Frequency Therapeutics Secures $42 Million Series B Financing to Advance FX-322 for Chronic Hearing Loss
On January 8, 2019, VCBeat (WeChat official account: vcbeat) learned that on the 7th, Frequency Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotechnology company based in Massachusetts, announced the completion of a $42 million Series B financing round.
It is reported that this round of financing will bring the company’s total capital raised to $87 million. The round was led by Taiwania Capital Management and Axil Capital, with participation from Yonjin Capital and DF Investments, as well as existing investors including Polaris Founders Capital, Alexandria Venture Investments, CoBro Ventures, Korea Investment Partners, and Emigrant Capital.
Frequency Therapeutics is a biotechnology company focused on the development of small-molecule drugs. The company has pioneered a novel therapeutic approach called Progenitor Cell Activation (PCA), which utilizes small molecules to stimulate dormant stem cells in vivo.
By transiently activating these progenitor cells, the company is able to treat diseases without the need for complex genetic engineering. The primary objective of this project is to regenerate sensory cells in the inner ear to treat chronic hearing loss caused by noise exposure.
According to statistics, more than 30 million people in the United States alone are affected by noise-induced hearing loss; therefore, the advent of this therapeutic technology undoubtedly brings a ray of hope to countless patients.
It is worth noting that Joel Marcus, Executive Chairman and Founder of Alexandria Real Estate Equities and Alexandria Venture Investments, and Michael Huang, Managing Partner of Taiwania Capital Management, have joined the board of directors of Frequency.
In addition, Fred Shane, Partner at Axil Capital, and Daguang Wang (Dr. Wang Daguang), Managing Director at Yonjin Capital, have also joined the Board of Directors as observers.
Previously, Frequency Therapeutics secured two rounds of financing from Cobro Ventures and the U.S. Department of Defense on April 11, 2017, and May 30, 2018, respectively, raising a total of $34 million.
The company intends to use this round of financing to advance the development of its clinical candidate FX-322 (designed to promote hearing regeneration) and to expand its pipeline of new therapies leveraging its PCA Regeneration Platform.
Frequency Therapeutics primarily develops small-molecule drugs that activate progenitor cells in the body to restore healthy tissue.
Progenitor cells are the natural source of tissues throughout the body and persist in humans into adulthood. Through the transient activation of these progenitor cells, Frequency can treat diseases without the need for complex genetic engineering. The company’s therapeutic approach primarily employs specific combinations of small-molecule drugs to induce the proliferation of dormant progenitor cells and generate new cells.
Frequency is currently leveraging its PCA regeneration platform to build a robust pipeline of progenitor cell activators. Due to the broad applicability of the PCA approach, Frequency is exploring its potential across various therapeutic areas, including hearing loss, skin diseases, muscle regeneration, and gastrointestinal disorders.
Taiwania Capital, established in 2017, is a venture capital firm. The company aims to build partnerships with global companies to promote Taiwan’s economic growth.
The company has partnered with cutting-edge startups, sparking innovation at Taiwania Capital in fields such as information and communications technology (ICT), biotechnology, materials and energy, and new agriculture.
AXIS Capital Holdings is a leading financial services provider, renowned for its ability to recognize the true potential of enterprises.
Cobro Ventures is an investment management firm serving both public and private companies. The firm has made a total of three investments, with its most recent one being in Frequency Therapeutics on January 7, 2019.
Korea Investment Partners is a leading venture capital and private equity firm that primarily provides venture capital to bold, innovative entrepreneurs seeking to change the world.
Emigrant Capital is the private equity arm of Emigrant Bank, providing long-term equity to middle-market companies.