Menlo Park, Calif., – December 4, 2013 – PaxVax Inc, which develops and commercializes innovative vaccines against infectious diseases in a socially responsible manner, today announced that it has completed a Series B financing round totaling $22 million. The financing was led by Ignition Growth and joined by another existing investor, Ignition Ventures as well as new investors including Blue Haven Initiative, a family office impact investor.
PaxVax will use the new capital to continue to fund the recently initiated Phase 3 clinical trial program for its single-dose oral cholera vaccine candidate, PXVX0200 (also known as CVD 103-HgR). Approximately 3,000 participants will be enrolled in this pivotal international program, which is comprised of cholera challenge, safety, and immunogenicity studies. These studies are being conducted in the U.S., Australia, and Canada for use of PXVX0200 as a traveler's vaccine. In recognition of the lack of any available traveler's vaccine in the U.S. against cholera, and the corresponding unmet medical need, PXVX0200 has been granted Fast Track designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
"We are grateful for the continued financial support and confidence in our lead vaccine candidate as well as in our business model of doing well by doing good," said Ken Kelley, Chief Executive Officer of PaxVax. "Traditional financial investors such as Ignition and new social impact investors such as Blue Haven can both accomplish their financial and social goals by investing in PaxVax and advancing this novel cholera vaccine."
In addition to the new capital, PaxVax also announced that the company had previously converted $35 million of convertible debt received from 2010 to 2012. The company has raised over $68 million in capital since inception.
About PaxVax
PaxVax is a privately held company established in 2007 to develop and commercialize innovative vaccines against infectious diseases. PaxVax has a clinical-stage product portfolio, including a cholera vaccine that recently initiated Phase 3 clinical trials and a pandemic H5N1 influenza vaccine entering Phase 2 clinical trials. The company also has vaccines entering Phase 1 clinical trials in HIV and anthrax under R&D contracts with the National Institutes of Health. The company's proprietary adenoviral-based technology platform enables the rapid development of oral vaccines that can target any viral or bacterial protein antigen. The company's vaccine candidates are designed to be easier to manufacture, store, distribute, administer, and deliver across the globe than conventional injectable vaccines while enhancing the desired immune response to the vaccine antigens. PaxVax is headquartered in Menlo Park, Calif., with R&D laboratories and a licensed GMP production facility based in San Diego, Calif.