Gent, Belgium, 27 October 2020 – Today V-Bio Ventures announces its investment in Animab, a new venture spin-off from VIB, in a EUR 3.4 million Seed financing round. The company develops monoclonal antibodies for oral administration to ensure intestinal health of livestock. The initial focus is on improving the resilience of piglets during the fragile post-weaning period. The start-up will use the seed capital to develop its first oral antibody product for protection against ETEC and initiate a product portfolio for the livestock industry.
For the third year in a row, Belgium has been ranked the number one country in Europe for biotech! Belgium is consistently included in the top five countries on a number of measures. But when it comes to the total market value of all public biotech companies in Europe, Belgium really takes the cake with a huge 24% slice. Furthermore, despite pressure from the pandemic, the value of Belgian biotech companies has increased by no less than 56% in the past year to €42 billion, putting 2020 on course to be a record-breaking year in a positive way. The great news was presented by KBC Securities at the virtual State of the Union organized by flanders.bio and VIB for this year’s Knowledge for Growth.
For decades, researchers have been trying to uncover the cause of nodding syndrome, a mysterious and deadly form of epilepsy that only affects children on the African continent. In a collaboration between Belgian and African scientists, researchers from the University of Antwerp have now discovered the root cause of the disease. In a cascade of events, nodding syndrome is triggered by another disease called river blindness, which in turn is caused by parasitic worms spread by blackfly bites. As complicated as it sounds, this is great news for the children, as it means that nodding syndrome can easily be controlled by administering the anti-parasitic drug ivermectin and exterminating blackflies.
Leuven, Belgium, 29 September 2020 - Montis Biosciences, a discovery stage biotech company focused on novel immuno-oncology therapeutics targeting the interactions between perivascular macrophages and the tumor vasculature, has named Karen Zinkewich-Péotti, Ph.D., as its Chief Executive Officer. Dr. Zinkewich-Péotti brings strong R&D leadership experience from both international biopharmaceutical companies and smaller biotech. Over the course of her career she has developed extensive expertise in different therapeutic modalities, including antibodies, antibody-drug conjugates and small molecules.
In July 2020, VIB spin-off ExeVir Bio raised €23 million to advance a llama-derived antibody against COVID-19. The company is based on the work of VIB researchers, who showed that these nanobodies can protect against the coronavirus in lab animals. ExeVir has now announced it will start testing the drug in COVID-19 patients in the coming months. The scientists are aiming to have the therapy ready for widespread use by spring 2021.
The German pharmaceutical giant Boehringer Ingelheim has acquired GST, a stem cell specialist based in Belgium. A part of the Anacura Group, GST’s main focus is in animal health, with its main product being a stem cell therapy for injured horses. Despite the acquisition, the company will remain in its labs near Ghent, keeping its research and production rooted in Flemish soil.
V-Bio Ventures, a leading Belgian life sciences VC, invests in Biodol Therapeutics, a French biotech specialized in next-generation chronic pain treatments.
Biodol Therapeutics receives EUR 4.5 million to develop novel FLT3 inhibitors for the treatment of chronic and neuropathic pain, aiming to reach the clinic by early 2023.
Brussels, Belgium / Tokyo, Japan – 27 August 2020 – Newton Biocapital I (“Newton”), an investment company in life sciences, focusing on the treatment and prevention of chronic diseases, with activities in Europe and Japan, has announced its second investment in Japan. Newton invested JPY 480 million (EUR 4 million) – split in two tranches - in J-Pharma Co., Ltd. (“J-Pharma”) as part of a total Series D round of JPY 1.746 billion (EUR 14.55 million) as of July 30, 2020. Newton’s investment in J-Pharma was also its first new investment after it has closed its fund raising at EUR 114 million.
Ghent, Belgium, 28 July 2020 – Today V-Bio Ventures announces its investment in a EUR 23 million Series A financing into ExeVir Bio. The round was led by Fund+, with the participation, next to V-Bio Ventures, of VIB, UCB Ventures, SFPI-FPIM, and several Belgian family offices. ExeVir Bio has been established by Belgian partners combining world class science, antibody engineering, manufacturing, blue-chip venture capital investment and Flemish Government financing, which have joined forces in a unique collaboration to boost the development of new therapies to combat Covid-19.
Ghent, Belgium, 27 July 2020 – GST, the stem cell specialist for horses and pets within the Anacura Group, has been acquired by Boehringer Ingelheim. The acquisition follows two years of successful cooperation. Research and production will continue in Anacura’s labs, close to Ghent, Belgium. The current management and staff will play a crucial role in the implementation and further development of stem cell technology within Boehringer Ingelheim.
Gent, Belgium, 27 October 2020 – Today V-Bio Ventures announces its investment in Animab, a new venture spin-off from VIB, in a EUR 3.4 million Seed financing round. The company develops monoclonal antibodies for oral administration to ensure intestinal health of livestock. The initial focus is on improving the resilience of piglets during the fragile post-weaning period. The start-up will use the seed capital to develop its first oral antibody product for protection against ETEC and initiate a product portfolio for the livestock industry.
For the third year in a row, Belgium has been ranked the number one country in Europe for biotech! Belgium is consistently included in the top five countries on a number of measures. But when it comes to the total market value of all public biotech companies in Europe, Belgium really takes the cake with a huge 24% slice. Furthermore, despite pressure from the pandemic, the value of Belgian biotech companies has increased by no less than 56% in the past year to €42 billion, putting 2020 on course to be a record-breaking year in a positive way. The great news was presented by KBC Securities at the virtual State of the Union organized by flanders.bio and VIB for this year’s Knowledge for Growth.
For decades, researchers have been trying to uncover the cause of nodding syndrome, a mysterious and deadly form of epilepsy that only affects children on the African continent. In a collaboration between Belgian and African scientists, researchers from the University of Antwerp have now discovered the root cause of the disease. In a cascade of events, nodding syndrome is triggered by another disease called river blindness, which in turn is caused by parasitic worms spread by blackfly bites. As complicated as it sounds, this is great news for the children, as it means that nodding syndrome can easily be controlled by administering the anti-parasitic drug ivermectin and exterminating blackflies.
Leuven, Belgium, 29 September 2020 - Montis Biosciences, a discovery stage biotech company focused on novel immuno-oncology therapeutics targeting the interactions between perivascular macrophages and the tumor vasculature, has named Karen Zinkewich-Péotti, Ph.D., as its Chief Executive Officer. Dr. Zinkewich-Péotti brings strong R&D leadership experience from both international biopharmaceutical companies and smaller biotech. Over the course of her career she has developed extensive expertise in different therapeutic modalities, including antibodies, antibody-drug conjugates and small molecules.
In July 2020, VIB spin-off ExeVir Bio raised €23 million to advance a llama-derived antibody against COVID-19. The company is based on the work of VIB researchers, who showed that these nanobodies can protect against the coronavirus in lab animals. ExeVir has now announced it will start testing the drug in COVID-19 patients in the coming months. The scientists are aiming to have the therapy ready for widespread use by spring 2021.
The German pharmaceutical giant Boehringer Ingelheim has acquired GST, a stem cell specialist based in Belgium. A part of the Anacura Group, GST’s main focus is in animal health, with its main product being a stem cell therapy for injured horses. Despite the acquisition, the company will remain in its labs near Ghent, keeping its research and production rooted in Flemish soil.
V-Bio Ventures, a leading Belgian life sciences VC, invests in Biodol Therapeutics, a French biotech specialized in next-generation chronic pain treatments.
Biodol Therapeutics receives EUR 4.5 million to develop novel FLT3 inhibitors for the treatment of chronic and neuropathic pain, aiming to reach the clinic by early 2023.
Brussels, Belgium / Tokyo, Japan – 27 August 2020 – Newton Biocapital I (“Newton”), an investment company in life sciences, focusing on the treatment and prevention of chronic diseases, with activities in Europe and Japan, has announced its second investment in Japan. Newton invested JPY 480 million (EUR 4 million) – split in two tranches - in J-Pharma Co., Ltd. (“J-Pharma”) as part of a total Series D round of JPY 1.746 billion (EUR 14.55 million) as of July 30, 2020. Newton’s investment in J-Pharma was also its first new investment after it has closed its fund raising at EUR 114 million.
Ghent, Belgium, 28 July 2020 – Today V-Bio Ventures announces its investment in a EUR 23 million Series A financing into ExeVir Bio. The round was led by Fund+, with the participation, next to V-Bio Ventures, of VIB, UCB Ventures, SFPI-FPIM, and several Belgian family offices. ExeVir Bio has been established by Belgian partners combining world class science, antibody engineering, manufacturing, blue-chip venture capital investment and Flemish Government financing, which have joined forces in a unique collaboration to boost the development of new therapies to combat Covid-19.
Ghent, Belgium, 27 July 2020 – GST, the stem cell specialist for horses and pets within the Anacura Group, has been acquired by Boehringer Ingelheim. The acquisition follows two years of successful cooperation. Research and production will continue in Anacura’s labs, close to Ghent, Belgium. The current management and staff will play a crucial role in the implementation and further development of stem cell technology within Boehringer Ingelheim.