Approximately 400 million yen was raised from publicly offered investment trusts managed by Rheos Capital Works

Innovacell Inc, (Head Office: Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo; Representatives: Colin Lee Novick and Jason David Sieger), a company dedicated to improving patients` health and quality of life (QOL) through cell therapy for the treatment of fecal and urinary incontinence, is pleased to announce that it has entered into an agreement with the publicly offered investment trust “Hifumi Crossover Pro” managed by Rheos Capital Works Co., Ltd. As of April 30, 2025, Innovacell has raised approximately 400 million yen.

Hifumi Crossover Pro is a fund that invests in both listed and unlisted companies with high growth potential. It conducts deep and ongoing research into unlisted companies and makes proactive investments from early stages, aiming to create new value by crossing boundaries between different sectors.

Innovacell is currently working on a Series D round of funding, and as part of this project, have made a third-party allotment of approximately 400 million yen to Hifumi Startup Investment Limited Partnership. (The shares allocated this time will be incorporated into the “Hifumi Crossover PRO” fund). The cumulative amount of Series D funding, including this transaction, has already exceeded the initial minimum target of 3.5 billion yen, and we are continuing to negotiate with domestic and overseas investors with the aim of further increasing the amount.

 Utilizing the funds raised in the Series D round, the Group will promote the Phase-III-Japan-Europe international clinical trial of ICEF15, a regenerative medicine product for the treatment of urge fecal incontinence, as well as preparations for the start of the Phase III clinical trial of ICEF15 in the United States, the establishment of a manufacturing and sales system for ICEF15 commercially available products in Japan, the United States, and Europe, and research and development of pipeline products other than ICEF15. We intend to accelerate strategic initiatives such as preparations for a stock listing.

 We are truly honored and grateful to have been able to receive investment through Hifumi Crossover PRO with Mr. Fujino, Mr. Matsumoto, Mr. Toda, and everyone else at Rheos Capital Works and Leos Capital Partners. Our mission at Innovacell is to deliver regenerative medicine and cell therapy, which are a new “hope” for patients who currently have limited treatment options. With the support we have received, we will continue to boldly take on challenges and strive to become a bio-venture company that can deliver innovative pharmaceuticals to the global market as quickly as possible.

Hifumi Crossover PRO is a fund that invests mainly in unlisted and listed companies that are expected to grow, as well as crossover investments that cross the boundary between unlisted and listed.

Crossover is the creation of new things by combining different fields beyond the boundaries of a specific field. We conduct in-depth and continuous research not only on listed companies but also on unlisted companies, carefully selecting attractive companies that are expected to grow significantly in the future and actively investing in them from the unlisted stage.

* Since investment trusts invest in assets that fluctuate in price, there is a possibility that they will incur losses due to a decline in the base price, resulting in a loss of principal. When applying for an investment trust, please carefully read the contents of the “Investment Trust Explanatory Document (Prospectus)” given to you by the sales company in advance and make your own decision.

Our predecessor was a regenerative medicine start-up company spun out of the Medical University of Innsbruck in Austria, and we were established in Japan in 2021 as the parent company of this Austrian company. The Group aims to improve people’s health and quality of life through the commercialization of regenerative medicine and is currently engaged in the research and development and commercialization of regenerative medicine products to treat urge or leaky fecal incontinence and stress urinary incontinence. ICEF15, the most advanced product in the Group’s pipeline, aims to treat urge fecal incontinence fundamentally by using patients’ own myoblasts to regenerate muscles through local administration. Currently, the Group is conducting the Phase III international clinical trial Fidelia study of ICEF 15 in 10 European countries and Japan. In addition, the Group has completed several clinical trials in Europe, including two late-stage Phase II trials, ICEF15 (for urge fecal incontinence) and ICES13 (for stress urinary incontinence).