Nuvaira Secures $79 Million in Equity Financing to Advance Minimally Invasive COPD Therapy and Files IPO Prospectus

On February 12, 2019, VCBeat (WeChat official account: vcbeat) learned that Nuvaira had completed a $79 million equity financing round. The round was led by U.S. Venture Partners, with participation from new investors Endeavour Vision, Qiming Venture Partners, Lightstone Ventures, and The Richard King Mellon Foundation, as well as six existing investors. The proceeds will be used to conduct the FDA-approved AIRFLOW-3 clinical trial and to implement targeted clinical treatment strategies for COPD in key European markets.

Nuvaira, founded in 2008 and headquartered in Minneapolis, USA, is a private medical device company dedicated to developing minimally invasive products that provide treatment options for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma. The company has developed a novel catheter system that treats COPD and asthma by modulating airway nerve activity through a therapeutic process known as Targeted Lung Denervation (TLD). Nuvaira has secured more than 70 patents worldwide, and its proprietary technology and accompanying procedures were utilized in the AIRFLOW-2 randomized controlled trial (RCT) for COPD and the RELIEF-1 trial for asthma, both of which were completed last year.

Nuvaira’s Nuvaira™ Pulmonary Denervation System received CE Mark approval in January 2016.Nuvaira™Pulmonary Denervation System is a catheter-based system for the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma. This system is used in the TLD treatment process.

TLD is a simple, one-time bronchoscopic procedure that uses a specialized catheter (the dNerva™ Dual-Cooling Radiofrequency Catheter) to deliver ablative therapy, disrupting overactive nerves in the lungs and opening obstructed airways to improve breathing. Similar to anticholinergic drugs—a class of medications that block the action of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine in the lungs—TLD targets the parasympathetic nerves innervating the lungs, providing sustained improvements in lung function, exercise capacity, and quality of life. Currently, TLD is used only in clinical research.

COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease), also known as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, commonly presents with symptoms such as sputum production, shortness of breath, and coughing. Common manifestations of COPD include chronic bronchitis and emphysema; it is a prevalent chronic condition that can progress to cor pulmonale and respiratory failure. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is associated with an abnormal inflammatory response to noxious gases and particulate matter, and its prevalence is higher among individuals aged 40 years and above.

Qiming Venture Partners, established in 2006, is a leading venture capital firm in China. It primarily invests in early- and growth-stage companies across sectors such as internet consumer services, healthcare and life sciences, information technology, and clean environmental technologies. The firm maintains offices in Shanghai, Beijing, Suzhou, Shenzhen, and Hong Kong, and has set up Qiming USA offices in Seattle, Boston, and Palo Alto. Currently, the firm manages nearly $4 billion in assets.

Lightstone Ventures, founded in 2012, is a venture capital firm that primarily invests in early-stage startups in the biotechnology, healthcare, and medical device industries.

(Compiled by Zhang Yaping)