HICREN Biotech Secures Tens of Millions in Pre-C+ Financing Led by Shenzhen High-Tech Investment Group with Horace Capital as Exclusive Financial Advisor

VCBeat learned that recently, Hicren (Ningbo) Medtech Co., Ltd. ("Hicren" or "HICREN") has completed a Pre-C+ round of financing worth tens of millions of yuan, invested by Shenzhen High-Tech Investment Group, with Honzon Capital serving as the exclusive financial advisor. This round of financing will be used to continue advancing the ongoing research and development, clinical trials, and commercial promotion of orthopedic micro-robots and innovative minimally invasive orthopedic products.

In recent years, the nationwide centralized bulk procurement of medical consumables has brought tremendous changes to the traditional orthopedics industry. Amidst challenges and opportunities, companies face a choice: to transform under pressure, exit the market, or remain true to their original aspirations and stand at the forefront. As the waves wash away the sand, the tide of centralized procurement also brings new development opportunities for companies with genuine innovation capabilities and efficient operational management. Hicren Medtech has demonstrated resilience, determination, and perseverance amidst the storms of testing and trials, earning recognition and trust from clients, the market, and investors.

As the leader in curved-angle vertebral augmentation technology, Hicren Medtech isThe first enterprise in China to obtain domestic and EU approval for curved-angle vertebral body forming surgical products.At the same time, the company continues to expand and develop, focusing on micro-innovative technologies and new material application products. It provides a 【1+3+1】 orthopedic overall solution based on the 【Robot + Consumables + Equipment】 framework, establishing an innovative product track layout in fields including orthopedic surgical robots and artificial intelligence, full series of vertebral body forming products, spinal internal implant products, sports medicine series products, active devices, and consumables.

By the end of 2021, Hicren Medtech partnered with Interventional Systems (INS), a European innovative surgical robotics company, to establish Sino-European Zhivii (Shanghai) Robotics Co., Ltd. in Shanghai. The collaboration aims to introduce a new generation of miniaturized orthopedic surgical robots with significant differentiation and innovation. Currently, the first-generation spinal surgery robot, "Intelligent Woodpecker," has successfully completed registration testing and is about to begin clinical trial enrollment. A series of consumable products for vertebroplasty, spinal internal fixation, and sports medicine have seen continuous new product launches and sustained rapid growth. In 2023, the angled series of products entered international markets, achieving sales in multiple countries and receiving widespread clinical acclaim. Multiple host devices and blade heads from the pre-emptively developed active equipment and consumables series have been successfully launched and rapidly expanded, creating new business growth points amidst the centralized procurement environment and enabling the company to steadily enter an era driven by both equipment and consumables.

In the 2022 national centralized bulk procurement of orthopedic spinal medical consumables, all of Hicren Medtech's declared spinal products, including vertebral body plasty and bone cement, spinal internal fixation, and disposable endoscopic surgery electrodes, were successfully awarded. Among them, the core products, the angled vertebral body plasty system and the angled vertebral kyphoplasty system, stood out in the national bulk procurement documents due to their excellent features such as shorter operation time, minimal trauma, simplified procedures, and fewer complications.Listed as an innovative system independent of traditional vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty products`, demonstrating the industry's high recognition and expectations for this technology.`

At the same time, through continuous diversified and high-frequency academic exchange activities and technology promotion projects in recent years, the attention to curved-angle technology in clinical settings has been continuously increasing. From large tertiary hospitals to county-level hospitals, the application of curved-angle products and the smiling faces of patients after recovery can be seen. With the extensive influence of curved-angle products and the technical reserves related to vertebral body forming, Hicren Medtech's spinal internal fixation series, represented by bone cement screws, have quickly gained clinical recognition after being launched. In this centralized volume-based procurement, the products submitted by Hicren Medtech include curved & traditional vertebral body forming/vertebral kyphoplasty, spinal bone cement, spinal internal fixation series, disposable endoscopic surgery electrodes, etc.Obtained the volume reports from more than 1,300 medical institutions, and was rapidly applied clinically in the 2023 centralized procurement implementation, laying a solid foundation for the continuous growth of the subsequent market.

Hicren Medtech's research and development-driven strategy has been deeply implemented for over a decade. From the angled vertebral body plasty system at the company’s founding and one of China’s first approved bone cements for spinal use, to today’s successive market launches of spinal internal fixation, sports medicine, powered devices, and consumable products, with surgical robot products on the horizon, the company’s R&D team continuously drives the creation and growth of new technologies and projects.As of the first half of 2023, the company has obtained 23 NMPA registration certificates, including 15 Class II certificates and 8 Class III certificates, with 7 products achieving CE certification.In the next few years, the company will achieve double-digit new registrations and maintain the pace of launching five new products every year.

In the company's current staffing, R&D-related personnel account for over 30%. The Ningbo R&D Center and Shanghai surgical robot R&D team provide strong support for comprehensively building the "1+3+1" product line layout. Meanwhile, by collaborating with large tertiary hospitals and well-known domestic universities, more new product projects that meet clinical needs and lead industry technology are being rapidly initiated and carried out. Innovation is the source of national development, the driving force behind industry progress, and the cornerstone of corporate success. Centralized procurement has further opened the door to the future and opportunities for innovative enterprises. Committed to revolutionizing minimally invasive orthopedic technologies, Hicren Medtech remains true to its original mission of providing more excellent minimally invasive surgery solutions for patients and doctors, steadily advancing towards becoming an innovative enterprise empowered by robotics in digital orthopedic minimally invasive platforms.

Mr. Ma Yan, Chairman and General Manager of Hicren MedtechHicren Medtech has broken through the minimally invasive orthopedics track with its innovative angled technology, aligning with the current trend in orthopedic surgery towards precision and minimization. At the same time, Hicren Medtech has taken the lead in laying out the miniaturized robotics field through global cooperation, creating a complete layout of "innovative consumables + robotics". Under China's first national spinal procurement initiative, it achieved excellent results, earning recognition from clinicians and distributors as well as affirmation from investors. It is also hoped that, with the joint assistance of both existing and new investors, the company can build a global spinal innovation platform enterprise.

Yang Zhenjun, Managing Partner of Haoyue CapitalIt is a great honor to serve as the exclusive financial advisor for Hicren Medtech in this round of financing and to assist the company in completing this funding. In the broader field of orthopedics, a single product pipeline can no longer sustain long-term development. However, Hicren Medtech has successfully developed an innovative minimally invasive orthopedic solution that integrates "robotics + equipment + consumables." In the future, the company will gradually highlight the dual core advantages of robotics and consumables innovation. Wishing Hicren Medtech continued success and prosperity!