UK-based biotechnology developer Bicycle Therapeutics raised £40m ($52m) in a series B round today backed by pharmaceutical firms Novartis and GlaxoSmithKline.
The round was led by Vertex Ventures HC, backed by Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund Temasek, and also included Cambridge Innovation Capital (CIC), the university venturing fund of University of Cambridge, as well as Longwood Fund, Atlas Venture and SV Life Sciences.
Novartis and GlaxoSmithKline invested through their respective corporate venturing subsidiaries Novartis Venture Fund and SR One.
Bicycle Therapeutics is working on treatments for cancers of high unmet need. The company’s drug discovery platform is based on research conducted at research institute MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology by Gregory Winter and Prof Christian Heinis.
The series B capital will go towards the development of multiple drug candidates, including the company’s lead candidate BT1718. Christopher Shen, managing director at Vertex Ventures HC, and Michael Anstey, investment director at CIC, will join Bicycle’s board of directors.
Bicycle Therapeutics previously collected £20m in funding in 2014 from Novartis Venture Fund, SR One, and Astellas Venture Management, the investment arm of pharmaceutical firm Astellas, as well as Atlas and SV Life Sciences.
Novartis Venture Fund, Astellas Venture Management, SR One, Atlas Ventures and SV Life Sciences had also contributed to a $6m series A round in 2012.