China-based biotechnology company Ascletis secured a $20m extension to a series B round backed by drug developer Tasly Pharmaceuticals, from investment bank Goldman Sachs yesterday, to close the round at $55m.
Tasly co-led the round’s $35m first tranche in September 2015 with venture capital fund C-Bridge Capital and Pavilion Capital, a subsidiary of Singaporean state-owned fund Temasek.
Founded in 2011, Ascletis is developing treatments for infectious conditions such as HIV and cancer. The company has licensed one drug candidate each from pharmaceutical firms Roche, Presidio Pharmaceuticals, Alnylam Pharmaceuticals and Janssen.
Ascletis is currently conducting a phase 2 clinical trial for a hepatitis C treatment in Taiwan and has received regulatory approval for clinical trials in mainland China. It will use the cash to increase its research and development capacity, and to widen its pipeline.
Private equity firm Hangzhou Binjiang Investment led a $100m series A round for Ascletis in 2011 that also featured a range of unnamed private backers.