WATERTOWN, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--PlateletBio, a preclinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering an entirely new platform of allogeneic cell therapies based on platelet biology, today announced that it has raised $75.5 million in Series B financing. The round includes new investors SymBiosis, K2 HealthVentures and Oxford Finance as well as participation from existing investors Ziff Capital Partners and Qiming Venture Partners.
“This is a major milestone for PlateletBio, adding capital and resources needed to advance our innovative platelet-like cell therapy science and manufacturing platform and support key corporate initiatives over the next 18-24 months,” said Sam Rasty, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of PlateletBio.
The company will use the financing proceeds to continue preclinical development of its lead platelet-like cell (PLC) program as a novel therapy for Immune Thrombocytopenia (ITP), an autoimmune disease, further develop its unique engineered PLC (ePLC) platform and advance its proprietary manufacturing capabilities. Concurrent with closing the new financing round, PlateletBio has expanded its Board of Directors with the addition of Chidozie Ugwumba, Managing Partner of SymBiosis.
“PlateletBio’s PLC platform offers the prospect of allogeneic, engineered cell therapies with broad applicability to multiple large indications across several disease areas. We are pleased to partner with PlateletBio’s team and investors to advance the company’s groundbreaking science,” said Mr. Ugwumba.
“I am excited to see us progress to the next stage of growth for PlateletBio. The depth and breadth of our unique cell therapy platform enables us to develop novel medical solutions for patients and their families who are counting on us. With our Series B Financing, and the confidence from both existing and new investors, we are well positioned to progress our science and achieve critical milestones as we advance our platform and transition into a clinical stage biotech company,” added Dr. Rasty.
About PlateletBio
Inspired by the biological function and versatility of platelets, PlateletBio is pioneering the next generation of safer, more effective cell therapies. Its cell therapy platform produces “platelet-like cells” (PLCs) capable of performing vital biological functions and able to be genetically engineered into multiple allogeneic cell therapies. The company, based in Watertown, Massachusetts, is focused on advancing a diverse pipeline of next-generation cellular therapies for applications in autoimmune diseases, hematology, and inflammation. Visit www.plateletbio.com for more information.
