Funds rised to advance Pipeline of Novel Phosphatase Modulators Toward the Clinic
Anavo Therapeutics, a global leader in unlocking the full therapeutic potential of human phosphatase biology, announced today an EUR 8.5 million seed round extension, adding MRL Ventures Fund as a new investor. All existing investors, M Ventures, INKEF, Taiho Ventures, and Bioqube Ventures, participated in the extension, bringing the total seed round to EUR 28 million.
Since our inception in 2021, Anavo Therapeutics has advanced multiple proprietary pipeline programs in this centrally important target class and added significant expertise to the team, SAB, and the board
“Today, we welcome MRL Ventures Fund to our existing investor syndicate,” commented Birgit Zech, PhD, Chief Executive Officer of Anavo Therapeutics. “Leveraging our unique IGNITE phosphatase drug discovery platform, we will continue to accelerate our proprietary portfolio of programs targeting disease-relevant phosphatases toward clinical development, while continuing to build a center of excellence for phosphatase targeting.”
"We are encouraged by the progress being made at Anavo in establishing a systematic approach to phosphatase drug discovery,” said Karin Kleinhans, PhD, Partner at MRL Ventures Fund. “At MRL Ventures we believe Anavo’s platform offers the potential to harness the therapeutic opportunity of this important target class.”
As a result of the transaction, Karin Kleinhans, Partner at MRL Ventures Fund, will join the existing Board of Directors, which includes Charles McDermott (Chairman); Therese Maria Liechtenstein, M Ventures; Simone Botti, INKEF Capital; Sakae Asanuma, Taiho Ventures; Debora Dumont, Bioqube Ventures; and Birgit Zech, Anavo Therapeutics.
