Kupando Secures Additional €10 Million in Series A Financing to Advance Novel Immuno-Oncology and Infectious Diseases Programs
- Kupando raised an additional €10 million in Series A financing, bringing the total Series A funding to €23 million.
- Investment again led by Remiges Ventures, co-led by LifeCare Partners, with participation from all existing investors and new investor Carma Fund.
- Proceeds will be used to fund the Phase 1b clinical study of KUP101 in advanced solid tumors and to accelerate preclinical programs in infectious diseases.
- KUP101 is a differentiated dual TLR 4 and 7 agonist, harnessing innate immune stimulation and trained innate immunity.
Kupando, a pioneering biopharmaceutical company developing a TLR 4/7 agonist that stimulates innate immunity and induces trained immunity for use in oncology and infectious diseases, today announced that it has secured an additional €10 million in Series A financing. This latest investment brings Kupando’s total Series A funding to €23 million.
The investment was again led by Remiges Ventures, co-led by LifeCare Partners, with additional investments by all other existing investors, among them Brandenburg Kapital, High-Tech Gründerfonds and Ventura Biomed Investors. Carma Fund joined as a new investor. The proceeds will be used to fund the Phase 1b clinical study of Kupando’s lead candidate, KUP101, in advanced solid tumors and to accelerate its preclinical programs in infectious diseases.
Kupando’s disruptive approach harnesses the power of innate immune stimulation and induction of trained innate immunity by dual Toll-Like Receptor (TLR) agonists. Its lead candidate, KUP101, is a differentiated dual TLR 4 and 7 agonist with a robust preclinical profile approaching clinical development. KUP101 is ideally suited for the systemic treatment of solid tumors (tissue agnostic), and the prevention and treatment of infectious diseases, including antimicrobial-resistant infections. Its AMR program is being sponsored by the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space.
“We are incredibly grateful for the continued strong support from our existing investors and excited to welcome Carma Fund to the Kupando family,” said Johanna Holldack, MD, Founder and CEO of Kupando. “This additional funding is a testament to the potential of our innovative dual TLR agonist platform and will be instrumental in advancing KUP101 into clinical studies for solid tumors and accelerating our crucial work in infectious diseases. Our mission is to leverage the natural resilience of the innate immune system to deliver truly transformative therapies for patients in critical need.”
New investor Martin Raditsch, PhD, Managing Partner of Carma Fund, commented, “Kupando’s unique approach to leveraging innate immunity holds immense promise across oncology and infectious diseases. This successful funding round, especially in the current challenging financial climate, underscores the confidence we, as investors, have in Kupando’s science, team, and potential to deliver impactful solutions for unmet medical needs.”
Kazuhiko Nonomura, PhD, Partner of Remiges Ventures and member of Kupando’s Advisory Board, added, “Remiges Ventures is proud to continue leading the investment in Kupando. We believe Kupando’s dual TLR 4 and 7 agonist technology, particularly KUP101, has the potential to redefine treatment paradigms in both cancer and infectious diseases. We are excited to see the company transition to the clinical stage and unlock the full potential of its pipeline.”
Kupando was founded by its CEO Johanna Holldack, MD, driven by the natural resilience observed in animals relying solely on innate immunity. Recognizing the historically undervalued yet critical role of this system, especially with the new understanding of innate and trained immunity, Kupando has made it the core of its therapeutic approach.
About Remiges Ventures
Based in Seattle and Tokyo, Remiges Ventures is a US-Japan cross-border venture capital firm focused on therapeutics. Remiges Ventures takes a lead position for the syndication of Series A or later stage of investment rounds globally and actively creates new companies based on innovative assets discovered at academic institutions. Remiges Ventures’ team is connected with serial entrepreneurs, KOLs in various therapeutic areas, key consultants and major large pharmaceutical companies in the globe. The team actively participates in the value creation for its portfolio companies.
www.remigesventures.com
About LifeCare Partners
LifeCare Partners is an independent investment advisory firm providing financing to private and public life science companies. LifeCare Partners targets the entire life science industry with special focus on medical technology, diagnostics, biopharmaceuticals, food & nutrition, industrial biotechnology, biomaterials, e-health and bioenergy. Based in Basel, the LifeCare Partners team has successfully invested in more than 50 life science companies over the last years, of which a large number have already been listed on the stock exchange or have been acquired by leading players in the life science industry.
For more information, please visit: www.lifecare.partners
About Brandenburg Kapital
Brandenburg Kapital GmbH is a subsidiary of the Investitionsbank des Landes Brandenburg (ILB). As the venture capital arm of ILB, it has been supporting companies in Brandenburg since 1993 by acquiring equity and quasi-equity investments. As a public venture capital company, experienced lead investor and active partner, Brandenburg Kapital ensures a strong equity base for start-ups and small and medium-sized enterprises in the State of Brandenburg on the basis of a stable group environment. The equity fund, which currently amounts to around 100 million euros, is available for this purpose. The funds for the Brandenburg Kapital fund, which was set up on behalf of the Brandenburg Ministry of Economic Affairs, Labor and Energy, are currently provided by the European Regional Development Fund and ILB’s own resources.
With a total of eleven funds, financed by the state, the EU, KfW and ILB’s own funds amounting to around 350 million euros, around 300 Brandenburg-based companies have been supported with venture capital and/or mezzanine financing over the last 32 years.
Further information can be found at: www.brandenburg-kapital.de
About Carma Fund
CARMA FUND I is an early-stage investment fund for advancing Life Science and Healthcare technologies. The fund started off with a First Closing in June 2022 and has €50M under management. It is based in Munich and Frankfurt am Main.
For more information: www.carma-fund.com
About HTGF – High-Tech Gründerfonds
HTGF is one of the leading and most active early-stage investors in Germany and Europe, financing startups in the fields of Deep Tech, Industrial Tech, Climate Tech, Digital Tech, Life Sciences and Chemistry. With its experienced investment team, HTGF supports startups in all phases of their development into international market leaders. HTGF invests in pre-seed and seed phases and can participate significantly in later-stage financing rounds. Since its inception in 2005, HTGF has financed around 800 startups and achieved 200 successful exits. HTGF has a fund volume of over 2 billion euros.
Fund investors in the public-private partnership include the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, KfW Capital as well as 45 companies and family offices.
For more information, please visit HTGF.de or follow us on LinkedIn.
About Ventura Biomed Investors
Ventura Biomed Investors invest in early-stage life science companies developing pioneering technologies and innovative therapies. As serial entrepreneurs with many years of experience, we help shape the long-term development of our portfolio companies and provide them access to our broad investor and business network.
For more information: www.ventura-biomed.com
About Kupando
KUPANDO is a pioneering biotech company focused on developing innovative therapies to address critical unmet medical needs in cancer and infectious diseases. Its disruptive approach harnesses the power of innate immune stimulation and induction of trained innate immunity by dual Toll-Like Receptor (TLR) agonists. This unique modality underpins the Company’s pipeline of first-in-class, differentiated small molecules with the potential to transform the management of these challenging diseases. Its lead candidate, KUP101, is a differentiated dual TLR 4 and 7 agonist with a robust preclinical profile and a clear path to the clinic.
Kupando is headquartered in Schönefeld, Germany and is backed by specialist institutional investors including Remiges Ventures, LifeCarePartners, Brandenburg Kapital, High-Tech Gründerfonds, Ventura Biomed Investors, Carma Fund Management and undisclosed family offices.
For more information: www.kupando.com