SiSaf Ltd Announces US$13.2 Million Series B Financing

GUILDFORD, United Kingdom, Nov. 26, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- SiSaf Ltd announced today that it has raised US$13.2 million in Series B financing. This funding round was led by Vickers Venture Partners and matched by the UK government's Future Fund.

SiSaf is the creator of Bio-Courier®, technology, a non-viral, hybrid carrier system which enables the safe and efficient targeted delivery and transfection of therapeutic small interfering Ribonucleic acids (siRNA).

The funds raised in this financing will be used to accelerate SiSaf's innovative RNA therapeutic programs to treat rare and therapeutically neglected genetic conditions of the bone and eye, as well as to expand the pipeline across multiple debilitating autosomal dominant disorders. 

"We are thrilled to close this first tranche of our series B funding during the extensive restrictions of a global pandemic," said Dr Suzanne Saffie-Siebert, Founder and CEO of SiSaf. "We have long believed that Bio-Courier technology will completely revolutionize RNA therapeutics by addressing the key challenges of stability, specificity, non-immunogenic and nontoxic targeted delivery. This funding will speed up the translation of top scientific research into safe, effective and accessible treatments for patients with no specific treatment options currently available to them."

"We are very excited to continue to back the SiSaf team and their ground-breaking technology and wanted to ensure that no time was lost due to COVID-19," says Dr Finian Tan, Chairman of Vickers Venture Partners. "We believe SiSaf is well on the way to making the most sweeping change to RNA therapeutics ever made, helping to deliver on the promise of true personalized medicine."

siRNA can be used to target nearly all disease-related genes of interest, however, they are one of the most challenging molecules for targeted delivery due their poor cellular uptake, susceptibility to degradation and potential to stimulate an immune response. A recent Journal of Controlled Release¹ publication demonstrates how SiSaf's Bio-Courier technology can efficiently encapsulate siRNA, penetrate all the layers of the cornea following simple eye drop administration and deliver siRNA intracellularly resulting in potent transfection and safe and effective gene silencing.

About SiSaf

SiSaf are pioneers of silicon-based Bio-Courier technology that leverages the unique properties of elemental silicon (₁₄Si) to overcome the limitations of current drug technologies. Built upon a decade of research and patented technological innovation, SiSaf's platform is changing the way therapeutic molecules target disease helping to make tomorrow's precision medicines a reality. SiSaf is a commercial stage biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Guilford, UK, with fully integrated, state-of-the-art research labs, manufacturing, and bio-analytical facilities to fast track development. To learn more, please visit www.sisaf.com

About Bio-Courier® Technology

SiSaf's first-to-market Bio-Courier platform technology leverages the unique properties of hybrid compositions of inorganic bioabsorbable silicon, with organic materials to address the significant challenges of stability, solubility, targeting and controlled release of complex therapeutic molecules.

The customizable design and fabrication provide unparalleled flexibility with respect to therapeutic molecule type and target cell location. Bio-Couriers degrade to the bioavailable form of silicon, eliminating the accumulation of potentially toxic or immune-activating material and supporting cell health. Cost-effective, scaled manufacturing provides unequalled capacity to address both rare diseases and large patient populations

About Vickers Venture Partners

Vickers Venture Partners is a global venture capital firm focused on early-stage investments in the technological and geographical mega trends of the world.  The firm's portfolio covers life sciences, technology, media, and telecommunications as well as consumer and financial services. The partners' track records include hits such as Baidu.com, Inc, Focus Media Holding Ltd, Kongzhong Corp, Cambridge Real Estate Investment Trust, Sunfun Info Co., Asian Food Channel (trade sale), UUCUN (trade sale), TWG Tea (trade sale), RTG Asia (trade sale), JJE (trade sale), Hillstone (trade sale, IPO), M-Daq (trade sale), Tenfen (trade sale), Kuyun (trade sale) and Mainspring (trade sale). The total market value of the companies that the partners have helped grow exceeds US$50 billion today. Vickers Venture Partners announced that they are targeting to raise US$500 million for their latest fund VI and have started investing from it after their first close in Oct 2019. 

Vickers Venture Partners was founded by Dr Finian Tan together with his co-founders Dr Khalil Binebine, Dr Jeffrey Chi, Dr Damian Tan, Linda Li and Raymond Kong in 2005. It is headquartered in Singapore with offices in Shanghai, Hong Kong, New York, San Diego, Silicon Valley and London.

Find out more online at www.vickersventure.com

About the Future Fund

The Future Fund will support the UK's innovative businesses currently affected by Covid-19. These businesses have been unable to access other government business support programmes, such as CBILS, because they are either pre-revenue or pre-profit and typically rely on equity investment. Initially, £250 million was made available by the government for investment through the scheme, to be matched by private investors, with the Treasury making clear the amount could be increased if needed. Due to the popularity of the Fund, more funding is being made available. Developed by the government and delivered by the British Business Bank, the Future Fund launched for applications in May and is open until the end of January 2021.

Reference

1. Topical siRNA delivery to the cornea and anterior eye by hybrid silicon-lipid nanoparticle. Journal of Controlled Release, Volume 326, 10 October 2020, Pages 192-202
   https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168365920303795?via%3Dihubs