Euroscreen, a drug development company, announces today that they have completed a €16 million Series B fundraising round. An existing shareholder, Pierre Drion, brought SFPI-FPIM as a new investor which together with Fund+ co-led this new investment round. The existing shareholders including Vesalius Biocapital II Partners, SRIW SA, BNP Paribas Fortis Private Equity, and another new comer as Capricorn Health-Tech Fund NV are also participating. Euroscreen's ESN364 advanced drug candidate is progressing with very promising expectations in the treatment of menopausal Hot Flashes and other Women's Health Disorders such as, PolyCystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), Uterine Fibroids (UF) and Endometriosis.
Funds will be used by Euroscreen to extend ESN364 development:
- (i) filing an IND in US;
- (ii) preforming long term toxicology studies to support future clinical chronic treatment; and
- (iii), supporting the ongoing Phase II clinical trials vs. menopausal Hot Flashes, PCOS and UF.
Jean Combalbert, CEO, commenting on today's announcement, said: "Euroscreen's ability to attract funding as we raised over 28M€ (12M€ raised end 2012) over the past 3 years, positions us in the top European healthcare biotech fundraising operations carried out during this period of time. ESN364 development going forward, together with our past and ongoing pharma collaborations have validated the quality and performance of our drug discovery and development track-record. With our current cash resources, we are now well positioned to execute our plans and deliver significant stakeholder value over the next 18-months". Koen van Loo, Managing Director at SFPI-FPIM said: "Euroscreen has made tremendous and promising progress since three years. We are very pleased to join the strong syndicate by investing in this Series B round and are convinced of the added value Euroscreen will deliver in the coming years". Chris Buyse, Managing Partner at Fund+ NV added "Euroscreen is one of the companies that we put in our top-list of investments when we recently created our fund, and we really expect Euroscreen's ESN364 will be the first true therapeutic available for both Hot Flashes and PCOS. We are also excited about Euroscreen's pipeline, and commit to help Euroscreen based on the expertise of our team, with our objective to invest smart money."
About ESN364
ESN364 is a proprietary, oral, small-molecule, discovered and developed by Euroscreen for the purpose of the treatment of Women's Health Disorders. ESN364 is superior to the existing, marketed GnRH ligands as it reduces levels of the ovarian hormones estrogen and progesterone in a non-castrating manner as required for the safe, effective treatment of UF and Endometriosis. In addition, its selective action on gonadotropins uniquely positions ESN364 for the treatment of PCOS. Furthermore, its mechanism of action to mimic the neuronal effects of estrogen to control body temperature supports the use of ESN364 to directly and safely address the basis for Hot Flashes in menopausal women.
About Euroscreen
Euroscreen S.A. is a Belgium-based, private, Drug Discovery and Development company providing first-in-class small molecule drug candidates for unmet medical needs. Euroscreen has a drug discovery track-record with multiple innovative and proprietary small-molecules. Euroscreen has advanced its orally-available and highly specific lead program ESN364 into clinical development for the treatment of Women's Health Disorders. In addition, Euroscreen advances other small molecules (preclinical stage) targeting G-Protein Coupled Receptors of interest in multiple therapeutic areas such as neurodegenerative diseases and inflammation. Euroscreen is backed by leading investors, including Vesalius Biocapital, SFPI-FPIM, SRIW, Fund+ and BNP Paribas Fortis Private Equity. Further information about Euroscreen can be found online at http://www.euroscreen.com
About SFPI-FPIM
The Federal Holding and Investment Company (SFPI-FPIM) was created on November 1st, 2006 and has the federal government as its sole shareholder. SFPI is focusing its investments on innovative Belgian Companies such as Euroscreen, hoping to contribute to their financial and societal success story. SFPI is also present in the aeronautical, energy and real estate business.
About Fund+ NV
FUND+ is a long term investor in innovative companies in Life Sciences in order to create sustainable shareholders value and contribute to the development and anchorage of these companies in Belgium. The fund has the intention to generate a measurable, beneficial social impact alongside a financial return. The fund is incorporated for an unlimited duration.