4BIO Capital announces strategic investment from Japanese pharmaceutical company Kyowa Kirin

Press Release

4BIO Capital announces strategic investment from Japanese pharmaceutical company Kyowa Kirin

Kyowa Kirin’s first strategic investment into a Venture Capital fund

Kyowa Kirin to expand its exposure to advanced therapies through 4BIO partnership

08 June 2020

LONDON & BOSTON – 4BIO Capital (“4BIO” or “the Group”), an international venture capital firm focused solely on the advanced therapies sector, announces that Kyowa Kirin Co., Ltd. (“Kyowa Kirin”, TSE:4151), a leading Japan-based global specialty pharmaceutical company creating innovative medical solutions utilizing the latest biotechnology, has made a strategic investment in 4BIO’s Ventures II LP Fund.

Kyowa Kirin is one of the largest pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies in Japan with a global presence and is the first strategic pharmaceutical investor in 4BIO Ventures II. This is also the company’s first investment into a venture capital fund. The investment will provide Kyowa Kirin with access to the advanced therapies space across the UK, Europe and the US through 4BIO’s investment team, while Kyowa Kirin will provide 4BIO with access to its scientific and R&D teams to better inform its ongoing investment in the space.

Kieran Mudryy, Partner at 4BIO Capital, said: “We welcome Kyowa Kirin’s investment in the 4BIO Ventures II fund as testament to Japanese interests in advanced therapies, and our ability to identify the most exciting developments in the area. We remain committed to the growing advanced therapies community in this region and are excited by growing our presence in Japan through this partnership.”

Mr Philippe Fauchet OBE, Venture Partner at 4BIO Capital, added: “Japan has rooted itself as one of the leading countries in drug discovery and continues to be a prominent market for 4BIO. The country has one of the most advanced gene and cell therapy research centres in the world, which remains largely untouched by the venture capital community."

Takeyoshi Yamashita, Ph.D, Executive Officer, Director of Corporate Strategy & Planning at Kyowa Kirin said: “4BIO’s Ventures II fund and its sole focus on advanced therapies gives us a fantastic opportunity to support early stage companies in what we believe is the fastest growing and most important field of medicine. We share 4BIO’s vision of ensuring sustainable access to potentially curative therapies for all patients and contributing to the health and well-being of people around the world. This investment underlines our shared ambition to do so.”

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About 4BIO Capital

4BIO Capital is an international venture capital firm focused solely on the advanced therapies sector.

4BIO’s objective is to invest in, support, and grow early stage companies developing treatments in areas of high unmet medical need, with the ultimate goal of ensuring access to these potentially curative therapies for all patients. Specifically, it looks for viable, high-quality opportunities in cell and gene therapy, RNA-based therapy, targeted therapies, and the microbiome.

The 4BIO team comprises leading advanced therapy scientists and experienced life science investors who have collectively published over 250 scientific articles in prestigious academic journals including Nature, The Lancet, Cell, and the New England Journal of Medicine. 4BIO has both an unrivalled network within the advanced therapy sector and a unique understanding of the criteria that define a successful investment opportunity in this space.

For more information, please visit www.4biocapital.com

About Kyowa Kirin

Kyowa Kirin commits to innovative drug discovery driven by state-of-the-art technologies. The company focuses on creating new value in the four therapeutic areas: nephrology, oncology, immunology/allergy and neurology. Under the Kyowa Kirin brand, employees from 40 group companies across North America, EMEA and Asia/Oceania unite to champion the interests of patients and their caregivers by discovering solutions to address unmet medical needs. You can learn more about the business of Kyowa Kirin at www.kyowakirin.com.