US-based personal genetics analysis service 23andme raised $115m yesterday in a series E round backed by Google Ventures, internet and technology company Alphabet’s corporate venturing arm.
Fidelity Management & Research led the round, which also included genetic research firm Illumina and WuXi Healthcare Ventures, the strategic investment subsidiary of pharmaceutical company WuXi PharmaTech, as well as Casdin Capital, Xfund, New Enterprise Associates (NEA) and MPM Capital.
Founded in 2006, 23andme operates a service whereby customers can send a saliva sample to the company which is then tested to derive information covering ancestry and health issues. It expects to begin providing new options, including carrier status reports in the US, by the end of 2015.
The series E funding will go to scaling 23andme’s operations, and is set to be invested in new laboratory space that will be used for research and genetic sequencing. 23andme closed the first tranche of the round, which values it at $1.1bn according to Forbes, in July this year.
Andy Page, president of 23andMe, said: “23andMe pioneered the personal genetics industry. Our efforts to enable individuals to access, understand and benefit from the human genome have achieved a level of scale that will enable us to further advance genetic research and drug discovery around the world.
“This round of funding will enable us to further our vision for long term growth in our consumer and therapeutic businesses.”
The round brought 23andme’s total financing to approximately $225m in debt and equity, and followed a $57.9m series D round featuring Google Ventures, NEA and MPM that closed in 2012.
Google Ventures first invested in 23andme’s $9m series A round in 2007 together with Genentech, the biotechnology company acquired by pharmaceutical firm Roche in 2009, as well as MDV-Mohr Davidow Ventures and NEA, before investing $2.6m in 2009 alongside $10m in debt provided by Google CEO Sergei Brin.
Johnson & Johnson Development Corporation, a subsidiary of healthcare company Johnson & Johnson, joined Google Ventures, MPM and NEA for a $31m series C round that closed in 2011.
– Image courtesy of 23andme