LONDON, UK: Schroder UK Public Private Trust has made a £3.0 million investment in leading immunoglobulin E (IgE) antibodies developer, Epsilogen, as part of its £30.75 million Series B funding round.
The round was led by a new investor, Novartis Venture Fund, and joined by new investors 3B Future Health Fund, British Patient Capital and Caribou Property.
The new syndicate joins founding Series A investor Epidarex Capital and Series A investor ALSA Ventures both of whom also committed further capital in this Series B fundraising round. This is the sixth investment into a new unquoted company that the Company has made in the last 12 months.
Epsilogen is a global leader in the development of immunoglobulin E (IgE) antibodies to treat cancer. IgE’s natural function is to provide immunological defence against certain parasites.
This functionality makes it an ideal treatment of solid tumours due to its strong potency, enhanced tumour access and long tissue half-life. Epsilogen’s lead product candidate, MOv18 IgE, is the first therapeutic IgE antibody to enter the clinic and encouraging data from a phase I trial demonstrated MOv18 IgE to be safe and well tolerated with early signs of clinical activity also seen.
Epsilogen is also developing a proprietary IGEGTM antibody platform combining elements from both IgE and IgG antibodies into novel and proprietary antibody molecules with enhanced functionality.
This investment is in line with the Company’s focus on backing innovative businesses with disruptive innovation, significant global growth potential, high quality management teams and supported by highly reputable co-investors.
The Company has committed to improving its sustainability profile and intends to disclose, where appropriate, the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) associated with new investments. The investment in Epsilogen is in line with SDG 3 “Good health and well-being”, specifically Target 3.4 “Reduce mortality from non-communicable diseases and promote mental health” and Target 3.B “Support research, development and universal access to affordable vaccines and medicines”.
Tim Creed and Roger Doig, Portfolio Managers of the Company, jointly commented: “We are delighted to announce the first new therapeutics focused private equity investment since our appointment as Portfolio Manager. The British life science ecosystem will continue to develop innovative medicines and we plan to build a portfolio of venture backed therapeutics companies as part of the Company’s overall portfolio. Epsilogen is a global leader in the development of novel IgE antibodies to treat cancer and we believe that IgE antibodies could potentially have a transformative impact on patients. We look forward to supporting the company on its journey over the coming years”.
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