AbSci Raises Oversubscribed $12M Series C to Fuel Commercialization of Its Groundbreaking Protein Expression Platform
The Series C Round led by Asahi Glass Co., Ltd. "AGC" includes participation from all prior investors (Phoenix Venture Partners, Oregon Venture Fund, WRF Capital, and Souther Co.) and new investors Columbia Ventures Corporation and GreenBridge.
VANCOUVER, Wash., May 30, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- AbSci, a global leader in biomanufacturing technologies, today announced the completion of an over-subscribed $12 million Series C financing. As a part of the financing, AGC Biologics' President and CEO, Dr. Gustavo Mahler will join AbSci's Board of Directors.
The financing will enable AbSci to expand its R&D and to scale up capacity in order to meet the growing demand from its large pharma and biosimilar partners. AbSci's breakthrough protein expression platform, SoluPro™, has demonstrated the ability to accelerate biopharmaceutical discovery and development timelines as well as dramatically reduce biopharmaceutical manufacturing costs.
"We are excited to have so much interest in this round. Having a strategic partner such as AGC Biologics opens a number of opportunities," said AbSci's Founder and CEO, Sean McClain. "Our system has achieved unparalleled productivities for a wide array of biopharmaceuticals, including insulin and other difficult to produce molecules, resulting in dramatic reductions to manufacturing COGS. We are eager to apply our novel approach to define a new standard for antibody production."
SoluPro™, a synthetic biology platform based on genetically engineered E. coli and plasmids, delivers industry-leading titers of complex proteins, ranging from full-length antibodies to insulin, with superior product quality. The new investment will support the expansion of AbSci's high-throughput capabilities, refine and deepen the range of its screening and discovery technologies, and advance the development of novel platform tools.
Dr. Alan Herman, a member of AbSci's Scientific Advisory Board and CSO of Coherus Biosciences commented, "AbSci's SoluPro™ platform has the potential to cut years from development timelines, saving biopharma companies hundreds of millions of dollars and getting critical life-saving and life-altering biologicals to patients years earlier."
"The level of investor interest in this financing is a testament to the truly exceptional team at AbSci, which continues to deliver breakthroughs in biopharmaceutical productivity, both in R&D and manufacturing," said Dr. Zach Jonasson, Chairman of AbSci's Board of Directors and Managing Partner of Phoenix Venture Partners. "The Series C financing will accelerate commercialization of the company's platform, including for full-length antibody and biosimilars production."
About AbSci
AbSci is a global leader in biomanufacturing technologies. The company's SoluProTM expression platform achieves ultra-high yields of soluble and active protein products and enables ultra-high efficiency purification processes. AbSci's unique approach accelerates drug discovery timelines, increases manufacturing efficiencies, and drastically reduces costs for the biopharmaceutical industry. For more information, please visit www.absci.com.
About AGC and AGC Biologics
AGC Asahi Glass (also called AGC, Registered Company name: Asahi Glass Co., Ltd., Headquarters: Tokyo, President & CEO: Takuya Shimamura) is the parent company of the AGC Group, a world-leading glass solution provider and supplier of flat, automotive and display glass, chemicals, ceramics and other high-tech materials and components. Based on more than a century of technical innovation, the AGC Group has developed a wide range of cutting-edge products. The AGC Group employs some 50,000 people worldwide and generates annual sales of approximately 1.5 trillion Japanese yen through business in about 30 countries. For more information, please visit www.agc.com.
AGC Biologics is a leading global Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO), with a strong commitment to deliver the highest standard of service to our clients and partners. AGC Biologics is the product of the convergence and integration of AGC's Bioscience Division, Biomeva GmbH, and CMC Biologics. The company currently employs more than 850 employees worldwide. Our extensive network spans three continents, with cGMP-compliant facilities in Seattle, WA; Berkeley, CA; Copenhagen, Denmark; Heidelberg, Germany; Yokohama, Japan; and Chiba, Japan. Further information can be found at www.agcbio.com.
SOURCE AbSci
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