China-based biologic therapeutics developer Clover Biopharmaceuticals closed a $43m series B round on Wednesday that included animal feed producer Jinlong Group.
Private equity firm Delos Capital and healthcare-focused venture capital firm Lapam Capital co-led the round, which also featured Betta Capital, Sichuan Health Care Industry Fund and Beijing Zhongguancun VC.
Clover is working on treatments for cancer and autoimmune diseases using its Trimer-Tag drug development platform.
The company’s pipeline includes SCB-313, a fusion protein candidate for intracavitary malignancies that has entered phase 1 clinical trials, and it plans to advance a biosimilar of an autoimmune disease treatment called Enbrel into phase 3 trials this year.
The series B funds will support the progression of the company’s clinical-stage candidates, the expansion of its preclinical pipeline and the operation of a commercial-scale biomanufacturing plant.
Peng Liang, Clover’s co-founder, chairman and president, said: “We look forward to using the proceeds from this financing round to further accelerate our drug development and move closer to our goal of becoming the first truly-innovative global biologics R&D powerhouse founded in China.”
Delos Capital principal Tim Xiao and Lapam Capital partner Guangyu Xu will join the company’s board of directors in connection with the round, which boosted Clover’s funding to more than $100m since it was founded in 2016.
Clover had previously secured about $9.5m in a December 2017 series A round led by Tianhe Life Sciences Venture Fund, adding to approximately $3.2m in non-dilutive financing raised earlier the same year.
