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| Xagenic CEO Timothy Still |
Canada's Xagenic roped in $15 million to support development of its automated testing system for infectious diseases, adding new funds to its reservoir as it looks to bring its innovative product to market.
Existing Series B investors including Domain Associates, CTI Life Sciences, BDC Capital and Ontario Capital Growth contributed financing. Toronto-based Xagenic's X1 platform is geared toward doctors' offices and clinics, screening for infectious diseases in less than 20 minutes. The company sees a "large market opportunity" for its product, as there's a growing demand for point-of-care diagnostics than can be applied on a broad scale, Xagenic said in a statement.
"This investment round is a testament to the faith our existing investors have in the power of the Xagenic X1 platform and the promise of our enzyme-free approach to molecular diagnostics," CEO Timothy Still said in a statement. "This funding will accelerate our development efforts in bringing our point-of-care diagnostic platform to market."
Xagenic has worked hard to rev up its R&D engine since founding in 2010. In 2012 the University of Toronto spinout raised $10 million in a Series A round to develop its X1 diagnostic. In 2013, Xagenic followed up the funding by roping in $18.8 million in Series B financing. The company quickly increased that total with add-on investments and an amped-up Series B round that hit $25.5 million.
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| Xagenic's X1 diagnostic system--Courtesy of Xagenic |
And Xagenic is attracting attention from a variety of sources, scoring a $6 million grant last year from Genome Canada to advance its work in rapid, point-of-care diagnostics. The Ontario Ministry of Research also signed onto the project by matching Genome Canada's contribution, the company said at the time.
Meanwhile, Xagenic is putting its faith in new CEO Still to keep up the positive momentum. The company hired Still last October, tasking him with ramping up development for its X1 platform. Xagenic bills its diagnostic as a boon to the healthcare industry, as it can reduce costs and speed up testing times. The way Still sees it, the technology "has the potential to revolutionize clinical diagnostics and to dramatically improve patient care by enabling immediate, accurate testing at the point of care," he said last year. With new Series B funding in tow, the company appears poised to cash in on a market ripe for growth.
- read Xagenic's release