China-based nucleic acid drug developer Ribo Life Science has secured RMB470m ($66.3m) in a series C2 round featuring Hengxu Investment, an investment vehicle for carmaker SAIC Motor, DealStreetAsia reported yesterday.
GL Ventures, a venture capital arm of private equity firm Hillhouse Capital, co-led the round with the Chinese state-owned Capital VC Fund and private equity fund manager CICC Capital’s biomedicine fund.
The investors were filled out by a healthcare partnership between CICC Capital and pharmaceutical producer Sinopharm, as well as Everest Venture Capital, Shenzhen Co-way Capital Services, Hongtao Capital and Shanghai Free Trade Zone Equity Fund.
Founded in 2007, Ribo is developing small interfering RNA therapeutics for a range of disorders including non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy, a condition which causes loss of sight, in addition to glaucoma, diabetes, prostate cancer and alopaecia.
The company has now raised almost $160m altogether, including $7.4m in 2014 from SBI Incubation, a subsidiary of financial services provider SBI, in addition to BVCF, Kunshan Industrial Technology Research Institute Investment and Kunshan Hongtu Hi-tech Venture Capital Management.
Ribo reportedly added $18m from conglomerate Legend Holdings’ early-stage investment vehicle, Legend Star; Legend Capital, the venture capital firm spun off from Legend Holdings; and GGV Capital to the series A round the following year.
SDIC Fund Management led Ribo’s $39m series B round in 2017, investing together with Legend Capital, GGV Capital and China Resources.
The company then secured $28.8m in a December 2019 series C1 round co-led by Panlin Capital and Trinity Innovation Fund and backed by Legend Capital, SDIC Innovation, Hanyang Capital, Blue Ocean Capital Group, Daxie Yungong Investment, Shenzhen Zhonghui Investment and undisclosed others.
