Hummingbird Bioscience Secures $125 Million Series C Financing to Advance Next-Generation Precision Therapeutics Pipeline

VCBeat has learned that Hummingbird Bioscience announced today the completion of its $125 million Series C financing round. The round was led by Novo Holdings, with significant participation from several new investors, including Frazier Healthcare Partners, Octagon Capital, EDBI, Amgen Ventures, DROIA Ventures, Morningside Ventures, Pureos Bioventures, Polaris Partners, Affinity Asset Advisors, Ally Bridge Group, and Altrium Capital Management. Existing shareholders SK Inc, Heritas Capital, and Mirae Asset Venture Capital also continued their support.

Hummingbird Bioscience is an innovative, clinical-stage biotechnology company dedicated to developing precision therapies targeting difficult-to-drug targets to improve therapeutic outcomes.

Piers Ingram, CEO and Co-Founder of Hummingbird Bioscience, stated: “We are delighted to have the support and trust of leading global healthcare investors, which will drive the development of a portfolio of unique precision therapies targeting significant but historically difficult-to-drug targets. Since completing our Series B financing in 2019, we have made substantial progress, and this round of financing serves as an endorsement of our platform, team, and development strategy. Leveraging our world-class research team and proprietary technologies, Hummingbird is at the forefront of scientific discovery. These new funds provide us with additional resources to invest in ourour early-stage product portfolio and support the clinical development of our two leading programs, which we believe can deliver significant benefits to patients.”

This round of financing will be used to advance the clinical development of Hummingbird Bioscience’s pipeline, including HMBD-001 (a HER3 antibody targeting NRG1 fusion– and HER3-driven tumors) and HMBD-002 (a first-in-class anti-VISTA neutralizing antibody for advanced solid tumors). The funds will also be utilized to expand the capabilities of Hummingbird’s proprietary Rational Antibody Discovery platform and to advance the development of its next-generation precision therapy portfolio, including HMBD-009 (a BCMA-TACI bispecific T-cell engager).

Kenneth Harrison, Partner at Novo Venturesstated: “We are delighted to lead this financing round for Hummingbird and pleased to have attracted a group of sophisticated investors, thereby accelerating the company’s clinical development activities. We believe that Hummingbird’s novel data-driven systems biology approach will bring new precision to the field of antibody drug discovery and development, and we are proud to support the team in realizing their vision.”

Dan Estes, Partner at Frazier Healthcare Partnersstated, “Hummingbird is about to commence clinical studies for HMBD-001 and HMBD-002, marking an exciting milestone. I look forward to collaborating with the Hummingbird team to develop and build its portfolio of drug candidates, which have the potential to bring transformative advances to patients with cancer and autoimmune diseases.”

SK Corporation Vice President Kiel Kimstated: “Antibody-based novel therapies hold immense potential. Leveraging Hummingbird’s Rational Antibody Discovery platform, we can now identify high-value antibodies against challenging targets. We look forward to strengthening our partnership with Hummingbird to address complex challenges in antibody development and deliver highly differentiated therapies to patients in need.”

Hummingbird Bioscience is an innovative, clinical-stage biotechnology company dedicated to developing precision therapies for targets that are difficult to drug, with the aim of improving therapeutic outcomes. We leverage the latest advances in systems biology and data science to better understand and address the root causes of disease, guiding the development of our therapeutics. Supported by our proprietary Rational Antibody Discovery platform, we identify and design precision therapies targeting optimal yet hard-to-find antigen epitopes that have not been successfully addressed by existing drugs, thereby unlocking novel mechanisms of action. We collaborate with global partners in academia and industry to advance a rich pipeline of first-in-class precision therapies in oncology and autoimmune diseases. Our experienced, multidisciplinary teams in Singapore and the United States span antibody discovery, pharmacology, manufacturing, data science, and clinical development. Together, we are committed to accelerating the development of new medicines from concept to clinical treatment.

Amgen Ventures, established in 2004 as the corporate venture capital arm of Amgen, is dedicated to identifying and investing in emerging companies and technologies to advance the development of promising new medicines and solutions that address the most significant challenges in healthcare. Globally, Amgen Ventures has made strategic investments in therapeutic and drug discovery initiatives that extend beyond traditional molecular concepts, such as digital health platforms, data analytics, and value-based care models.

Droia is a professional biotechnology investor focused on therapies for oncology and genetic diseases. Droia operates globallyWe invest domestically in newly established or early-stage platform companies that leverage novel science and innovative technologies to deliver first-in-class drug candidates to patients. Our team, composed of seasoned scientists, entrepreneurs, and investment professionals, has built multiple top-tier companies dedicated to saving patients’ lives.

EDBI has been investing since 1991. Headquartered in Singapore, it is a global investor focused on selected high-growth technology sectors, including information and communications technology (ICT), emerging technologies (ET), healthcare (HC), and promising Singaporean small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in strategic industries. As a value-creating investor, EDBI leverages its extensive network, resources, and expertise to help companies achieve their ambitious goals. With its growth capital, EDBI supports companies seeking to expand across Asia and globally through Singapore.

Frazier Healthcare Partners, founded in 1991, is one of the industry leaders. Frazier is committed toHealthcare companies provide venture capital and facilitate their growth.Frazier’s total capital stood at $4.8 billion (as of 2020), with investments in more than 200 companies. Its investment scope spans company formation, venture capital, public equities, and acquisitions of profitable middle-market companies. The Frazier Life Sciences team primarily invests in therapy-focused private and public companies that develop and commercialize innovative biopharmaceuticals to address critical unmet medical needs. Since 2005, Frazier has founded or supported 24 biopharmaceutical companies at the seed stage. Headquartered in Menlo Park, California, the Frazier Life Sciences team invests globally.

Morningside Venture Capital was founded by the Chen family of Hong Kong in 1986. Since its inception, Morningside Venture Capital has consistently focused on and prioritizedKeeping a close eye on the cutting-edge developments in the global biopharmaceutical and healthcare sectors, the company operates and invests in enterprises across North America, Europe, and China. It has assembled a team of investors who possess both profound technical expertise in the industry and extensive experience in venture capital management.

Novo Holdings is widely recognized as a world-leading life sciences investor, focused on creating long-term value. As aLife science investors, Novo Holdings provides seed and venture capital to companies in the development stage, and in growth-stage comsignificant ownership stakes in both start-ups and mature companies. Novo Holdings also manages a broad, diversified portfolio of financial assets.Novo Ventures is a global, specialized investment team that supports Novo Holdings in pursuing private and public equity investment opportunities in the life sciences industry.

Octagon Capital Advisors LP, established in 2019, is a multi-stage investment management firm dedicated toInvest in evidence-based opportunities across public and private healthcare companies in the United States and China.Octagon Capital is dedicated to concentrated, long-term investing and building partnerships with our portfolio management teams. Octagon Capital manages diverse capital on behalf of global institutions, including university endowments, non-profit foundations, family offices, pension funds, and established asset managers.

Polaris Partners has been collaborating with seasoned entrepreneurs and world-class innovators for over two decades, dedicated toContinuously improving the way we live and work. This multi-billion-dollar company manages specialized and diversified funds in the healthcare and technology sectors, with investments spanning all stages.Polaris has offices in Boston, San Francisco, and New York.

Pureos Bioventures is a newly established venture capital fund, managed by the Swiss asset manager Bellevue (Bellevue Asset Management) provides investment advisory services. Pureos specializes in investing in privately held, non-listed innovative drugs.The development company places particular emphasis on next-generation biopharmaceuticals and drug modalities. Its portfolio companies are built on a foundation of scientific excellence, developing a diverse range of therapies for a broad spectrum of indications, including oncology, immunology, ophthalmology, rare diseases, and neuroscience. Leveraging a professional team composed of experienced venture capitalists, biotechnology entrepreneurs, and drug R&D specialists,Pureos is committed to advancing the development of innovative therapies for critical illnesses to improve patients' lives.

SK Corporation has partnered with companies across various business sectors, including energy, chemicals, ICT, semiconductors, materials, logistics, services, and biopharmaceuticals.Together with its portfolio companies that possess international competitiveness, the Group has formulated a long-term investment strategy to enhance the value of its business portfolio. Furthermore, while solidifying its development foundation on the basis of financial stability, the Company is concentrating its efforts on identifying new business areas and nurturing them into core businesses, thereby laying the groundwork for sustainable growth and enhancing its corporate value as an investment holding company.