Australian biomedical technology incubator Proto Axiom has on Monday announced a second round of financing of $5 million, after its initial raise of $10 million last September.

This is the biotechnology firm’s final close on its Series A terms, with new notable investors such as Melbourne-based Churchill Asset Management, Riverlane Capital, and Eucalyptus founder Benny Kleist, Proto Axiom said in a statement.

The firm has also announced that it has invested in University of Sydney spin-out EndoAxiom.

“Hitting our target of $15 million in such a difficult economic environment validates the emerging belief in Australia’s biotechnology sector,” said Proto Axiom’s Chief Executive Anthony Liveris.

The firm’s Chief Science Officer Dr Lindsay Wu added that raising such capital has enabled the firm to announce its first deal EndoAxiom, which leverages the safe delivery of nanoparticles to treat autoimmune diseases and allergies.

Founded by three academics — Prof. Victoria Cogger, Prof David Le Couteur AO and Dr Nicholas Hunt – EndoAxiom is developing pre-clinical IP from the University of Sydney and
the Sydney Local Health District.

The university and the founding academics are partial owners in the company.

EndoAxiom aims to enable the oral-delivery of insulin to treat Type 1 Diabetes, which usually starts in young children, where it is currently irreversible, and requires kids to have at least daily injections of insulin for the rest of their lives.

“Having a therapy that could actually treat this disease, rather than just manage its symptoms, would revolutionize the lives of hundreds of thousands of children,” Liveris added.

Tristan Edwards, the Executive Chairman of Proto Axiom, said he is thrilled to have the opportunity to work with EndoAxiom.

“The team has produced world leading research. As well as financially investing in the company, Proto Axiom will give the team access to industry knowledge and commercialisation expertise from both Australia and overseas,” he said.

According to the statement, Proto Axiom is dedicated to enriching Australia’s biotech ecosystem by bridging the gap between early stage academic discovery and de-risked, commercially viable drug development programs.

It invests local and overseas capital in Australian biotechnology research and innovations, providing an incubation platform to amplify value from the wealth of world-leading, publicly funded discoveries from Australian academic institutions.

This is the first in a series of investments that Proto Axiom expects to announce in coming months.

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