China-based oncology antibody developer Adagene secured $50m yesterday in an oversubscribed series C round that included New World TMT, a subsidiary of diversified conglomerate New World Development.
Venture capital firm Sequoia Capital China led the round, which included Eight Roads Ventures, a subsidiary of financial services group Fidelity, as well as Avic Trust, King Star Capital, Gopher Asset Management and unnamed additional investors.
Adagene is working on discovering antibodies using its Dynamic Precision Library platform that it can develop into treatments for cancer. It has a pipeline of six potential therapeutic antibodies, all of which are yet to reach the clinical testing stage according to its website.
New World TMT’s chief executive, Albert Wong, said: “Adagene has successfully transformed from a platform to a biopharmaceutical company with drugs entering clinical trials.
“The entrepreneurial and seasoned management team has made major progress in R&D, which has left a deep impression on us. We are eager to see its drugs benefit patients around the world.”
Adagene has now raised $86m altogether, initially securing $8m in 2014 from WuXi Venture Fund, a corporate subsidiary of biopharmaceutical research firm WuXi PharmaTech, and Fidelity subsidiaries Fidelity Asia Growth and Fidelity Biosciences.
New World TMT and WuXi Corporate Venture Fund subsequently took part in a $28m series B round led by GP Healthcare Capital and backed by Eight Roads and F-Prime Capital, the rebranded versions of Fidelity Growth Partners Asia and Fidelity Biosciences respectively.