On February 5, 2018 Cellular Biomedicine Group Inc. (NASDAQ: CBMG) ("CBMG" or the "Company"), a biopharmaceutical firm engaged in the development of immunotherapies for cancer, reported the receipt of a $30.6 million investment from Sailing Capital Overseas Investment Ltd. and its affiliates (collectively "Sailing"), a global private equity firm focused on China cross-border investments in disruptive global companies in the healthcare, technology and consumer sectors (Press release, Cellular Biomedicine Group, FEB 7, 2018, View Source [SID1234523793]). As part of the transaction, Sailing will appoint a representative to the Company’s Board of Directors.
Schedule your 30 min Free 1stOncology Demo!
Discover why more than 1,500 members use 1stOncology™ to excel in:
Early/Late Stage Pipeline Development - Target Scouting - Clinical Biomarkers - Indication Selection & Expansion - BD&L Contacts - Conference Reports - Combinatorial Drug Settings - Companion Diagnostics - Drug Repositioning - First-in-class Analysis - Competitive Analysis - Deals & Licensing
Schedule Your 30 min Free Demo!
"Sailing is a highly-regarded growth equity investor which leverages its unique commercial and government relationships to enhance its portfolio companies’ businesses in China and internationally. Sailing’s investment in the Company further validates our proprietary technology platform and independently affirms our prospects for CFDA approval and commercialization in China. We are proud of the demonstrated clinical proof-of-concept of our Chimeric Antigen Receptor ("CAR") T-cell immuno-oncology platform, and Sailing’s investment will enable further clinical development by funding our multiple clinical programs for progressive malignant lymphoma, Acute B lymphocytic leukemia and Hodgkin’s lymphoma, as well as development in novel T Cell Receptor (TCR) therapies to redirect T cells for solid tumors," said Tony (Bizuo) Liu, Chief Executive Officer of CBMG.
"With the recent regulatory approvals and commercialization of CAR-T in the US and the CFDA’s issuance of final guidance for the approval of CAR-T in China, we believe an investment in CBMG is timely as the China market opportunity for cell and gene therapy is substantial. We have conducted a deep dive on the cell and gene therapy industry and found CBMG to be not only a leader in China, but also globally, of vertically integrated cell and gene therapy manufacturing know-how, as evidenced by the Company’s strategic and joint development partnerships with both GE and Thermo Fisher. GMP quality manufacturing, market leading capacity (for 10,000 patients) and a focus on GCP standards in China are critical success factors in developing cutting-edge cancer immunotherapies for the global markets. Further, we have found CBMG to have strong innovation and translation medicine sophistication, which is reflected in a strong pipeline of multiple CAR-T and TCR constructs. We also see tremendous opportunity for leading cell and gene therapy companies based outside of China to partner with CBMG, leveraging the Company’s manufacturing expertise and the favorable regulatory environment in China, to rapidly advance development programs into the clinic. We look forward to supporting CBMG’s continued clinical success and believe the Company will emerge as a leader in the cancer medicine fields," said James Xiaodong Liu, Chairman of Sailing Capital.