Novlead Biotech Secures RMB 120 Million Series B Financing Led by Lilly Asia Ventures and Files for Hong Kong IPO

VCBeat (WeChat ID: vcbeat) recently learned that Nanjing Nollet Biotechnology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Noliving Biotech”) has completed a Series B financing round totaling RMB 120 million. This round of investment was led by top-tier international investment firmsLilly Asia VenturesLead Investor: Renowned InstitutionBencao CapitalCo-investment by existing Series A investorsAurora Venture CapitalContinued support. This round of financing will be used to accelerate the R&D and market promotion of the company's projects on pulmonary arterial hypertension, diabetic foot ulcers, etc., as well as the development of subsequent pipelines.

Noliving Biotech, established in 2018, is China’s first medical enterprise dedicated to nitric oxide (NO) gas therapy. Leveraging an internationally leading, independently patented molecular technology platform, the company spearheads the research, development, and manufacturing of innovative high-end medical devices. It provides breakthrough solutions to address significant unmet clinical needs in areas such as cardiopulmonary care, respiratory medicine, and anti-infective therapy. With efficient R&D output and robust commercialization capabilities, Noliving Biotech currently has five products in its pipeline, two of which are poised for commercial launch within the next year. Targeting a blue-ocean market valued at tens of billions of yuan, the company is well-positioned to emerge as a leader in the field of high-end gas therapy and monitoring.

A single breath of “life-saving” gas can rapidly improve patients’ oxygenation index within minutes and quickly reduce pulmonary vascular resistance. Such is the high efficacy of nitric oxide (NO), the molecule honored with the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. Approved by the U.S. FDA for market entry as early as 1999, this therapy has seen relatively widespread clinical application overseas. Its indications have expanded from critical, life-threatening conditions with extremely high mortality rates—such as persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn (PPHN) and hypoxemic respiratory failure, where it is an essential intervention—to adult clinical scenarios including pulmonary hypertensive crisis and perioperative life support. By effectively reducing mortality associated with these conditions, inhaled NO therapy has become a standard emergency equipment staple in intensive care units (ICUs). However, development in this field has been relatively slow in China. Each year, approximately 200,000 neonates and hundreds of thousands of adult patients in urgent need of NO to save their lives face very limited treatment options; in some cases, nebulized “Viagra” (sildenafil) is even administered to neonates as an alternative therapy.

Noliving Biotech’s first launched product, the “Portable NO Inhalation Therapy Device,” not only provides Chinese patients with timely, efficient, and compliant treatment but also expands to more hospital and home-based care scenarios due to its miniaturized design and on-site nitric oxide (NO) generation. The disruptive technological revolution shifting NO delivery from “gas cylinders” to “on-demand generation” underwent nearly two decades of development in the United States, with the FDA approving the first medical device featuring on-site NO generation only in December 2019. Noliving Biotech possesses independently developed intellectual property rights for its on-site NO generation technology, achieving similar outcomes as international peers through a different approach, while offering higher efficiency, a smaller footprint, and lower costs.

By deeply exploring the technical application pathways of nitric oxide (NO), an endogenous gas molecule, focusing on its mechanisms such as vasodilation, antimicrobial activity, and immunomodulation, Noliving Biotech has established a high-barrier technology platform centered on electrochemical catalytic chelation generation technology, controlled molecular release technology, and composite gas sensing technology, driven by sustained and substantial R&D investment.

Breakthrough on-demand gas generation technology enables real-time treatment and monitoring. Compared with existing products, it will significantly enhance the convenience, safety, and therapeutic accuracy of clinical applications, reshape the value chain of current products, and allow a broader population of Chinese patients to benefit from advanced medical technologies synchronized with global standards.

Currently, the company has other product pipelines, including topical gas therapy devices for wound healing and exhaled nitric oxide (NO) analyzers, covering eight indications such as pulmonary arterial hypertension, high-altitude pulmonary edema, diabetic foot ulcers, pulmonary fibrosis, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Through product innovation, the company aims to serve more patients, improve their quality of life, and truly become a life sciences company that benefits society.

“Noliving Biotech possesses globally leading technologies in nitric oxide generation and controlled release. Therefore, we aspire to build a company rooted in China with a global vision, enabling patients worldwide to benefit from original medical technologies developed in China, thereby realizing a true ‘In China, for Global’ strategy. By partnering with top-tier international investment institutions, the company is more confident in advancing toward its goal of becoming an international medical enterprise specializing in the high-end gas therapy and diagnostics sector.”Dr. Mao Wen, CEO of Noliving Biotechdenoted.

Dr. Fei Chen, Managing Partner at Lilly Asia Ventures“Nitric oxide therapy, as a platform technology, holds broad application prospects in critical disease areas such as cardiopulmonary emergency care, respiratory diseases, and infectious diseases. Noliving Biotech’s foundational patented technologies—including on-demand generation, controlled release, and detection of nitric oxide gas—are globally innovative. These technologies significantly enhance the therapeutic efficiency and precision of nitric oxide treatment, fill the domestic gap for related products, and lay a solid foundation for the continuous launch of disruptive future products. We believe that Noliving Biotech will grow into an innovative therapeutic solutions company with international competitiveness. LAV is honored to participate in this financing round and support the company’s sustained growth.”

Deng Feng, Partner at Northern Light Venture Capitalstated, “The founding team of Noliving Biotech is outstanding and efficient, with complementary strengths and strong technological innovation capabilities, leading the company to rapidly advance its products to the commercialization stage. This also brings us great pleasure, and we look forward to accompanying the company as it accelerates its development in the blue-ocean sector of gas therapy.”

Liu Qianye, Founder and Partner of Bencao CapitalHe also stated, “Bencao has always paid close attention to the industrial opportunities brought about by technological innovation. There is a significant unmet clinical demand for nitric oxide (NO), but its clinical application has long been constrained by the efficiency of NO gas generation and purification. Noliving Biotech has applied groundbreaking global electrochemical NO generation technology to develop portable devices, positioning itself to lead development in this field. We look forward to collaborating with the company to explore broader clinical applications and to expand from China to the global market.”

Lilly Asia Ventures (LAV) is a premier venture capital fund dedicated to investing in the life sciences and healthcare sectors. Headquartered in Shanghai, China, with offices in Hong Kong, China, and Silicon Valley, USA, our long-term vision is to build great companies that overcome diseases and improve human health through breakthrough products, and to serve as a trusted partner for outstanding entrepreneurs seeking smart capital.

Northern Light Venture Capital takes “empowering world-class Chinese entrepreneurs and cultivating world-class Chinese enterprises” as its mission, with a long-term focus on investing in early-stage, technology-driven innovative companies. To date, it has invested in more than 400 outstanding enterprises. Northern Light Venture Capital entered the healthcare sector in 2009. Over the past decade-plus, its investments have spanned multiple subsectors, including medical devices, in vitro diagnostics (IVD), biopharmaceuticals, healthcare services, and E-Health. The firm has invested in more than 70 companies, including CITIC Pharmaceutical, BGI Genomics, Burning Rock Biotech, Zeltex Pharmaceuticals, iRay Technology, Taimei Medical Technology, Cytek Biosciences, and Guoke Hengtai.

Bencao Capital is a renowned investment firm specializing in the healthcare and medical industry, investing in domestic and overseas innovative medical enterprises across multiple sectors, including new drug development, medical devices, clinical diagnostics, and healthcare services. The core investment team at Bencao possesses professional backgrounds in the biopharmaceutical industry, with over ten years of successful experience in both investment and entrepreneurship, and has cumulatively invested in more than 50 medical companies. With tremendous growth opportunities anticipated in the healthcare sector over the next ten to twenty years, Bencao is committed to helping cultivate a cohort of outstanding, internationally competitive medical enterprises, generating returns for investors, and establishing Bencao Capital as a successful medical investment brand expanding from China to the global stage.