EmayGene Secures Tens of Millions in Strategic Funding to Accelerate Gene Therapy Industrialization

VCBeat has learned that Shanghai EmayGene Technology Co., Ltd. (“EmayGene”) announced the completion of a strategic financing round on June 27, 2023. The investment was jointly made by Jinpu Muhe Fund, under Jinpu Investment, and Hongsheng Capital. The proceeds will be used to strengthen the company’s capabilities in technology, R&D, and marketing, accelerate the development of its product pipeline and market expansion, and enhance EmayGene’s competitiveness and influence in the field of gene therapy.

EmayGene, established in September 2021 and located in Zhangjiang Pharma Valley, is an innovative biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel AAV vectors and gene therapy drugs. The company is dedicated to screening and engineering gene delivery vectors with clinical application potential, with a particular focus on otological conditions such as hearing impairment caused by genetic defects and degenerative deafness. EmayGene aims to provide high-quality, affordable gene therapy products to patients with rare diseases and chronic conditions worldwide.

EmayGene is a biopharmaceutical company incubated by the iHuman Institute at ShanghaiTech University. This round of financing will help accelerate technological innovation and product development, providing patients with higher-quality, personalized gene therapy solutions. As a treatment approach targeting genetic disorders, gene therapy offers hope for a cure to patients who currently have no available therapeutic options.

EmayGene is committed to driving sustainable development through independent innovation. In the field of gene therapy, the development of adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors is an ongoing endeavor and serves as the core technology for AAV-mediated gene therapy. EmayGene has established a comprehensive AAV engineering platform—AAVMeta. Its first novel ophthalmic AAV vector has successfully achieved commercial translation, with therapeutics developed using this vector having entered clinical trials. Meanwhile, EmayGene has also successfully developed novel AAV vectors targeting various tissues, including the cochlea, lungs, nervous system, and muscles, and has implemented extensive patent layouts in the field of gene therapy both domestically and internationally.

Mr. Zhang Hua, Partner at Jinpu Muhe Fundstated: “As a new generation of precision therapies following small-molecule and large-molecule targeted therapies, cell and gene therapy offers novel therapeutic concepts and approaches for cancer, rare diseases, chronic conditions, and other refractory disorders. AAV vector development and engineering technology constitutes the most fundamental core technology in gene therapy. We are optimistic about EmayGene’s accumulated expertise in platform technologies for AAV vectors and look forward to collaborating with the EmayGene team to jointly advance the development of the cell and gene therapy industry, thereby providing more treatment options for patients worldwide.”

Mr. Jiang Houjia, Founding Partner of Hongsheng CapitalHe stated, “The EmayGene team is one of the rare domestic teams possessing foundational technologies for AAV screening and engineering. The company’s proprietary pipeline targets the vast blue-ocean market of gene therapy for hearing loss, with R&D progress leading in China and promising major breakthroughs in the coming years. We are honored to partner with Gopher Capital in this round of financing. We hope to leverage the resources of the Hongsheng ecosystem to accelerate EmayGene’s growth and advance gene therapies for hearing loss to benefit a broad patient population.”

The Jinpu Muhe Fund is a fund established through the collaboration between Jinpu Investment and industry players in the cell and gene therapy (CGT) sector. The fund focuses on investing in enterprises across the upstream and downstream CGT value chain that possess core technologies and innovative capabilities. By combining investment with strategic empowerment, the fund aims to accelerate the growth of domestic Chinese companies in the cell and gene therapy field, jointly driving the development of China’s CGT industry.

Hongsheng Capital focuses on equity investments in the healthcare and medical industry, with total assets under management exceeding RMB 1 billion. Its limited partners include more than ten publicly listed healthcare companies, state-owned enterprises, and market-oriented fund-of-funds. The management team consists of industry leaders from top-tier central state-owned pharmaceutical distribution companies, private equity funds, and publicly listed healthcare firms. Hongsheng Capital distinguishes itself through its “Ecosystem Investment Strategy” and “Comprehensive Post-Investment Value-Added Services,” leveraging the advantageous resources of industrial listed companies and its team to build a healthcare ecosystem, while making deep investment allocations closely aligned with ecosystem resources.