ENSEM Therapeutics, a CBC Group-Incubated Biopharma Company, Raises $67 Million in Series A Financing to Develop Small Molecule Medicines for Difficult-to-Drug Targets

BOSTON, April 6, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- ENSEM Therapeutics Inc. (ENSEM), a Boston-based biotechnology company focusing on high value and difficult-to-drug oncology targets, announced today the closing of a series A2 financing. Incubated by CBC group since 2021, the financing is led by GGV Capital, with participation from Pavilion Capital, Cenova Capital, Mitsui & Co. Global Investment, Inc., and CBC Group, bringing the series A total to $67 million.

"The pharma/biotech industry has been facing a severe bottleneck imposed by a limited number of druggable targets and the slow pace at which new discoveries can be advanced to clinical trials." said Sean Cao, CEO of ENSEM and Managing Director of CBC Group. "The ENSEM team is made up of veteran drug hunters with extensive experience in advancing novel medicines into clinical trials and regulatory approvals. We will combine new tools coupled with AI and machine learning to break these barriers."

"Biomolecules such as proteins and RNAs are in constant motion, with an ensemble of conformations that govern their functions. Traditional approaches have been ineffective in productively capturing these dynamic states due to experimental and computational limitations," said Shengfang Jin, Ph.D., President and Chief Scientific Officer of ENSEM. "Our team has developed Kinetic Ensemble^TM, a novel multi-tiered platform integrating molecular simulation, AI deep learning, and advanced experimental validation by state-of-the-art macromolecular dynamic techniques. We expect many of these programs will reveal non-obvious binding sites as drug targets and create novel classes of small molecule therapeutics."

"ENSEM has made remarkable progress in a short time," said Joshua Wu, Partner of GGV Capital. "The rich industry and technical expertise of this founding team and its unique platform are the core assets of an exciting AI drug discovery company. We believe ENSEM's differentiated technologies will enable a new generation of drug targets. We are excited to co-lead the series A2 financing and partner with the ENSEM team to accelerate its growth."

Proceeds will be used to further advance the company's Kinetic Ensemble^TM platform and accelerate R&D pipeline.

About ENSEM Therapeutics

ENSEM is a pioneering drug discovery and development company that leverages its unique Kinetic Ensemble^TM platform to develop innovative small molecule precision medicines for oncology, with potential expansion into genetic disorders and other disease areas. ENSEM integrates computational and AI deep learning methodologies with advanced experimental techniques to identify non-obvious binding pockets and accelerate structure-based drug design, with a focus on high-value and difficult-to-drug targets.

For more information, please visit www.ensemtx.com.

About CBC Group

CBC Group, Asia's largest healthcare-dedicated investment firm, is committed to creating value and integrating global resources. Partnering with the world's top entrepreneurs and scientists, its unique investor-operator approach has empowered global leading healthcare companies to widen access to affordable medical care, catalyze innovations, and improve efficiency in fulfilling unmet medical needs worldwide. Founded in 2014, CBC has a leading team of investment, industry and portfolio management professionals headquartered in Singapore with offices in Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong and New York, and presences in Boston, San Diego, San Francisco, and Tokyo. CBC focuses on platform-building, buyout, credit and growth-focused opportunities across multiple core areas within the healthcare sector, including pharmaceutical and biotech, medical technology and healthcare services.

For more information, please visit www.cbridgecap.com.

About GGV

GGV Capital is a global venture firm that invests in local founders. With $9.2 billion under our management, we have investments in the United States, Canada, China, Southeast Asia, India, Latin America, and Israel. As a multi-stage, sector-focused firm, GGV Capital invests in seed-to-growth stage companies across three sectors: Social/Internet, Enterprise Tech, and Smart Tech. Over the past two decades, we have backed more than 400 companies around the world, including Affirm, Airbnb, Alibaba, Big Commerce, Boss Zhipin, Grab, HashiCorp, Hello, JD MRO, Keep, Kujiale, Manbang, NIU, Opendoor Technologies, Peloton, Poshmark, Qunar/Ctrip, Slack, Square, StockX, Udaan, Wish, Xpeng, Zendesk, and more.

About Pavcap

Pavilion Capital International Pte. Ltd. (Pavilion) is an investment company established in Singapore in 2012. Pavilion focuses on private equity/venture capital funds and direct investments in companies that leverage on the economic growth and transformation of North Asia and Southeast Asia. Pavilion seeks investment opportunities across different sectors, particularly in technology and healthcare. 

Pavilion is an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Temasek Holdings.

About Cenova

Cenova Capital is one of the earliest healthcare funds dedicated to early and growth-stage investments in the life sciences and healthcare sectors. Since inception in 2010, Cenova Capital now has six funds under management with investments in over 80 companies in pharmaceuticals, medical devices, healthcare services and digital health. Cenova Capital's investors are mainly large international institutional investors including Asian sovereign wealth investors, insurance companies, financial institutions and multinational companies.

About Mitsui & Co. Global Investment, Inc.

Mitsui & Co. Global Investment, Inc. (MGI), a 100% subsidiary of Mitsui & Co. Ltd., was established in 1996, with its headquarters in Silicon Valley and branches in Tokyo and Beijing. MGI has been engaging in investments in startups and focus areas covering IT and communication, healthcare and biotech and industrial opportunities. Since its establishment, MGI has invested in and managed over 100 portfolio companies. Our vision is to leverage Mitsui's global network and provide portfolio companies support to build their business and guide them onto the global stage.

Contacts

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SOURCE CBC Group