With the latest investment, Hummingbird’s total funding till date crosses US$65 million
Singapore-based biotherapeutics startup Hummingbird Bioscience announced on Monday the close of an extended Series B funding round of US$25 million, led by new investor SK Holdings, who invested close to $6.5 million.
Due to significant over-subscription, Hummingbird’s Series B round was extended to add close to $7 million to the previously-raised $19 million from December 2019, bringing the total funding from Series B to $25 million. The earlier part of the round was co-led by Mirae Asset Venture Investment and GNTech Venture Capital. The latest investment brings the total capital raised by Hummingbird to more than $65 million.
Existing investors who also participated in the round include Heritas Capital Management and SEEDS Capital, the investment arm of Enterprise Singapore, a government agency that supports small-and-medium-sized enterprises.
Some of Hummingbird’s other investors include Delian Capital, Decheng Capital, Mirae Asset Capital, DAValue-GiltEdge, HB Investment, Wooshin Venture Investment, and Kiwoom Investment-Shinhan Capital.
Hummingbird will use the latest funds to accelerate development of new candidates into clinical trials and strengthen its scientific and research and development capabilities, the company said.
Founded in 2015, the biotech company researches novel antibody-based therapeutics called immunoproteins that selectively target and destroy malignant proteins that act as starting points for diseases and tumors.
Hummingbird uses systems biology to develop insights into disease biology, and applies computationally guided platforms to discover and engineer breakthrough antibody therapeutics for difficult-to-treat conditions, mostly cancer.
The company published data earlier this year on two antibodies, both oncology treatments, and expects to make regulatory submissions to initiate Phase 1 studies in the second half of this year.
“Hummingbird is building a strong portfolio of promising new therapies that we believe can deliver very meaningful benefit for patients across a broad spectrum of disease. These new funds give us further resources to develop our early stage pipeline, and support the clinical development of our lead programs,” said Dr Piers Ingram, Co-founder and CEO, Hummingbird Bioscience.
According to their website, Hummingbird now has more than 30 senior scientists and research associates in Singapore, with expertise in Antibody Discovery & Engineering, Pharmacology & Production, and Clinical Development. The startup also has Business Development centers in Houston, Texas and South San Francisco, California.
Hummingbird Bioscience has established strategic collaborations with Cancer Research UK and Amgen, and has been awarded a product development grant from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas.
CEO and Executive Director, Heritas Capital Management, Chik Wai Chiew said, “Even as the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a slow-down in investing, we are mindful that backing leading innovative biotech companies, especially players such as Hummingbird, to develop cures for addressing patients’ needs remains our priority.”
Hummingbird’s funding round is the latest in a line of healthtech fundraises and acquisitions from Q1 of 2020.
Header Image Courtesy of Hummingbird Bioscience
