China’s First mRNA Covid-19 Vaccine Developer Abogen Raises Over USD700 Million
Xu Wei
DATE:  Aug 20 2021
/ SOURCE:  Yicai
China’s First mRNA Covid-19 Vaccine Developer Abogen Raises Over USD700 Million China’s First mRNA Covid-19 Vaccine Developer Abogen Raises Over USD700 Million

(Yicai Global) Aug. 20 -- Abogen Biosciences, which co-developed China’s first candidate messenger ribonucleic acid vaccine against Covid-19, said it has set a new record for the most raised in a single financing round in the country’s biomedical industry before an initial public offering.

Abogen banked more than USD700 million in its Series C fundraiser, the Suzhou-based firm said on its WeChat account yesterday.

ARCoV, an experimental mRNA Covid-19 jab created by Abogen, Walvax Biotechnology and the Academy of Military Medical Sciences’ Institute of Biotechnology, is the first mRNA vaccine approved for clinical trials in China. It was expected to start Phase III tests overseas at the end of last month.

Abogen's latest financing round was led by Temasek, Invesco Developing Markets Fund, Loyal Valley Capital, Gaoling Venture Capital, YF Capital, Lilly Asia Ventures, and Boyu Capital Advisory, among other investors. Existing backers Qiming Venture Partners and Highlight Capital also participated.

The funds will boost Abogen’s leading position in China’s mRNA field, it said. They will be used to speed up clinical development of its Covid-19 shot, expand the firm’s vaccines pipeline, explore other therapeutic fields, and bolster research, development and large-scale production.

Set up in 2019, Abogen banked CNY600 million (USD93.7 million) in a Series B funding round in April also to accelerate clinical trials of its Covid-19 vaccine candidate and build production facilities.

Editor: Futura Costaglione

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Keywords:   ARCoV,mRNA,Vaccine,Investment,Abogen Biosciences