Company News

Woodford Investment Management LLP has raised its stake in Imperial Innovations Group to 21% making it the group’s second most significant investor behind Invesco Asset Management.

Medical device company Mainstay Medical International Plc has raised €30 million in a share placement to new and existing investors to commercialise its implantable neurostimulation device for back pain in Europe and complete a trial for a US regulatory submission.

Sweden-based Medivir AB has engaged professional advisors to investigate the possibility of reorganising the company into two independent businesses in order to deliver more value to shareholders. The announcement was made to the Nasdaq Stockholm stock exchange on 15 June.

Allecra Therapeutics, a three-year old biotech company co-located in Germany and France, has raised €22 million in a Series B investment round to finance the development of an antibiotic combination therapy designed to treat Gram-negative bacteria.

Gilde Healthcare Partners BV has raised €250 million for its fourth life science fund that targets investments in medical devices, digital health technology and therapeutics in Europe and North America. Koninklijke Philips NV acted as a cornerstone investor.

Vedanta Bioscience Inc has raised $50 million in equity finance to advance candidate therapies targeting the human microbiome for the treatment of infectious and autoimmune diseases.

Ablynx NV, a Belgian developer of antibody fragments originating in llamas, has raised €74.2 million with a private placement of new shares.

Novacyt SA, a listed French cellular diagnostics company, has raised €1.4 million from a private equity placement in order to help finance the expansion of its recently acquired UK company Primerdesign, which has technology for analysing bacteria and viruses.

Shire Plc completed its acquisition of Baxalta Inc on 3 June to create a global company focused on developing drugs for rare diseases and other specialised conditions. The $32 billion deal comprises payments in both cash and Shire equity.

Ryboquin Ltd, a virtual Scottish company with no salaried employees, has raised £1.3 million for the scaling up production of its lead product, Ryboquin ECP-102, which boosts the effectiveness of chemotherapy in cancer patients.