Frequency Therapeutics, a US-based small-molecule drug developer backed by life sciences real estate investment trust Alexandria Real Estate Equities, completed a $62m series C round yesterday.
Hedge fund sponsor Perceptive Advisors led the round, investing alongside Mizuho Securities Principal Investment, a subsidiary of investment banking firm Mizuho Securities, as well as RTW Investments, Polaris Founders Capital, Deerfield Management, Taiwania Capital Management, Axil Capital and CoBro Ventures.
Frequency is developing therapeutics that are intended to create functional tissues and organs by stimulating progenitor cells in the body to help repair damaged tissue. Its lead product, FX-322, is a regenerative medicine set to treat hearing loss caused by noise exposure.
The company recently formed a partnership with pharmaceutical firm Astellas to collaborate on the global development and commercialisation of FX-322 outside of the US. The deal included $80m of cash upfront, with $545m in milestone payments to potentially come.
A portion of the series C funding will be used to accelerate the clinical development of FX-322 into a phase 2a study, with additional capital being set aside to advance its Progenitor Cell Activation (PCA) platform to other therapeutic areas.
The round increased the company’s overall funding to $147m. Taiwania Capital led its $42m series B round in January 2019, which included Alexandria Venture Investments, the venture capital arm of Alexandria Real Estate Equities.
Yonjin Capital, a subsidiary of holding group Yonjin Group, also took part in the round, as did Polaris Founders Capital, Axil Capital, Korea Investment Partners, Emigrant Capital and CoBro Ventures.
Frequency had secured $32m in a 2017 series A round that was led by CoBro Ventures and backed by Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Emigrant Capital, Morningside Ventures and Korean Investment Partnership.
In March 2018, the US Department of Defense supplied a $2m grant to the company to fund the study of hearing loss associated with military service-related injuries.