Laminate Medical Secures $12 Million Funding to Advance VasQ Device for Hemodialysis Access in Kidney Failure Patients

VCBeat (WeChat ID: vcbeat) has learned that on January 31, 2019, local time, the Israeli medical technology startup Laminate Medical announced it had secured $12 million in a new round of financing. Investors in this round included Asahi Kasei Medica, a leading Japanese manufacturer of dialyzers; U.S. investment firm Tal Capital; and private investors such as Mickey Boodaei, Shai Agassi, Yuval Tal, and Meir Barel. The funds will be used for the research, development, and production of the VasQ device.

Laminate Medical was founded in 2012 and completed its Series A and Series B financing rounds on December 1, 2015, and February 8, 2017, respectively. Including the amount raised in this round, the company’s total funding has reached $24 million. Laminate Medical’s core product is VasQ, a device designed to reduce the likelihood of fistula failure through external mechanical support, thereby helping patients with kidney failure who require dialysis receive effective treatment.

According to relevant medical literature, traditional fistula surgery requires the creation of a vascular connection between the patient’s vein and artery. The physician then inserts two intravenous needles into this access site to divert the patient’s blood to a dialysis machine for filtration, after which the filtered blood is returned to the patient’s body. This procedure demands that the patient have sufficient blood volume and maintain adequately active blood circulation. Due to these stringent physiological requirements, the procedure has a high failure rate.

The official website of Laminate Medical states that VasQ modulates blood flow by calculating the optimal geometric parameters of the fistula, thereby protecting fragile perianal veins and controlling intravascular pressure, enabling patients’ vessels to achieve normal wall tension and blood flow levels.

“Investing in Laminate Medical was a key decision we made this year. We believe Laminate Medical can become the standard-setter for vascular access surgical procedures,” said Takeshi Himeno, head of Asahi Kasei Medical.

“VasQ has received CE marking certification in the European Union and has been adopted by hundreds of patients in Germany and other European countries. Our next step is to enter the U.S. market, and we are currently in discussions with 16 leading U.S. hospitals. This round of financing demonstrates that VasQ is highly favored by investors, who have shown strong confidence in and provided substantial support for the development of Laminate Medical. Furthermore, Asahi Kasei Medical, as a new investor, will provide us with strategic advantages for our future entry into the Japanese market,” said Tammy Gilon, Co-founder and CEO of Laminate Medical, in an interview with the media.

(Compiled by Hu Xuan)