January 27, 2021
Hemispherian AS (“Hemispherian” or the “Company”), a Norwegian preclinical pharmaceutical company focused on epigenetic therapeutics for the treatment of cancer, is delighted to announce its successful seed financing. The proceeds of the financing will support its activities over the next year, expand its preclinical pipeline and move its lead therapeutic compounds towards clinical development.
The round was led by PAACS Invest AS and Investinor AS who partnered with UK and American investors. Dr. Masha Strømme from PAACS Invest has been elected to chair the Board of Directors. Dr. Strømme comes with over 20 years of experience within investment and Investment Banking (Morgan Stanley) within Life sciences and a doctorate (D.Phil.) in Genetics and Neuroscience from Oxford University.
“Hemispherian’s compelling pre-clinical data sets the stage for the first epigenetic therapeutic to target the activation of the TET2 enzyme resulting in increased 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5-hmC) and selective cancer cell death. We look forward to contributing to building Hemispherian and moving its promising pipeline towards the clinic.”
— Dr. Masha Strømme, Chair of the Board
“Investinor is encouraged by Hemispherian’s research and dedicated team. We are excited to be partnering with the company and our co-investors led by Dr. Strømme in the development of new treatments for hard-to-treat cancers.”
— Birgitte Gangmark Villmo, Senior Associate at Investinor
About Hemispherian AS
Hemispherian is an innovative pharmaceutical company focused on developing a novel class of small molecule drugs (GLIX) that target the TET2 enzyme as an epigenetic therapy for particularly aggressive cancers. The company’s lead compound, GLIX1, is currently in late stage preclinical development for glioblastoma multiforme, a deadly cancer of the central nervous system and the leading cause of death by disease in children. Hemispherian is further focused on developing a companion diagnostics tool to support patient selection for optimal therapeutic response to GLIX1. Hemispherian is based in Oslo, Norway. For more information, visit www.hemispherian.com.
About PAACS Invest AS
PAACS Invest is a privately owned Norwegian investment company predominantly committed to active investments within healthcare and technology with a focus on sustainability. Current active healthcare portfolio includes precision medicine companies (EXACT-Tx, PubGene) and women’s health (RemovAid).
About Investinor AS
Investinor AS is a leading Norwegian venture fund located in Trondheim with approx. NOK 8 bn assets under management. In addition to Hemispherian, Investinor’s biotech portfolio is comprised of seven companies in various stages of development, of which three are listed on stock exchanges in Oslo, Stockholm and New York.
Contact:
Zeno Albisser, CEO
Gaustadalléen 21
0349 Oslo
zeno@hemispherian.com
+47 406 03 455