China's Biotech Start-up Hui-Gene Therapeutics Raises $14M in Series A financing

According to China Knowledge, China's biotechnology start-up Hui-Gene Therapeutics has successfully raised more than 100 million yuan (US$ 14 million) in its Series A financing round, led by investment firm CD Capital, with participation from pharmaceutical company WuXi AppTec and investment firms HM Capital, Sherpa Venture Capital, Mayo Clinic Ventures and Hillhouse Capital Group.

Founded in 2018, Hui-Gene Therapeutics focuses on biotechnology services gene editing and biomedical research. The company is currently situated in a 500 sqm gene therapy research and development laboratory, comprising of gene-editing technology platforms, AAV technology platforms, disease model animal platforms, and process transformation and production platforms.

With the support of the four kinds of technology platforms, Hui-Gene Therapeutics has rapidly made a number of pipelines after its establishment, which are involved in the three fields of neurodegenerative diseases, visual disorders, and hearing disorders.

Regarding the financing, Dr. Yao Xuan, co-founder and CEO of Hui-Gene Therapeutics, said that this is mainly due to the company's two core strengths: the great ability of drug development and transformation and the closed-loop process of production.

Following the successful fundraising, Hui-Gene Therapeutics will use the funds to enhance its biomedical research and development capabilities, as well as establish a drug production facility that adheres to good manufacturing practices. The company will also look to increase its focus on pre-clinical trials, and continue to look into areas such as single-gene disorders.

CD Capital is a venture capital firm specialized in life sciences and medical technology. They are currently managing both RMB and USD funds with a total size of $600M. The company is operated by a professional team with diversified and profound industry backgrounds.

CD Capital has made over 40 investments with high growth potential and earned a reputation as a premier venture capital firm with the main focus on the China healthcare industry. 

WuXi AppTec is a global pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical, and medical device outsourcing company with operations in China and the United States. It provides a broad and integrated portfolio of services throughout the research, development, manufacturing, and regulatory process.

Founded in December 2000, WuXi AppTec is also focused on lowering the expense of R&D through efficient outsourcing solutions.