E-commerce firm Rakuten has provided $100m in series C1 financing for Rakuten Medical, the US-based cancer-focused biotechnology developer formerly known as Aspyrian Therapeutics.
Rakuten now owns 22.6% of the company, which will become an equity-method affiliate in Q3 2019. The series C1 round follows a $284m series C round closed in December 2018 that featured a $134m extension from Rakuten and financial services firm SBI Group.
The series C round’s $150m first tranche was led by Hiroshi Mikitani, chief executive of Rakuten and CEO and chairman of Rakuten Medical.
Originally known as Rakuten Aspyrian until March this year, Rakuten Medical is working on precision medicines based on its photoimmunotherapy (PIT) platform, which relies on a combination of antibodies and a laser that destroys cancer cells.
The company’s lead asset, ASP-1929, is currently undergoing a phase 3 trial for the treatment of recurrent head and neck squamous cell carcinoma and phase 2 studies for a range of other cancers.
The series C-1 cash will support the further development of the PIT platform, bolster business growth and enable Rakuten Medical to identify and evaluate additional compounds. It has now raised $472m altogether, with Mikitani responsible for supplying the majority of the company’s earlier investment.
Mickey Mikitani, Rakuten Medical’s chairman and chief executive, said: “I believe we can cultivate a sustainable health care ecosystem to provide patients with safe and easy access to, and better care in, the treatment of cancer, regardless of their nationality or income.
“Culturally, the technology industry has revolutionised society by being bold, action-driven and innovative; and we hope to do the same at Rakuten Medical by exploring opportunities that will combine Rakuten’s technology expertise with Rakuten Medical’s first-in-class Photoimmunotherapy platform.”
