Catalym raises 50 million euros

The Munich-based biotech company has successfully completed its C-financing round. The money will be used for research into a cancer drug.

Martinsried-based Catalym raised €50 million in its Series C financing round. The round was led by Australian life science capitalist Brandon Capital and Jeito Capital, which invested in Germany for the first time. Both are investing in the biotech startup for the first time. Existing shareholders such as Forbion, Novartis Venture Fonds and Bayern Kapital were again on board.

Catalym plans to use the money to fund clinical trials of visugromab, a potential cancer drug. Visugromab works by using antibodies to neutralize a specific protein used by tumors to protect the immune system. This function is expected to make cancer treatments more effective. It is currently being tested in several phase-two trials. Drugs have to go through three clinical phases before they can be submitted for approval.

Tumor researcher Jörg Wischhusen developed the scientific basis of the start-up in 2016 at the University of Würzburg, which was then also launched on the market as a spin-off from the university. Since May, Phil L'Huillier has been CEO of the company, who previously worked at the pharmaceutical group MSD, among others. Wischhusen is a member of Catalym's advisory board.