PackGene Announces Close Of ￥100 Million Pre-Series C Financing Round

(VCBeat) Apr. 07, 2021 -- Recently, Guangzhou PackGene Biotechnology Co., Ltd. ("PackGene"), a leading CDMO in gene therapy in China, announced it has closed its Pre-Series C funding round of hundreds of millions, led by CMB International, with participation from by Guangzhou Juguan, a subsidiary of Guangzhou Hi-tech Investment Group. Existing investors Sequoia Capital China, Cathay Capital, Oriza Seed Capital, Decheng Capital and Kaitai Capital continued to join the latest round. Haoyue Capital serves as the exclusive financial adviser. 

Proceeds from the transaction will be used for the construction of the team, the new production line and base, and the production of PackGene’s vector rAAV in gene therapy.

PackGene, as an international AAV packaging supplier (one of the largest in the world), started up in Massachusetts. PackGene focuses on services of the rAAV-based gene therapy CDMO-from plasmid to rAAV in clinical-grade, rAAV packaging in research-grade, lentivirus packaging, vector cloning, etc. Its services aim to provide efficient, cost-effective, high-quality viral delivery solutions for gene and cell therapy, as well as clinical trials at various scale levels. 

At present, PackGene has served more than 200 well-known gene therapy companies and scientific research institutions at home and abroad, covering 15 countries and regions. The founding team has rich experience in the field of gene therapy, and the core team has decades of experience in GMP and commercial production. PackGene provides one-stop integrated solutions for the whole industry chain from carrier discovery, process development, GMP production to IND application.

In February 2021, PackGene signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Danaher’s Pall Corporation to advance technology upgrading and improve the CMC process of gene therapy and large-scale production of rAAV.

In addition, PackGene has the world's leading AAV production base of 8000 square meters, in compliance with China's NMPA, the US FDA, European EMA, Japan MHLW standards. The construction of the base is about to be completed. It is expected to start production in the second quarter of this year. PackGene is going to have the largest total AAV production scale in China and consolidate a leading position in the gene therapy industry.

CMB International is an investment banking firm that offers comprehensive professional services and financial advisory services. It provides mergers and acquisitions, initial public offering, equity underwriting, company restructuring, project financing, and business consulting services.

Guangzhou Juguan, founded on November 12, 2020, is established by Guangzhou Guoju Venture Capital Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Guangzhou Hi-tech Investment Group. Founded in 1984, Guangzhou Hi-tech Investment Group has developed into a large-scale state-owned company focusing on biomedical and life science industry investment. By the end of 2020, the AUM of Guangzhou Hi-tech Investment Group had reached nearly 40 billion yuan.