WALTHAM, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Corvidia Therapeutics Inc., a leading clinical stage biotechnology company, today announced the close of a $60 million USD Series B funding round. The financing will accelerate growth of Corvidia’s ongoing clinical programs, expand scientific and market access capabilities and explore new treatment areas.
Venrock led the Series B financing and was joined by five additional new investors: Andera (formerly Edmond de Rothschild), Cormorant Asset Management, HBM Healthcare Investments, Fresenius Medical Care Ventures GmbH and Venrock Healthcare Capital Partners (VHCP). Series A investors Apple Tree Partners, MedImmune, the global biologics Research and Development arm of AstraZeneca, and Sofinnova Partners, the founding seed investor, also participated in this round.
“We are extremely pleased to have reached such an important milestone in Corvidia’s advancement as a biotechnology company,” said Marc de Garidel, Chief Executive Officer of Corvidia Therapeutics Inc. “This funding is critical to accelerating our clinical programs and adding the necessary scientific and market access infrastructure which will drive our growth in developing precision therapies for patients across a range of complex diseases.” Mr. de Garidel, former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Ipsen SA, joined Corvidia in March 2018.
Corvidia Therapeutics is nearing completion of a Phase 2 clinical trial for a genetically-defined patient population living with advanced chronic kidney disease. Presently, the Company is scientifically-focused on cardiovascular indications utilizing the study of genetic variations to ultimately deliver precise treatments to specific patients who have an unmet medical need. The Series B funding will be used to progress the lead clinical programs in chronic kidney disease and beyond as well as advance pre-clinical programs. The Company will add new talent to support these advancing programs.
“Corvidia’s innovative approach to cardiovascular drug development allows them to parse complex, heterogeneous conditions and validate disease pathways in patient subpopulations before beginning clinical trials,” says Karim Helmy MD, PhD, Vice President, Venrock. “We have confidence that Corvidia’s highly-respected and experienced team will continue to identify critical therapeutic targets for these devastating diseases through their pioneering approach.”
Several changes to Corvidia’s executive management team were announced in concert with the closing of Series B funding. Four of the founding executive team members have been named to new positions: Rahul Kakkar MD is Chief Medical Officer and Chief Strategy Officer; Matt Devalaraja, DVM, PhD is Executive Vice President and Head of Research and Development; Ram Aiyar, PhD, MBA is Executive Vice President and Head of Business Development. Corvidia’s former chief executive officer, Michael Davidson MD, was named Chief Science Officer upon the appointment of Mr. de Garidel as CEO.
About Corvidia Therapeutics Inc.
Corvidia Therapeutics Inc. is a clinical stage biotechnology company based in Waltham, Massachusetts pioneering the next generation of cardiovascular and cardio-renal therapies. Corvidia’s pipeline programs utilize functional genomics to precisely identify patients with unique sensitivity to specific biologic pathways, allowing for rapid development and an accelerated path-to-market for drugs targeting those pathways. Among our portfolio of novel therapeutic candidates, we presently have an experimental therapy in Phase 2 development for a genetically-defined patient population with chronic kidney disease. Corvidia’s other preclinical programs are in various stages of development and are focused on cardiovascular diseases. For more information, please visit www.corvidiatx.com.
