Promethera looks to Asia with €10m investment

Belgium-based liver disease specialists Promethera Biosciences have received a leg-up for the Asian market in the form of a €10 million investment from Japanese business conglomerate ITOCHU Corporation. ITOCHU is the first lead investor in Promethera’s Series D round, which the company expects to close in Q1 2019. Following the transaction, Tajio Enoki, manager, medical business team, chemicals division, energy & chemicals company, ITOCHU Corporation, will join the company’s Board of Directors as a director.
Beyond the investment, ITOCHU intends to support Promethera to advance its product and business development strategy in Asia. The scope of the relationship includes R&D support for Promethera’s HepaStem development program in acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF), non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and urea cycle disorder (UCD) in selected Asian markets. “We are very honored to have ITOCHU Corporation a premier Japanese conglomerate with a strong outreach to the wider Asian hemisphere, come in as the first lead investor in our next fundraising effort,” said John Tchelingerian, Promethera’s president and CEO.