ABclonal Biotechnology Secures RMB 600 Million Series C Financing with China Renaissance as Exclusive Financial Advisor

VCBeat recently learned that the Wuhan-based solutions provider for the upstream sector of the life sciences tools industryWuhan ABclonal Technology Co., Ltd. (“ABclonal”)Announced the completion of RMB 600 million in Series C financing. This round of financingLed by Jifeng Capital, with follow-on investments from Sequoia Capital China, C&D Emerging Investment, and Yuanhe Chenkun, while existing shareholders including Fanghe Capital, Jinhe Capital, and Luxin Venture Capital continued to increase their stakes; Haoyue Capital served as the exclusive financial advisor for this round of financing.This financing will enable ABclonal to further intensify its R&D efforts and expand its business footprint in the life science tools and in vitro diagnostics sectors through external integration.

As the life sciences and diagnostics industries continue to experience rapid growth, market demand for high-quality upstream products is increasing. Research reports indicate that the combined global market size for life science tools and in vitro diagnostic (IVD) raw materials has exceeded $100 billion, with expectations of maintaining a high growth rate. However, due to factors such as the late start of Chinese enterprises, high technological barriers, and patent restrictions, international giants represented by Thermo Fisher Scientific and Danaher have long held a monopolistic position in the upstream sector. During the pandemic, this dependency led to a precarious situation where access to critical diagnostic equipment and raw materials was constrained. With the rise of China’s life sciences industry and the rapid global expansion of the diagnostics sector, China’s life science tools industry is facing significant historical opportunities.

ABclonal, established in 2011, is a leading brand in China’s life science tools sector, boasting superior capabilities in the research and development, iteration, and manufacturing of reagent raw materials. Since its inception, the company has progressed through multiple developmental stages, including technological accumulation, brand building, and technology leadership. It now possesses R&D capabilities that are leading domestically and world-class globally, along with the most comprehensive product portfolio of antibodies, antigens, and molecular enzymes. Notably, its fourth-generation recombinant rabbit monoclonal antibody platform and its CRISPR-based antibody gene knockout validation platform are globally leading in the fields of antibodies and antigens. In the realm of molecular enzymes, ABclonal emphasizes original innovation in its foundational enzyme library and has begun to exert global influence in molecular nucleic acid diagnostics, NGS applications, and research-grade molecular enzyme tools. Furthermore, after several years of development, ABclonal has built a global sales network, with overseas revenue accounting for 40% of its total income. The company is committed to penetrating every global market region with the finest products from China’s tools industry and aims to lead Chinese enterprises in collaborative global expansion.

ABclonal CEO Wu ZhicaiHe stated, “Reagent raw materials are the most critical component of life science tools. Innovation in raw materials is the source of technological innovation, and the quality of these materials determines the efficacy of downstream applications. ABclonal has always adhered to its goal of becoming a leader in the field of life science tools. Starting from the sector of reagent raw materials, we have always taken it as our responsibility to create high-tech, high-quality products that earn users’ trust. Since its establishment, the company has continuously invested in research and development. To date, we have accumulated a substantial reserve of world-leading technologies, including fourth-generation recombinant rabbit monoclonal antibodies and high-throughput molecular enzyme screening, which further demonstrates our determination to continually raise barriers to entry in this field. In the future, ABclonal will continue to expand horizontally within the life science tools industry, striving to provide one-stop solutions for the global life sciences sector. We are honored to welcome new shareholders such as JF Capital and Sequoia Capital China Fund in this financing round. I believe that with the support of all shareholders, ABclonal will continue to accelerate its development. We also extend our gratitude to the Hywin Capital team, the exclusive financial advisor for this financing round, whose professionalism and dedication have been widely recognized.”

Jifeng Capital Partner Hu Xuyu“While the life sciences tools market is vast, it remains dominated by imported brands in China, with high-quality domestic upstream platform enterprises being exceedingly scarce. ABclonal Technology Co.,Ltd. stands out as one of the few domestic platform companies that have achieved significant scale, established strategic layouts in core segments such as antigens/antibodies and molecular enzymes, and adopted a dual focus on R&D and marketing. The company is also actively expanding into overseas markets and leveraging global R&D resources to deliver premium products and professional services to scientific research institutions, drug development organizations, and diagnostic industry clients worldwide. Its founding team possesses deep industry expertise, a strong global perspective, and robust execution capabilities. There is substantial synergistic value between ABclonal and Jifeng Capital, and we firmly believe that the company is poised to become a leader in the life sciences tools industry.”

Li Yishi, Partner at Haoyue CapitalHe stated, “We are delighted to have successfully completed our Series C financing in partnership with ABclonal, a leading enterprise in life science tools. The domestic reagent raw material industry is currently facing multiple challenges, including generally low product efficacy and diversity, as well as a lack of large-scale production capabilities among many raw material suppliers. Through our collaboration with ABclonal, we have deeply appreciated the company’s tremendous efforts and contributions to changing the status quo of the industry by providing users with more comprehensive and higher-quality products. During this financing round, which coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic, ABclonal, as a Wuhan-based enterprise, overcame numerous difficulties to efficiently launch many new products, thereby driving the company’s performance to new heights. The team’s execution capability and cohesion are evident to all. We believe that the company will achieve leapfrog development with the support of capital.”

Existing shareholders of ABclonal, including Dongfanghe Capital, Jinhe Capital, and Luxin Venture Capital, have warmly welcomed the addition of new shareholders such as Jifeng Capital and Sequoia Capital China. All shareholders, both existing and new, have expressed their unified commitment to pooling efforts to drive ABclonal’s growth and make due contributions to China’s life science tools industry.

Jifeng Capital is a healthcare investment firm established in 2015, with approximately $1.3 billion in assets under management. We are dedicated to investing in companies in the Chinese and U.S. markets that boast exceptional management teams and ambitious visions. Our investment focus spans biopharmaceuticals, medical devices, and medical diagnostics, among other areas. We work closely with our portfolio companies, providing not only capital support but also assistance in international business expansion, identifying overseas partners, and actively supporting market planning and team development to facilitate product approval and market access. At Jifeng Capital, our portfolio companies are more than just investment projects; they are long-term strategic partners.

Sequoia Capital has always been committed to helping entrepreneurs build enduring, great companies by bringing its portfolio firms abundant global resources and valuable historical experience. Over the past 48 years, Sequoia Capital has invested in numerous innovative enterprises and leaders shaping industry trends. As “entrepreneurs behind entrepreneurs,” Sequoia Capital China focuses on investment opportunities in four sectors: technology/media, healthcare, consumer goods/services, and industrial technology. Over the past 15 years, Sequoia Capital China has invested in nearly 600 companies characterized by distinct technological advantages, innovative business models, and high growth potential.

Sigma Square Capital, established in 2016, is a private equity fund management firm founded by former partners and executives of IDG Capital. The core team at Sigma Square Capital has collaborated for over a decade, possessing extensive experience in managing both RMB and USD investments. Sigma Square Capital focuses on growth-stage investment opportunities in sectors such as medical technology and emerging technologies, with particular emphasis on niche areas including life science tools, biopharmaceuticals, and innovative medical devices, striving to deliver substantial financial returns to its investors.

Jinhe Capital is an investment institution focused on the healthcare sector, headquartered in Guangzhou. The core team of its fund manager possesses over 25 years of experience in the medical industry and successfully built KingMed Diagnostics, China’s largest third-party medical testing laboratory. Jinhe Capital currently manages two healthcare industry funds with a combined scale of nearly RMB 2 billion. The firm continues to make deep strategic investments in fields such as in vitro diagnostics, building an industrial ecosystem dedicated to leveraging the synergy between industry and capital to nurture healthcare enterprises with international competitiveness.

Luxin Venture Capital Group Co., Ltd. (abbreviated as “Luxin VC”, SH.600783), controlled by Shandong Luxin Investment Holding Group Co., Ltd., is the largest professional venture capital firm in Shandong Province and one of the most influential in China. Its notable portfolio companies in the healthcare sector include 3D Medicines, RemeGen, ABclonal, Zhongke New Life, Silicon Based Bionics, Boying Medical, Rigene Biotechnology, Weimai Medical, Shiling Technology, Dajian Bio, Intarcia, and TCR2 Therapeutics.

C&D Emerging Investment is a corporate venture capital institution backed by the Fortune Global 500 company Xiamen C&D Group (ranked 234th in the 2020 Fortune Global 500), with assets under management exceeding RMB 8 billion. Guided by its mission to “unlock new value and help more high-growth new-economy enterprises achieve better development,” the firm focuses primarily on healthcare, advanced manufacturing, TMT, and consumer sectors. It was consecutively ranked among the “Top 30 Limited Partners in China’s Private Equity Investment Market” in 2018, 2019, and 2020.

Yuanhe Chenkun, established in 2006 with China Development Bank and Yuanhe Holdings as cornerstone investors, is China’s first market-oriented professional fund-of-funds (FOF) management team and currently the only FOF management team to have received investment from the National Social Security Fund. With assets under management exceeding RMB 20 billion, Yuanhe Chenkun focuses primarily on venture capital funds investing in early-stage and growth-stage companies. Its broader asset exposure surpasses RMB 150 billion, having participated in over 120 funds managed by more than 70 general partners. This constitutes the largest VC/PE investment portfolio in China, covering more than 2,100 companies.

Haoyue Capital was established in January 2014, with a commitment to serving as a bridge connecting China’s healthcare industry with capital. Its research and transaction coverage spans multiple sub-sectors, including biopharmaceuticals, innovative medical devices, in vitro diagnostics (IVD) and precision medicine, healthcare services, and smart healthcare. The Haoyue Capital team comprises senior investment bankers with extensive experience in China’s healthcare sector. By closely monitoring market dynamics and investment trends in healthcare over the long term, the firm publishes weekly healthcare investment newsletters and thematic research reports, offering Haoyue’s perspectives on new policies and emerging frontiers.