Hillhouse leads $160M round for Chinese antibody maker Genor

China’s Genor Biopharma banked $160 million from the likes of Hillhouse Capital and Temasek Holdings to advance its clinical-stage autoimmune and cancer programs, prepare the launch of its most advanced prospects and support early-stage R&D.

The series B financing will also support potential partnerships both at home and abroad, DealStreetAsia reported Monday. Hillhouse led the round, with Temasek, Shanghai-based Haitong Capital, Cavenham PE and CR-CP Life Science Fund also chipping in.

"We are very honored to receive the recognition and support from existing and new investors in this round of financing,” said Genor CEO Feng Guo, Ph.D., as quoted by China Money Network. “2020 is a crucial year for Genor Biopharma. We are working for clinical applications of some products in the final development stage, and accelerate the development of innovative drugs in the field of tumor immunotherapy."

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Founded in 2007, Genor is developing antibodies to treat a range of solid tumors and blood cancers as well as autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis. It counts more than 10 clinical-stage assets, several of which are in pivotal or phase 3 studies.

The financing comes six months after Bloomberg reported rumblings that Genor would seek a Hong Kong IPO that could raise $200 million. At the time, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg the listing could happen as early as mid-2020—right about now. But they told Bloomberg that those plans weren’t set in stone, with details such as the size and value of the IPO subject to change as deliberations went on.