– ElevateBio to leverage its fully integrated, company
building bench-to-bedside capabilities exclusively focused on cell and
gene therapies
– ElevateBio’s BaseCamp, an R&D, process development and cGMP
manufacturing subsidiary, provides cell and gene expertise for all
ElevateBio portfolio companies and selected strategic partners
– $150 MM Series A financing co-led by UBS Oncology Impact Fund
Managed by MPM Capital and F2 Ventures joined by EcoR1 Capital, Redmile
Group, and Samsara BioCapital
CAMBRIDGE, Mass.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–ElevateBio, a Cambridge-based biotechnology holding company, today
announced operations to create and build a broad portfolio of cell and
gene therapy companies through partnerships with leading academic
researchers, medical centers and entrepreneurs. ElevateBio’s fully
integrated business model is structured to efficiently build single- and
multi-product cell and gene therapy companies by providing scientific
founders with centralized bench-to-bedside capabilities including
world-class scientists, manufacturing facilities, drug development and
commercialization expertise. ElevateBio’s BaseCamp is a single R&D,
process development and cGMP manufacturing company that provides
centralized expertise for all ElevateBio portfolio companies, and also
serves selected strategic partners. The company has closed $150 million
in Series A financing co-led by the UBS Oncology Impact Fund managed by
MPM Capital and F2 Ventures, joined by EcoR1 Capital, Redmile Group, and
Samsara BioCapital.
“ElevateBio is uniquely structured and positioned to leverage our cell
and gene therapy company-building capabilities to accelerate
development, manufacturing, and delivery of highly innovative therapies
across a growing number of portfolio companies,” said David Hallal,
ElevateBio co-founder, CEO and Chairman. “A foundational element of our
scientific, clinical and financial strategy is ElevateBio BaseCamp,
which is our single R&D, process development and manufacturing company
that supports our portfolio companies and a select group of strategic
partners that will benefit from our expertise and facilities. We look
forward to announcing our initial portfolio companies and strategic
partners in the coming weeks.”
ElevateBio’s founders and broader leadership team have built and led
several of the world’s most successful biotechnology companies over the
past several decades. The company is led by co-founders David Hallal,
CEO and Chairman; Mitchell Finer, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer; and
Vikas Sinha, Chief Financial Officer. MPM Capital incubated ElevateBio
and Elevate’s founding investors Ansbert Gadicke, M.D., co-founder of
MPM Capital, and Morana Jovan-Embiricos, Ph.D., Managing Partner of F2
Ventures, are on the ElevateBio Board of Directors. Oleg Nodelman,
Founder and Managing Director, EcoR1, serves as a Board Observer.
“At MPM, we are thrilled to have incubated ElevateBio, a company that is
creating a novel environment to accelerate the development of cell and
gene therapies for patients and deliver significant value to investors,”
said Dr. Gadicke. “The track records of the ElevateBio leadership team
in building iconic companies and creating value are unmatched, and we
look forward to working with them as they execute on a new model in the
field of cell and gene therapies.”
ElevateBio BaseCamp, Inc.
ElevateBio has established
ElevateBio BaseCamp, a single R&D, process development and cGMP
manufacturing company, to address the process development and
manufacturing barriers that can impede the successful development of
cell and gene therapies. BaseCamp is providing these and other services
across ElevateBio’s portfolio companies and selected strategic partners,
enabling them to access state of the art capabilities.
Led by Dr. Finer, BaseCamp is currently located in Cambridge, Mass. and
staffed with a world-class team of scientists. With more than 100,000
square feet of space, the new ElevateBio BaseCamp, being built in
Waltham, Mass., includes cGMP manufacturing suites, analytics and QC
laboratories, and protein engineering, virology and immunology labs, all
with state-of-the art levels of laboratory automation. BaseCamp’s staff
have world-class expertise in developing and manufacturing
immunotherapies, regenerative medicine products, in vivo
viral-based therapies, and other cell and gene therapies.
“In the field of cell and gene therapies, as well as regenerative
medicine products, the lack of high-quality process development and
manufacturing capability is among the most significant barriers to
moving these therapies forward,” said Dr. Finer. “Working within a
single umbrella organization of expert scientists and operators under
one roof, we will rapidly and efficiently advance each development
program by providing our scientific founders with dedicated PD,
manufacturing and drug development expertise and facilities. Together,
we are reducing inefficiencies that drain capital and delay new
therapies, so that we can rapidly and successfully move novel candidates
from concept to commercialization.”
Leadership Team and Advisors
ElevateBio and ElevateBio
BaseCamp are led and advised by a robust team of world-class biotech
industry leaders, spanning the fields of basic science, clinical
development, regulatory affairs, quality, manufacturing,
commercialization, finance and operations. Background information on our
leadership team is available at www.elevate.bio.
About ElevateBio
ElevateBio, LLC, is a Cambridge-based
biotechnology holding company, established to create and operate a broad
portfolio of cell and gene therapy companies through partnerships with
leading academic researchers, medical centers and entrepreneurs.
ElevateBio builds single- and multi-product companies by providing
scientific founders with fully-integrated bench-to-bedside capabilities
including world-class scientists, manufacturing facilities, drug
developers and commercial expertise. ElevateBio is building a team of
industry leaders who work at the holding company and are assigned
exclusively or in-part to ElevateBio portfolio companies over time.
ElevateBio BaseCamp, a company-owned center of cell and gene therapy
innovation, will serve as the R&D, process development and manufacturing
hub across the entire ElevateBio portfolio while also supporting
selected strategic partners.
About the Lead Investors
MPM Capital is a healthcare
investment firm with over two decades of experience founding and
investing in life-sciences companies that seek to translate scientific
innovations into cures for major diseases. With its experienced and
dedicated team of investment professionals and Executive Partners, MPM
strives to power novel medical breakthroughs that transform patients’
lives. The firm invests across three vehicles: BV2018, a venture capital
fund; the UBS Oncology Impact Fund (OIF), an oncology-only crossover
fund (both private and public equities) managed by MPM; and another
oncology-focused investment initiative with Dana-Farber Cancer
Institute. For more information visit www.mpmcapital.com.
F2 Ventures is an international biotechnology venture capital asset
manager established in 2003 to invest in breakthrough life science
companies. In addition, a series of Special Purpose Vehicles have also
been created to take advantage of capital arbitrage opportunities in the
crossover private to public biotech markets.
Contacts
Media:
Courtney Heath
ScientPR
courtney@scientpr.com
617-872-2462