TFF Pharmaceuticals Secures $8.17M Series A Financing to Advance Novel Inhaled Therapies for Pulmonary Diseases

VCBeat (WeChat Official Account: vcbeat) learned from foreign media that on June 1, biopharmaceutical company TFF Pharmaceuticals announced the completion of an $8.17 million Series A financing round, with the investors not yet disclosed. The proceeds from this round will be used to develop novel inhaled therapies for chronic respiratory and pulmonary diseases, and to support the company’s additional R&D initiatives.

It is reported that, alongside this round of financing, TFF Pharmaceuticals has also expanded its leadership team by appointing Kirk Coleman as Chief Financial Officer and Randy Thurman as a member of the Board of Directors and Chair of the Audit Committee.

Currently, Kirk Coleman also serves as the Chief Executive Officer of two prominent investment firms, Steelhead Capital Management and Bios Partners, both of which focus on investing in early-stage startups in the biotechnology and medical device sectors. Mr. Coleman has over 20 years of experience in venture capital.

Regarding his joining the TFF Pharmaceuticals team, Kirk Coleman stated, “I am delighted to join the TFF team, where experienced leadership and loyal investors have helped TFF achieve rapid growth and early success. At the same time, I look forward to contributing further to this ‘success.’”

Mr. Randy Thurman, appointed as a member of the TFF Board of Directors and Chair of the Audit Committee, is a distinguished industry veteran with over 30 years of leadership experience in the life sciences sector. He currently serves as Senior Operating Partner for the Healthcare sector at BC Partners, and as Chairman of Zest Dental Solutions and Outlook Pharmaceuticals.

Previously, Randy Thurman founded the healthcare company VIASYS Healthcare and served as its CEO, later leading Cardinal Health in its $1.5 billion acquisition of VIASYS Healthcare. Additionally, Mr. Thurman has served on the boards of more than 15 companies, participating in over 30 acquisitions and five initial public offerings (IPOs).

“I look forward to applying my industry experience to TFF Pharmaceuticals, Inc. to help the company create greater value and maintain a high growth rate,” said Randy Thurman.

TFF Pharmaceuticals, headquartered in Austin, Texas, USA, is an early-stage biopharmaceutical company. The company is dedicated to developing and commercializing innovative therapies for the treatment of pulmonary diseases. Currently, it has developed multiple “dry powder” drug delivery formulations. These dry powders enable the inhalation of small-molecule drugs, delivering them rapidly and completely to the affected areas of the lungs in patients with pulmonary diseases.

Currently, among the numerous drugs used to treat pulmonary diseases, few are administered via the airway. This is primarily because formulating medications that can be directly delivered to the lungs is extremely challenging due to limitations imposed by drug properties. Many companies have attempted to use “microcapsules” or other pharmaceutical carriers to deliver drugs directly to the lungs; however, this approach is often accompanied by various complications.

TFF Pharmaceuticals has leveraged its proprietary Thin Film Freezing (TFF) technology to develop a lung-affinitive dry powder inhaler that delivers medication directly to the lungs without causing any side effects. The TFF technology, initially developed by the University of Texas at Austin and comprising more than 30 patents, was exclusively licensed to TFF Pharmaceuticals.

“We are deeply grateful to our investors for their support of our pioneering research, and we will continue to develop novel therapies for pulmonary diseases, such as those related to lung transplantation, severe asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and pulmonary infections,” said Glenn Mattes, CEO of TFF Pharmaceuticals. “Meanwhile, the addition of Kirk Coleman and Randy Thurman brings significant value to our company. Kirk Coleman’s expertise in strategy and finance, along with Randy Thurman’s leadership experience in healthcare technology, will help TFF fully capitalize on the substantial opportunities ahead.”

(Compiled by: Wang Chan)