Apollo Therapeutics, a UK-based biopharmaceutical joint venture featuring pharmaceutical firms AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and Johnson & Johnson, closed a $145m funding round today led by healthcare investment firm Patient Square Capital.
University College London’s UCL Technology Fund also took part in the round, as did Rock Springs Capital and Reimagined Ventures.
Apollo was established in late 2015 by AstraZeneca, GSK, Johnson & Johnson subsidiary Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JJDC, tech transfer offices Cambridge Enterprise and UCL Business, and Imperial Innovations, the commercialisation firm of Imperial College London subsequently acquired by its peer, IP Group.
The six partners committed $57m in funding to be deployed over six years, aiming to move scientific discoveries to the marketplace more efficiently and rapidly by providing not only money but also late-stage development and commercial expertise.
The company has built a pipeline of more than 15 programmes and will use the additional capital to advance those assets into the clinic, expand that pipeline along with its UK presence, open a US office in Boston and pursue international partnerships.
Ian Tomlinson, former chairman of Apollo’s investment committee, will join its board of directors, as will Jim Momtazee, managing partner of Patient Square Capital.
Richard Mason, head of Europe, the Middle East and Africa for Johnson & Johnson Innovation from 2015 to 2018, had been already appointed chief executive of Apollo in November 2020 and will continue in that role.
The original version of this article appeared on our sister site, Global University Venturing.
