Ventures), Curie Capital and Utrecht Health Seed Fund. TargED will focus development on two initial indications: acquired Thrombotic Thrombocytopenia Purpura (aTTP) and Acute Ischemic Stroke (AIS).
TargED’s lead product, Microlyse, is a first-in-class proprietary clot-busting compound which binds to a protein present in all forms of thrombosis. Microlyse is the first compound to achieve targeted enzyme delivery, using a single domain antibody (VhH), directly to blood clots. Due to the targeted nature of the therapy, it is expected to lead to a superior side effect profile alongside the potential for exceptional potency compared to current agents. Microlyse’s unique mechanism of action allows for potential applications in a variety of indications involving thrombosis, including the life-threatening disease aTTP. The ground-breaking work demonstrating that Microlyse specifically targets blood clots leading to their desolution faster and safer compared to standard of care recently featured on the cover of the journal Blood (Microlyse: a thrombolytic agent that targets VWF for clearance of microvascular thrombosis).
Kristof Vercruysse, Chief Executive Officer of TargED, said: “We are delighted to have the support of this international syndicate of world class life science investors, a validation of the potential of Microlyse. We are proud to be developing products that have the potential to positively impact millions of lives by enabling patient access to such lifesaving treatment.”
Following the closing of the financing the Board of TargED will include: Thijs Cohen Tervaert, Inkef Capital (Chair), Olivier Litzka, Andera Partners, Mariette van der Velden-Roesink, Curie Capital, Jan Van den Bossche, Fund+, Roger Franklin, Hadean Ventures and Jacob Lange Moresco, Sunstone Life Science Ventures.
Thijs Cohen Tervaert, Chair of the Board of Directors, commented: “Together with Jacob, Roger, Jan and Olivier, we are very pleased to invest in this impressive TargED team. Microlyse is a therapeutic innovation that has a very strong potential to significantly lower the burden of disease related to thrombotic events. We are excited to join forces with TargED to accelerate the development of Microlyse into clinical development, both in aTTP and AIS.”
“We are happy that our pioneering efforts on the design of an enzyme that targets blood clots led to compelling preclinical data recently published in the journal Blood” said UMC Utrecht Associate Professor Coen Maas and scientific co-founder of TargED. “It is exciting to see that this work has been able to attract such a strong syndicate of investors, which will now allow us to develop Microlyse towards therapeutic breakthrough, potentially across a range of indications with high unmet medical need”.
Mariette van der Velden, Managing Partner of Curie Capital, commented on behalf of seed investors FIRST and Utrecht Health Seed Fund: “Microlyse has the potential to better address the needs of patients suffering from thrombotic diseases. With a tremendous drive, the TargED team has produced very promising preclinical results supported by our seed funding. We are excited to enter the next phase of the development of Microlyse towards patients worldwide.”
For more information please contact:
TargED
Kristof Vercruysse
Chief Executive Officer
Optimum Strategic Communications
Mary Clark, Stella Lempidaki, Vici Rabbetts
T: + 44 208 078 4357
About TargED
TargED Biopharmaceuticals B.V. is a biotechnology company that develops first-in-class biological drugs to improve treatment of thrombosis. TargED stands for Targeted Enzyme Delivery. Their biological drugs are unique by using small antibodies (“VhH”) to deliver enzymes to sites of thrombosis, enabling ‘targeted’ thrombolysis. The lead compound is Microlyse, which is currently under development for thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) and Acute Ischemic Stroke (AIS). The objective is to accelerate thrombolysis in all forms of thrombosis, irrespective of the thrombus composition.
TargED, a spin-off of the University Medical Center Utrecht, was founded in July 2020 by Associate Professor at the Department of Clinical Chemistry and Haematology, Coen Maas, PhD, an expert in thrombosis and hemostasis, Steven de Maat, PhD, an expert in recombinant protein development and optimization, Marc van Moorsel, researcher with focus on Acute Ischemic Stroke and Kristof Vercruysse, with more than 20 years of experience in bringing biopharmaceutical compounds from pre-clinical proof of concept to market, most notably, Caplacizumab for Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura at Ablynx between 2007 and 2013.
For more information please visit www.targedbiopharmaceuticals.com
www.linkedin.com/company/targedbiopharmaceuticals/
About Andera Partners
Created in 2001, Andera Partners is a major player in private company investments in France and internationally. Its teams manage €3.2 billion in investments in life sciences (Andera Life Sciences), growth and buyout capital (Andera MidCap, Andera Expansion and Andera Croissance), sponsorless transactions (Andera Acto) and ecological transition (Andera Infra). Based in Paris, with offices in Antwerp and Munich, Andera Partners is wholly owned by its teams, which comprise more than 80 professionals, of which some 50 are investment professionals. It is structured as a partnership and managed by a board of ten partners. Responsible and committed, the management company regularly forms partnerships with non-profit sector entities and takes concrete action in the fight against global warming. Andera Partners has been certified carbon neutral since 2018.
Andera’s 15-person life sciences team brings together extensive experience in the life sciences industry, private equity and venture capital. Active since 2000, the team has raised €1.3 billion through its BioDiscovery family of funds and is currently investing from its new BioDiscovery 6 fund. Since inception, the BioDiscovery funds have invested in more than 80 European and US biotech and medtech companies, and generated over 20 IPOs and over 20 trade sales. For more information, please visit: www.anderapartners.com
About Fund+
Fund+ is a Belgian venture capital firm that invests in innovative European Life Sciences companies developing drugs, medical devices and diagnostics, with a strong focus on patient-centric approaches and major unmet medical needs. With over €200M in assets under management, Fund+ has built a strong track record since 2015, investing in 16 portfolio companies with two major exits. The fund is managed by a specialist team of seasoned life sciences professionals with healthcare industry, corporate finance and strategy consulting experience, supporting companies throughout their growth cycle. The company aims to maintain a leading position in the Life Sciences sector, creating sustainable value for its shareholders and a tangible impact on society. For more information, please visit: www.fundplus.be
About Inkef Capital
Inkef Capital is a leading venture capital firm based in Amsterdam with a proven history of backing promising early-stage companies in Europe. Inkef takes pride in being a patient, long-term investor with the ability to support companies through several funding rounds all the way up to IPO. From the early stages of being a technology or life science venture, Inkef supports entrepreneurs building their ideas into successful international businesses. Inkef’s investments include Onward Medical, Castor, iOnctura, Cardior and GitLab, Remote among others. For more information, please visit: www.inkef.com
About Hadean Ventures
Hadean Ventures is a European life science venture capital fund manager with c. €200m assets under management across two funds. Hadean Ventures has offices in Oslo, Norway, and Stockholm, Sweden, as well as presence in Germany, Austria and the UK. Hadean invests across all healthcare verticals and stages with a focus on de-risked preclinical and clinical assets that address clear unmet medical needs. Our interest spans across pharmaceuticals & biotech, medical devices, diagnostics and digital health – we have the flexibility to invest in great ideas no matter what vertical. The Hadean team currently consists of 10 investment professionals with deep scientific, medical and business knowledge. We can add value and offer expert guidance throughout a company’s development, whether early or late-stage. Our presence in Europe, and specifically the Nordics and German speaking Europe, enables Hadean to find the best opportunities at the source of innovation in regions that regularly produce world-class science, yet historically have been under-ventured. For more information, please visit: www.hadeanventures.com
About Sunstone Life Science Ventures
Sunstone Life Science Ventures is an independent European venture capital investment firm founded in 2007 by an international team of industry experts with combined entrepreneurial, operational and financial experience. Managing total funds of €500 million, Sunstone Life Science Ventures focuses on developing and expanding early‐stage Life Science companies with strong potential to achieve global success in their markets. Since the inception, Sunstone Life Science Ventures has invested in more than 50 companies in the areas of pharmaceuticals, medical technologies and diagnostics, and has completed more than 20 successful IPOs and large M&A transactions. For more information, please visit: https://sunstone.eu/
