Pfizer Ventures, the corporate venturing subsidiary of pharmaceutical firm Pfizer, co-led a $65m series B round for US-based immunotherapy developer Kymera Therapeutics on Tuesday.
6 Dimensions Capital, the investment firm co-founded by pharmaceutical researcher and drug producer WuXi AppTec, and venture capital firm Bessemer Venture Partners (BVP) co-led the round with Pfizer.
MRL Ventures Fund and Sanofi Ventures, vehicles for pharmaceutical companies Merck & Co and Sanofi, also took part, as did Hatteras Venture Partners, Aju IB Investment and all Kymera’s series A investors, which include subsidiaries of drug producers Eli Lilly and Amgen
Kymera is working on drugs for previously untreatable cancers, autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, using predictive modelling to develop therapies intended to degrade proteins that cause the diseases.
The company will use the series B financing to advance its lead asset into clinical development and enhance its pipeline in oncology and immunology.
Elaine Jones, executive director at Pfizer Ventures, and 6 Dimensions venture partner Wei Li will join Kymera’s board of directors along with BVP vice-president Andrew Hedin.
Lilly Ventures and Amgen Ventures co-led Kymera’s $30m series A round in October 2017. VC firm Atlas Venture also participated in that round having provided the startup’s seed funding, though details of its investment have not been revealed.