US-headquartered investment banking firm RM Global (RMG) closed a $64m fund on Monday designed to support Israel-based, corporate-backed biopharmaceutical incubator FuturRx.
RMGP Biopharma Investment Fund reached its $30m first close in May 2017 but has added additional capital from institutional, family office and strategic life science investors from South Korea, the US, Europe and Israel to reach a final close.
Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JJDC and Takeda Ventures, the corporate venturing subsidiaries of pharmaceutical firms Johnson & Johnson and Takeda, joined OrbiMed Israel Partners to pledge more than $28m to launch FutuRx in 2014.
Companies join the FutuRx biotech incubator for a three-year period and are each eligible to receive up to $2m in funding, 85% of which is supplied by Israel’s Chief Scientist’s Office of the Israeli government.
RMGP Biopharma Investment Fund supports biotherapeutics developed within the incubator, focusing on areas including immuno-oncology, nervous system diseases and orphan diseases.
Since its first close, the fund has increased its portfolio to 11 companies, representing investments in both seed and follow-on rounds. It recently took part in a $32m series B round for drug developer BiomX, which was co-led by Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JJDC and Takeda Ventures.
Kinneret Savitzky, chief executive of FutuRx, said: “Moreover, the collaboration with RMG and its international financial and strategic investors provides important validation of the FutuRx model and its potential to develop innovative therapeutics.”