SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Biolinq today announced the close of a $10M Series A financing led by M Ventures, in collaboration with Hikma Ventures. Biolinq is a digital health company with a unique, wirelessly-enabled biosensor patch that is capable of continuously monitoring multiple biomarkers. Grey Sky Venture Partners, Three Leaf Ventures, LifeSci Venture Partners and a group of high-net-worth individuals specialized in the diabetes field are also contributing to the round. Biolinq’s first commercial product, a unique minimally-invasive technology, will allow patients with diabetes to continuously monitor their blood glucose without the pain and hassle of traditional continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) systems.
“We are leading this round of investment with an excellent group of co-investors, all with the same goal of making the convenient and painless monitoring of multiple biomarkers a reality for patients in need,” said Edward Kliphuis, Investment Director of the New Businesses fund at M Ventures. “As investors, we fully recognize the value of Biolinq’s skin-applied, minimally-invasive electrochemical biosensor platform technology.”
The company has attracted experienced life science executive Dan Bradbury to join as executive chairman. Bradbury is the former CEO of Amylin Pharmaceuticals where he directed the efforts leading to the company’s acquisition for $7B USD. In addition, Edward Kliphuis, Investment Director of the New Businesses fund at M Ventures and Lana Ghanem, Managing Director of Hikma Ventures will be joining the Board of Directors.
“Chronic diseases like diabetes affect millions of people worldwide with a high prevalence in the Middle East and North Africa; markets we know well,” said Lana Ghanem, Managing Director of Hikma Ventures. “We look forward to working with the Biolinq team and our co-investors to bring this pioneering technology to patients in need of a novel solution to continuously monitor their glucose levels, enabling them to live healthier lives.”
Jared Tangney, CEO of Biolinq, said, “This funding round will fuel the growth of our technology platform. Our first product is not just another CGM technology, but a platform we built from the ground up with a focus on the end user. Our vision is to utilize our novel manufacturing approach to achieve low-cost and high uniformity, enabling factory calibration (no finger sticks) in a nickel-sized patch. With our low cost-of-goods and ease-of-use, we plan to increase access to CGM and simplify diabetes management.”
About Biolinq Incorporated
Biolinq is a digital health company developing a skin-applied, minimally-invasive electrochemical biosensor platform which analyzes biomarkers in the interstitial fluid to provide actionable health information. Given the platform potential of the technology and the unique ability to simultaneously measure multiple biomarkers, the company aims to develop a pipeline of biomonitoring products. Biolinq was founded in 2012 (as Electrozyme, LLC), and is located in San Diego.
About M Ventures
Merck Ventures BV, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, a subsidiary of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, which operates as M Ventures in the United States and Canada is the strategic, corporate venture capital arm of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. Its mandate is to invest in innovative technologies and products with the potential to significantly impact Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany's core business areas. We invest globally in transformational ideas driven by great entrepreneurs. M Ventures takes an active role in its portfolio companies and teams up with entrepreneurs and co-investors to translate innovation towards commercial success. For more information visit www.m-ventures.com
About Hikma Ventures
Founded in August 2015, Hikma Ventures operates as the corporate venture capital arm of Hikma Pharmaceuticals. Hikma Ventures invests in global start-ups like Biolinq where Hikma's expertise can accelerate revenue growth and enhance value creation by providing ventures with access to the resources of a multinational pharmaceutical company. For more information, visit www.hikmaventures.com
