Nitec Pharma AG closes CHF
32 million (approx. US$ 26 million) Series B financing led by
NGN Capital
Basel, Switzerland – March 29, 2007 –
Nitec Pharma AG, a specialist pharmaceutical company focused on
the treatment of chronic inflammatory diseases, today announced
the closing of a CHF 32 million (approx. US$ 26 million) Series
B fundraising. This round was led by NGN Capital, together with
existing investors Atlas Venture and Global Life Science Ventures.
The proceeds will be used to develop further Nitec’s lead
product Lodotra™ in Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) and other
indications and to develop a second clinical product. Lodotra™
is a night time release formulation of a corticosteroid that recently
successfully completed Phase III trials in RA.
“Now that we have successfully demonstrated the potential
of Lodotra in the clinic, these funds will help us bring to the
market a product that meets real patient needs while also enabling
us to expand Nitec’s product pipeline and commercial potential,”
commented Jochen Mattis, co-founder and Head of Marketing and
Sales at Nitec Pharma, “We are particularly happy to have
NGN Capital lead this round.”
Dr. Peter Johann, Managing General Partner of NGN Capital, will
join the Board of Nitec Pharma AG. Dr. Johann stated, “We
are very excited about this late stage opportunity with Lodotra
being close to launch for the treatment of RA in Europe. Lodotra
addresses a high unmet medical need in RA and has the potential
to be of similar benefit in other indications. With the broad
range of indications Lodotra can address, and with a second highly
valuable compound being added to the pipeline, we see significant
additional future value to be created by the company.”
About Nitec Pharma AG:
Nitec Pharma is a specialist pharmaceutical company focused on
the development and commercialization of optimized medicines for
the treatment of chronic inflammatory diseases. Headquartered
in Reinach, Switzerland, with a wholly-owned subsidiary in Mannheim,
Germany, the Company is developing Lodotra™, a night time
release formulation of prednisone, to address morning symptoms
such as morning stiffness in rheumatoid arthritis. Lodotra™
has just successfully completed Phase III trials and will also
be developed to treat other indications such as Polymyalgia Rheumatica
(PMR), asthma and other inflammatory diseases. Nitec was originally
founded in 2004 in a spin-out from Merck KGaA. Lodotra™
was originally developed at Merck in cooperation with SkyePharma
using SkyePharma’s GEOCLOCK™ technology. The company
is financed by venture-capital firms Atlas Venture, GLSV and NGN
Capital. For further information about Nitec Pharma please visit
www.nitecpharma.com.
About NGN Capital
NGN Capital is a global healthcare venture capital investment
firm presently managing a $250 million Fund. NGN has investment
capabilities across a broad spectrum of healthcare segments, including
drug products, medical devices, and healthcare services, with
an emphasis on later-stage opportunities. NGN has offices in New
York, NY, Heidelberg, Germany, and Greenwich, CT. More information
on NGN can be found at www.ngncapital.com.
About Atlas Venture
Atlas Venture is a leading early-stage international venture capital
firm that invests in technology and life sciences businesses in
the U.S., Europe and Asia. Since inception in 1980, its partners
have helped build over 300 companies in more than 16 different
countries. In the past decade, 44 portfolio companies have been
acquired and 47 are now public companies with an aggregate market
capitalization of over $15 billion. Atlas Venture manages over
$2.5 billion in capital through offices in Boston, London, Munich,
and Paris. For more information, visit www.atlasventure.com.
About Global Life Science Ventures:
GLSV is a leading, independent venture capital fund focusing exclusively
on the life sciences. With offices in Germany and Switzerland,
GLSV is dedicated to supporting early-stage companies originating
from universities, scientific institutions or industry, but also
invests in selected later-stage companies, including buy-outs.
The group currently advises and manages funds totaling more than
€200 million. GLSV has now financed 32 innovative life science
companies in Europe and the US, twelve of which have completed
an exit through IPO, trade sale or M&A. Since 1996, GLSV has
built up a broadly diversified portfolio of companies in pharmaceuticals,
diagnostics, medical devices, and biotechnology. For more information
about GLSV, go to www.glsv-vc.com.
Further Information:
Jochen Mattis
Head of Marketing and Sales
Nitec Pharma AG
t: +49 (0)621 438 50 211
e: jochen.mattis@nitecpharma.com
Dr. Douglas Pretsell
Account Director, Munich Bureau Chief
Northbank Communications
t : +49 (0)89 57 00 18 06
e: d.pretsell@northbankcommunications.com
John R. Costantino, or Dr. Peter Johann
NGN Capital
t: +1 212-972-0077
e: jcostantino@ngncapital.com;
pjohann@ngncapital.com
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