WOBURN, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Frequency Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotechnology company creating a new class of drugs based on small molecule stimulation of dormant stem cells within the body which we refer to as Progenitor Cell Activation (PCA), today announced the closing of a $42 million Series B financing, which brings the total capital raised by the Company to $87 million.
The financing was led by Taiwania Capital Management, a venture capital firm with $350 million biotechnology and IT funds, and Axil Capital, a healthcare focused venture fund spun out of Mizuho Securities. Yonjin Capital and DF Investments were also new investors in the Series B financing. Existing investors Polaris Founders Capital, Alexandria Venture Investments, CoBro Ventures, Korea Investment Partners and Emigrant Capital also participated in the Series B financing.
In connection with the financing, Joel Marcus, Executive Chairman and Founder of Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. and Alexandria Venture Investments, and Michael Huang, Managing Partner of Taiwania Capital Management, have joined Frequency’s Board of Directors. In addition, Fred Shane, a partner with Axil Capital and Daguang Wang Ph.D., Managing Director of Yonjin Capital, have joined the board as observers.
“Our team is highly motivated to make a positive impact for the hundreds of millions of men and women worldwide who experience sensorineural hearing loss,” said David Lucchino, President and Chief Executive Officer of Frequency. “This significant financial support from a strong global syndicate as well as our existing investors allows us to advance our lead hearing program into Phase 2 studies in 2019.”
Proceeds from the financing will support the advancement of the Company's clinical candidate, FX-322, for hearing regeneration. Top-line results from an ongoing Phase 1/2 study are expected in the first half of 2019. The financing will also support the continued expansion of Frequency’s pipeline with new therapeutic applications from the Company’s PCA Regeneration platform.
Frequency’s Executive Chairman Marc Cohen added, “CoBro Ventures is very pleased with Frequency’s progress since our initial involvement in 2015. The core breakthroughs of MIT Institute Professor Robert S. Langer, Sc.D. and Jeff Karp, Ph.D. from Harvard Medical School, provide a very strong scientific bedrock on which we are building Frequency’s pipeline of PCA candidates.”
ABOUT PCA REGENERATION
Founded by pioneers in the field of
regenerative medicine and drug delivery technology, Frequency’s
Progenitor Cell Activation (PCA) Regeneration platform uses a
combination of small molecules to stimulate progenitor cells within the
body to repair diseased or damaged tissue. This technology enables
native tissue regeneration without modifying genes or removing cells
from the body. This avoids the potential safety risks of genetic
engineering and the manufacturing challenges of traditional cell
therapy. This approach has been validated both in animal and human cell
models as well as in a human clinical trial with the potential for broad
application across many therapeutic areas.
ABOUT FREQUENCY THERAPEUTICS
Frequency Therapeutics develops
small molecule drugs to stimulate progenitor cells in the body to
reverse biological deficits and restore healthy tissue. Through the
transitory activation of these cells, Frequency enables disease
modification without the complexity of genetic engineering. Our
ground-breaking therapy uses a proprietary combination of small-molecule
drugs that induce progenitor cells create new cells. While Frequency’s
lead program targets hearing restoration, our PCA Regeneration platform
has the potential to touch upon a wide breadth of disease indications. www.frequencytx.com.
