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| Bellafill after four months--Courtesy of Suneva Medical |
Innovations in aesthetic medicine have proven lucrative in the medical device industry, given a growing and aging population with disposable income. Investors are betting that a dermal filler to treat acne scars--that's the first approved by the FDA--could be the next ticket to successful commercialization in aesthetics.
Strategic investor and Spanish biopharma Almirall is backing the dermal filler startup Suneva Medical with a $15 million equity investment to help it to launch the acne scar dermal filler Bellafill. In addition, the company recently secured a $20.4 million term loan from HealthCare Royalty Partners--part of which it has already used to pay off an existing $10 million in debt.
"Almirall is looking for attractive business development opportunities in the dermatology field and this represents our first investment in the aesthetics area," said Almirall's CEO Eduardo Sanchiz in a statement. "We have been attracted by the quality of Suneva's portfolio and its management team. This partnership will also allow us to further build our understanding of the performance of the aesthetics dermatology market in the U.S."
Suneva has also increased the size of a working capital facility with Comerica Bank by an undisclosed amount. In conjunction with the financing, Almirall will gain a seat on the company's board. HealthCare Royalty Partners and Polaris Partners are existing investors in the startup.
The FDA approved Bellafill in January to correct moderate to severe, atrophic, distensible facial acne scars on the cheek in patients over 21 years old. It is also approved to correct nasolabial folds, or smile lines.
Unlike the temporary hyaluronic-based fillers used to treat acne scars, Bellafill is intended to be permanent. It combines collagen with polymethylmethacrylate microspheres to create the injectable treatment. The PMMA microspheres are intended to create a matrix that supports the body's own collagen production. Suneva sells Bellafill as ArteFill in South Korea and Singapore. The company also markets skincare and tretinoin cream products.
"We look forward to the opportunities with Almirall to energize and expand our business," said Suneva chairman and CEO Nicholas Teti in a statement. "The Almirall equity investment will accelerate the growth for our current product portfolio and allow us the flexibility to continue to build one of the industry's leading, fully integrated aesthetics companies."
- here is the release