IP Group (LSE:IPO) has invested a further £4m in portfolio company Microbiotica, which has closed a £36m Series C financing round to advance its pipeline into Phase 2 clinical development.
The London-listed investor backs breakthrough science and technology companies, and Microbiotica is a clinical-stage biopharma developer of orally-dosed, precision microbiome medicines.
The new capital will fund the progression of MB310 into Phase 2 trials in ulcerative colitis, building on positive results from the COMPOSER-1 Phase 1b study, which met its primary and secondary endpoints with statistically significant improvements in clinical remission versus placebo.
The round was led by British Business Bank, with participation from existing investors Tencent, Cambridge Innovation Capital, Flerie Invest and Seventure Partners.
Following second completion, IP Group will hold an undiluted beneficial stake of 16.4% in Microbiotica, valued at £24.1m.
"Microbiotica has made exciting progress in translating world-class microbiome science into potential new medicines for patients," said Greg Smith, chief executive of IP Group, adding that the group was "pleased to increase our investment alongside a high-quality syndicate of investors."
