MediBeacon will receive an initial $15 million equity payment and will receive a second $15 million equity payment upon achieving US FDA approval for its TGFR Measurement System
Image: MediBeacon secures investment from Huadong Medicine. Photo: Courtesy of 3D Animation Production Company/Pixabay
HC2 Holdings, a diversified holding company announced today that MediBeacon Inc., a privately held portfolio company within HC2’s Pansend Life Science (“Pansend”) announced today that they have entered into a definitive agreement with Huadong Medicine, a publicly traded company on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange (SZ:000963, U.S. dollar equivalent $6 billion market cap). The agreement will provide exclusive rights to MediBeacon’s portfolio of assets in Greater China. Huadong Medicine will be responsible to fund the clinical trials, commercial and regulatory activities in 25 Asian countries, including Greater China (PRC Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan), Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines and Singapore.
Under terms of the agreement, MediBeacon will receive an initial $15 million equity payment at a pre-money valuation of $300 million and will receive a second $15 million equity payment upon achieving US FDA approval for its TGFR Measurement System at a pre-money valuation of $400 million. Huadong Medicine will fund all commercial and regulatory activities in Greater China and select Asian countries. In addition, MediBeacon will receive royalty payments on net sales in the specified countries. As part of this transaction, Richard B. Dorshow, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer and Co-Founder of MediBeacon Inc., will assume the role of Special Scientific Advisor to Huadong Medicine.
MediBeacon’s Transdermal Glomerular Filtration Rate (TGFR) Measurement System is designed to measure kidney function at the point of care without the need for blood sampling or urine collection, and is poised to begin its pivotal trials in the US and Europe. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted Breakthrough Device designation to the TGFR in 2018.1 MediBeacon’s agents and devices are not approved for human use by any regulatory agency.
It is estimated that 10.8% of the people in China suffer from Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD).2 Kidney disease is a “hidden epidemic” affecting more than 850 million people worldwide.3 The ability to measure GFR is of high clinical interest especially in patients with, or at risk of, kidney disease.
MediBeacon’s fluorescent agent platform for use in physiological function monitoring has important applications beyond the field of kidney health. The Company’s Transdermal Gastrointestinal Permeability System has been supported by multiple grants from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. In addition, the company has just completed initial pre-clinical studies evaluating use of its agents in imaging the vasculature of the eye.
“The MediBeacon-Huadong partnership in Asia is an important step for the Company,” said Philip Falcone, HC2’s Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President. “This collaboration will allow breakthrough technology to help patients in one of largest markets in the world. It will also provide MediBeacon the capital to reach its regulatory and commercial goals in other regions, including the United States and Europe.”
“We are excited that MediBeacon has entered into a strategic partnership with Huadong Medicine, one of the leading pharmaceutical companies in China,” said David A. Present, M.D., Co-Founder and General Partner of Pansend.
“Huadong Medicine has over 6,500 representatives covering all key regions in China and has a major presence in the treatment of kidney disease,” said Cherine Eldumiati Plumaker, Co-Founder and General Partner of Pansend.
Source: Company Press Release