Weidejie Biologics Completes Series B Financing Led by SDIC Chuangye to Advance New Drug Development Based on Human B-cell Antibody Evolution Platform

VCBeat (WeChat ID: vcbeat) has learned that Beijing VDJBio Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “VDJBio”) announced the completion of its Series B financing round,Led by SDIC Venture Capital, with co-investment from Jiuyou Capital, Hetang Venture Capital, Daoyuan Capital, and Hongbo Venture Capital; Xingyuan Zhitong served as the exclusive financial advisor for this round.. This marks the third financing round completed by VDJBio since its establishment, with the first two rounds having been closed in 2015 and 2017, respectively. According to Li Ziqiang, founder of VDJBio, the proceeds from this round will be primarily allocated to Phase I/II clinical studies of the company’s three core pipeline assets.

BeiJing VDJBio Co., Ltd. is a platform-based company dedicated to the R&D of innovative antibody drugs for autoimmune diseases. The company possesses independently developed platforms for antibody screening and optimization, fusion protein CMC, and in vitro activity evaluation. It is capable of developing “Bio-super” monoclonal antibodies and antibody fusion protein drugs targeting existing clinical targets, with a focus on advancing next-generation monoclonal antibody therapies for autoimmune diseases that offer high efficacy, high safety, and low production costs.

From building core technology platforms to optimizing the screening of drug candidates, and further to preclinical pilot-scale production, VDJBio has advanced steadily with each step firmly grounded. Founder Li Ziqiang emphasizes that VDJBio focuses primarily on drug development for autoimmune diseases. Given the longer development cycles associated with such novel therapeutics, the company strategically entered this field early, and its corresponding product pipeline has secured international patent applications.

Leveraging its three proprietary technology platforms, VDJBio has upgraded and iterated existing antibody drugs from multiple dimensions, ultimately developing a new class of “Bio-super” therapeutics for which global patents have been filed. These “Bio-super” drugs significantly enhance efficacy, reduce dosage requirements, and minimize side effects, thereby better meeting clinical needs and offering competitive advantages. Reportedly, the affinity of its IL-6R antibody is hundreds of times higher than that of the existing drug Actemra, with biological activity increased by nearly 30-fold, positioning it as a potential best-in-class agent for blocking the IL-6/IL-6R signaling pathway. The drug is preparing to formally commence patient enrollment for Phase II clinical trials. Additionally, the company’s CTLA-4-Ig fusion protein exhibits affinities for CD80 and CD86 that are 30-fold and 250-fold higher, respectively, than those of Orencia, with biological activity more than 100-fold greater than Orencia. It holds promise as a best-in-class therapy for inhibiting T-cell activation, and the company is actively advancing regulatory approval for its clinical development.

VDJBio focuses on the rheumatoid arthritis (RA) therapeutic area, which currently has a market size of approximately RMB 30 billion. The prevalence of RA in China is about 0.42%, affecting around 5 million patients. Current treatments yield suboptimal outcomes, leaving substantial unmet clinical needs. The rheumatology and immunology market is expanding rapidly with promising prospects. While biologics account for a high proportion of the global autoimmune disease drug market, their share in China remains relatively low. Moreover, rheumatologists are predominantly concentrated in higher-tier cities. As payment accessibility and physician expertise improve in the future, the proportion of biologics for autoimmune diseases is expected to rise further. Notably, the sales of biologics in China’s rheumatology and immunology field have grown at a compound annual growth rate of 12.7% over the past five years. With more products being included in the National Reimbursement Drug List, the market is projected to experience rapid growth.

Regarding the investment in VDJBio,Lead Investor: SDIC Venture CapitalStatement: Currently, there is a significant amount of unmet clinical demand in the field of autoimmune diseases in China, offering vast market potential. BeiJing VDJBio Co., Ltd., leveraging its antibody discovery and production platform technologies, focuses on novel biologics for autoimmune diseases and possesses sustainable revenue-generating capabilities. The founding team has deep expertise in antibody engineering and related fields, boasting strong R&D capabilities and extensive industry experience. They hold prominent advantages in both the source discovery of antibody drugs and process development. Products developed based on their platform have demonstrated outstanding efficacy, safety, and human clinical data, ensuring the company’s continuous product output capability. SDIC Venture Capital’s investment in this round represents another key strategic move in platform-based core biomedical technologies, following its previous investments in ADC technology and humanized antibody technology.

Regarding the investment recognition received from SDIC Venture Capital,Li Ziqiangresponded: “We are extremely fortunate to have become strategic partners with SDIC Venture Capital. With major special fund support for our core antibody R&D platform and pipeline, SDIC Venture Capital’s lead investment will lay a solid foundation for our subsequent R&D and industrialization.”

Jiuyou CapitalHe also affirmed, “VDJBio is an innovative antibody drug R&D platform company in the autoimmune field, equipped with both advanced technology and a strong team. The autoimmune therapy sector represents a major market, comparable in size to oncology, with significant unmet clinical needs globally. In this large market, VDJBio’s unique B-cell screening platform can identify antibody products with affinity improved by several orders of magnitude, gaining a competitive edge in efficacy, safety, and production costs. Jiuyou Capital is highly optimistic about platform companies that possess leading technologies and high-quality teams. Such platform technologies offer sustainable pipeline output and replicability, which can enhance innovative enterprises’ risk resilience and commercial expansion potential, thereby accelerating their development.”

Lotus Pond Venture CapitalIt stated: “The founding team of VDJBio has conducted in-depth research on antibody affinity. Dr. Li Ziqiang, the founder, led the team to establish a technology platform for antibody affinity optimization and screening based on B-cell hypermutation. This platform can significantly enhance the activity of antibody drugs, with its improvements in screening efficiency and affinity multiples ranking among the global leaders. The company focuses on the field of autoimmune diseases, targeting validated drug targets with clear market positioning and clinical needs, thereby greatly increasing the success rate of R&D. Currently, it is optimizing and engineering several blockbuster antibody drugs, achieving excellent results in animal efficacy and human safety. In the future, this will enable reduced drug dosage, offering distinct differentiated advantages in terms of safety and production costs. Furthermore, the company’s current technology platform will continue to generate more new, superior antibody drugs, demonstrating higher value and growth potential in the future.”

Daoyuan Capital“VDJBio is an exceptional biotech company. Under the leadership of its founder, Dr. Li Ziqiang, the company has not only established a unique high-affinity antibody discovery platform but also built a differentiated product pipeline focused on the large market for autoimmune diseases, with its core products now successfully in clinical trials. As an investment fund specializing in the healthcare sector, Daoyuan Capital is committed to identifying highly promising investment opportunities within the industry. We are confident in the VDJBio team’s low-profile, pragmatic approach and scientific prowess, and we look forward to the company developing blockbuster novel drugs with global competitiveness to benefit more patients.”

Hongbo Venturesstated: “Our healthcare fund is committed to long-term investments in cutting-edge life sciences. By completing this investment in VDJBio alongside top-tier investors such as SDIC Venture Capital, we will firmly support the founding team led by Dr. Li Ziqiang. We wish the company success in becoming an innovative antibody drug R&D enterprise with core competitiveness and leadership in the global market.”

SDIC Venture Capital was established in 2016 as a private equity fund management company specially set up by China Development & Investment Corporation (SDIC) on a market-oriented basis. Its mission is to implement the national innovation-driven development strategy, deepen comprehensive strategic cooperation with the Ministry of Science and Technology, and accelerate the transfer and commercialization of national scientific and technological achievements. Through platforms such as the National Science and Technology Major Project Achievement Transformation Fund, the SDIC Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Scientific and Technological Achievement Transformation Fund, the SDIC High-Tech (Shenzhen) Venture Capital Fund, and the SDIC (Ningbo) Scientific and Technological Achievement Transformation Fund, SDIC Venture Capital remains committed to its investment objective of transforming scientific and technological achievements. It focuses on key sectors including advanced manufacturing, electronic information, materials and energy, and biopharmaceuticals. Aligning with national regional development strategies such as the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the Yangtze River Delta, and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the company continuously promotes breakthroughs in independent innovation of core key technologies and strives to build a robust investment ecosystem for the transformation of scientific and technological achievements.

Jiuyou Capital was founded in 2015 by an elite team with extensive industry experience, closely connecting hundreds of platform partners with backgrounds in scientific research, industry, and finance through an innovative partnership model. With a global perspective, the firm adheres to hard-core technological innovation as its core investment focus, covering multi-stage investments from angel to Pre-IPO. The full-time team comprises graduates from prestigious domestic and international universities, including Peking University, Fudan University, Johns Hopkins University, and University College London. The firm’s investment strategy focuses on two major sectors: Life Sciences (innovative drugs, precision medicine, and innovative medical devices) and Technological Innovation (5G technology, core semiconductor components, Internet of Things, artificial intelligence, new materials, and intelligent manufacturing).

Hedang Venture Capital Management (Beijing) Co., Ltd. (“Hedang VC”) was founded in 2001. It has long adhered to its goal of investing in technology-driven innovative enterprises, focusing on high-tech, high-growth companies with core competitiveness during their start-up and growth stages. Hedang VC specializes in incubating and investing in the commercialization of scientific and technological achievements from Tsinghua University, covering fields such as information technology, life sciences, and clean technology.

Hetang Venture Capital is an integral part of Tsinghua University’s innovation ecosystem, serving as the investment management platform for technology transfer and commercialization of research achievements at Tsinghua University. The Hetang series of funds currently managed by Hetang Venture Capital includes the Hetang Exploration Fund, the Hetang Innovation Fund, and the Hetang International Health Fund, which focus respectively on the commercialization of scientific and technological achievements, regional industrial upgrading, and the healthcare industry. Throughout its development, Hetang Venture Capital has gained recognition from domestic and international investors. Its fund investors include national and local provincial/municipal government guidance funds, financial institutions such as insurance companies and banks, state-owned enterprises, foreign enterprises, private enterprises, and high-net-worth individuals.

Daoyuan Capital is a leading equity investment firm specializing in the healthcare sector, dedicated to leveraging capital and industrial resources to accelerate the growth of outstanding healthcare enterprises, deliver superior medical products and services to society, and advance human health. Daoyuan Capital manages nine RMB-denominated funds and one USD-denominated fund. Its portfolio includes 42 high-quality projects, among which five have been listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and the STAR Market, while three additional companies have had their IPO applications accepted. It is expected that more than ten of Daoyuan Capital’s portfolio companies will go public both domestically and internationally in 2020 and 2021.

Hongbo Fund is a life sciences fund jointly established by Borui Medicine and Boru Capital. The fund primarily invests in the frontier life sciences and healthcare sectors, covering areas such as high-end generic drugs, leading innovative drugs both domestically and internationally, and in vitro diagnostics, with the aim of nurturing and integrating more industry-leading pharmaceutical and healthcare companies. Boru Capital is a private equity investment firm focused on China. Founded in 2016, Boru Capital is committed to investing in high-quality companies with sound fundamentals and strong potential for rapid growth. By employing investment strategies such as influential minority stakes or joint ventures for relative controlling interests, the firm provides momentum for corporate growth and transformation. “Discovering value and creating value” constitutes the core philosophy of Boru Capital.