EntreChem closed a financing round thanks to a mix of private and public funding, in a deal that significantly strengthens the capacities of research and development of the biotech company.
New shareholders include family offices and owners of industrial, long-running businesses, like NalonChem SA, as well as Alvargonzález SA and the Alimerka Group. Other contributions, also private, by Business Angels help keep 100% ownership under local control.
The spanish biotech has also signed an agreement with the Centre for Industrial Technological Development (CDTI) from the Ministry of Science and Innovation (MICINN), which will provide 658,000€ under the NEOTEC-2 program for the consolidation of innovative technology-based companies. NEOTEC-2 program is intended for companies that have successfully achieved the technical milestones set in the program NEOTEC, and require further funding to continue development of its products.
With these contributions, and other complementary funding from MICINN and the European Union, EntreChem raises about two million euros, which will allow the advance of their lines of work, especially the development of two experimental drugs for cancer, that have shown efficacy in animal models at the discovery stage and require more studies to request authorization before starting clinical trials in humans.
About CDTI: The Centre for the Development of Industrial Technology (CDTI) is a Spanish public organisation, under the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, whose objective is to help Spanish companies to raise their technological profile. Although CDTI headquarters are located in Madrid, the Centre keeps an strategic network of offices abroad available to Spanish companies to support their international technology activities. For more information, visit www.cdti.es (in Spanish and English).
About EntreChem SL: EntreChem is a start-up company founded as a spin-off of the University of Oviedo in 2005 by Prof. Vicente Gotor, Prof. José A. Salas and Francisco Morís, Ph.D. The company focuses on novel products obtained by biocatalysis and combinatorial biosynthesis approaches, as well as development of processes involving enzymatic catalysis and genetic engineering of metabolic pathways. More information can be found at www.entrechem.com
