Medtech company Sequana Medical, formerly headquartered in Zurich, has opened its new corporate headquarters in Ghent, Belgium, after an investment of €8.5 million from leading Belgian investors including Newton Biocapital, PMV and SFPI-FPIM as well as existing shareholders.
Sequana Medical is a commercial stage medical device company focused on the development of innovative treatment solutions for the management of liver disease, heart failure, malignant ascites and other fluid imbalance disorders. The company has moved its headquarter from Zurich to Belgium.
“Sequana Medical is entering a phase aimed at accelerated commercial growth and innovation. Moving our corporate headquarters to Ghent will allow us to benefit from Belgium’s attractive healthcare ecosystem and support for life sciences companies, as well as to strengthen our commercial ties within the EU”, said Ian Crosbie, Chief Executive Officer at Sequana Medical. “We are delighted to have secured such strong backing from leading local investors as well as from our existing shareholders. With this additional funding, we expect to drive towards profitability for our European commercial business, begin the North American pivotal study of the alfapump® for the treatment of liver recurrent and refractory ascites and commence first-in-human studies for our proprietary Direct Sodium Removal (“DSR”), a breakthrough therapy for the management of volume overload in heart failure.”
“We are very pleased to have attracted such a high quality company as Sequana Medical that matches so well with the Flanders’ healthcare ecosystem”, said Chris De Jonghe, Head of Life Sciences & Care at PMV. PMV is a do and dare company that shapes the economic future of Flanders. “It demonstrates our commitment to fund promising businesses and support them in their realisation of their growth ambitions.” Koen Van Loo, Managing Director at SFPI-FPIM added, “Sequana Medical will add significant value to our world-class ecosystem in life sciences and we are delighted to have joined a strong consortium of investors who have a shared vision about the Company’s exciting technology platform.” The Federal Holding and Investment Company (SFPI-FPIM) centrally manages the federal government’s shareholdings, cooperates with the government on specific projects and pursues its own investment policy in the interests of the Belgian economy. “Sequana Medical perfectly fits in our strategy to support innovative treatment solutions that will improve the quality of life for patients suffering from chronic diseases, such as liver disease and heart failure”, concluded Els Hubloux, Partner at Newton Biocapital Partners. “We are very pleased to welcome such a talented company within our Life Sciences Venture Capital portfolio.”
Sequana Medical has received CE Mark approval for its alfapump system for liver refractory ascites and malignant ascites with proven safety, efficacy and quality of life benefits demonstrated in multiple clinical studies and over 650 implants. The Company is also developing alfapump DSR, a convenient and fully implanted system for DSR, its proprietary therapy for the management of volume overload in heart failure. Pre-clinical proof of concept results of DSR therapy were recently presented at the Heart Failure Society of America’s annual conference.
(Press release - SK)
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