Today Hibergene‘s Series B funding round on SyndicateRoom will successfully close at midnight tonight, having raised at least £5,707,336 with the help of over 53 investors. Funds will be used to support R&D activities to launch three new products in 2017. The Irish medical diagnostics company specializes in the urgent diagnosis of potentially fatal human infectious diseases and has developed what it believes to be a simple, easy to use and low cost solution comprising a compact, fully portable, reusable instrument and a menu of proprietary single use molecular tests.
The high numbers are is not just the luck of the Irish…March has been month during which the Irish startup has reaped the rewards of months of work. This month the biotech firm announced that it had not only signed a distribution contract with Magnamed Lda of Lisbon, Portugal for the distribution and sale of Hibergene products in Portugal, effective as of 7th March 2017, but also selected distributors for India, Indonesia, Vietnam, Romania and Pakistan and has issued distribution contracts for completion for these distributors. In addition, Hibergene’s European patent was granted in respect of a LAMP Diagnostic Test for Meningococcal Disease. The patent is issued in the name of Belfast Health & Social Care Trust with whom Hibergene has a licensing agreement.
This agreement provides Hibergene with a world-wide, exclusive license to use the know-how, sub-license as well as develop and manufacture. Furthermore, the agreement reserves the right for patents to be assigned to Hibergene upon the completion of certain payments.
Furthermore, Hibergene also shared the following key developments:
Material Transfer Agreement with the Belfast Health & Social Care Trust for the supply of certified pathogen sample for Hibergene product validation testing. This is a key process for obtaining CE marking of new diagnostic products and secures ongoing access to biobank samples.- The Irish HSE (via the Health Innovation Hub) have agreed in principal to evaluate the HG Group B Streptococcus for intrapartum testing.
- The Belfast Health & Social Care Trust have secured funding to evaluate the HG Meningococcus test for paediatric throat swab samples. Hibergene believes that they have the only CE marked diagnostic test for Meningococcal disease on the market that utilises a throat swab sample.
Finally, Jim Shiggins, Head of Wealth Management at Cantor Fitzgerald Ireland, provided why he chose to invest £53,565 in Hibergene and also bring the company in for further investment from Cantor Fitzgerald Ireland:
“I was introduced to Peter Kidney and Brendan Farrell in late 2014. They had outlined to me the tests that were being carried out to help identify Meningitis using Molecular Diagnostics and the fact that it could be transformational in saving lives. Because my father was a Consultant Surgeon I had seen at first hand the trauma of families affected by the disease. I therefore championed it, investing both in Round A and B. I subsequently brought the project into Cantor Fitzgerald Ireland and we raised another £3.07m in 2016 of which my own clients invested £1.23m.I believe in this project because of the difference it can make to lives and the fact that it has since been broadened to now having tests that can identify Group B Steptococcus and CDificile. I am proud that Cantor Fitzgerald are supporters of this project.”
For more on Hibergene and further campaign details, please click here.
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