Innovacell Inc., headquartered in Tokyo, Japan and led by Co-CEOs Colin Lee Novick and Jason David Sieger, is pleased to announce the successful completion of its Series D funding round. The company is dedicated to enhancing health and quality of life through innovative cell therapy and regenerative medicine solutions targeting fecal and urinary incontinence.
The total amount raised in the Series D round exceeded 7.3 billion JPY, more than double the initial minimum target of 3.5 billion JPY.
This round included investments from strategic partners; Japanese crossover funds and global institutional investors (both with long-term investment horizons); representing a diverse range of investor categories.
Participating Investors (listed in no particular order):
- Strategic Investors: Alfresa Corporation (Japan), ASKA Pharmaceutical CVC (ASKA Innovation Investment Business LLP) (Japan)
- Global Institutional Investors: Funds managed by M&G Investments (a leading international asset manager), Arcus South East Asia (Malaysia)
- Japanese Crossover Funds: UntroD Nomura Crossover Impact Fund Investment Business LLP, Hifumi Crossover Pro (Hifumi Startup Investment Business LLP)
- Japanese and Global Venture Capital: Funds managed by SBI Investment Co., Ltd. (Japan), Happiness Capital (Hong Kong), Felicity Global Capital (Singapore)
- Japanese and Global High-Net-Worth Investors: J-Ships (JSDA Shares and Investment trusts for Professional (aka Specified/Accredited Investors)) investors via “FUNDINNO PLUS＋”
One of the standout features of this round was the proactive deployment of innovative structures to secure substantial funding. M&G Investments, the asset management arm of M&G plc, which manages assets totaling £345.9 billion GBP (approximately 68 trillion JPY as of the end of 2024), participated as the anchor investor in this round. Specifically, funds managed by M&G Investments invested 2 billion JPY through a specially arranged version of the so-called J-KISS-type stock acquisition rights.
Another notable feature of this round was the participation of investors with a medium- to long-term investment horizon. These included the aforementioned M&G Investments, UntroD Nomura Crossover Impact Fund Investment Business LLP (Japan), Hifumi Crossover Pro (Japan), and Arcus South East Asia (Malaysia). Happiness Capital (Hong Kong) also joined the round; as an evergreen impact investor, it too brings a longer-term perspective than traditional venture capital firms.
Innovacell plans to utilize the funds raised in the Series D round to advance its ongoing multi-regional (Japan-Europe) Phase III clinical trial of ICEF15, a regenerative medicine product being developed to treat patients with urge fecal incontinence. The company also intends to prepare for the launch of Phase III clinical trials of ICEF15 in the United States; establish manufacturing and marketing infrastructure for ICEF15 in Japan, the U.S., and Europe; and accelerate research and development of pipeline products beyond ICEF15.
Comments from Co-CEOs Colin Lee Novick and Jason David Sieger:
“We are both excited and humbled that our funding round was oversubscribed to this extent. The strong backing from both new and existing investors further empowers us to accelerate our efforts to bring our treatments to patients in need. We view this funding as a reflection of investor confidence in our group’s medium- to long-term growth potential.
Delivering cell therapy and regenerative medicine as a new source of ‘hope’ to patients with limited treatment options is part of our mission at Innovacell. With the support received through this round, we will continue to take steps forward and strive to become a global biotech company that delivers innovative medicine swiftly.”
About Innovacell Inc.
The predecessor of Innovacell Inc. was a cell therapy start-up company spun out from the Medical University of Innsbruck (Austria). Innovacell Inc., was established in Japan in 2021 as the parent company of said Austrian company.
Innovacell aims to improve patient health and QOL through the development and commercialization of cell therapies and regenerative medicine. It is currently focused on developing and commercializing regenerative medicine products for the treatment of urge and passive fecal incontinence as well as stress urinary incontinence.
ICEF15, the most advanced of the Group’s pipeline products, aims to treat urge fecal incontinence by regenerating muscle tissue via the local administration of a patient’s own skeletal myoblasts. ICEF15 is currently undergoing a multi-regional Phase III clinical trial (Fidelia Study) in 11 European countries and Japan. To date, Innovacell has completed multiple clinical trials in Europe, including Phase IIb trials for ICEF15 (urge fecal incontinence) and ICES13 (stress urinary incontinence).