NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – CRISPR Therapeutics announced today that it has raised an additional $38 million as part of a Series B Financing round.
The company said the funding round raised almost $140 million overall, with the first part of the financing being led by Vertex Pharmaceuticals and Bayer Global Investments, and the second, oversubscribed closing including new institutional investors and specialized healthcare funds such as Franklin Templeton Investments, New Leaf Venture Partners, and funds advised by Clough Capital Partners and Wellington Capital Management.
"We are very pleased to add these top-tier institutional investors in the most recent closing of our Series B financing," said CEO Rodger Novak in a statement. "Along with the recent investments made by our strategic partners, Vertex and Bayer, we believe this further investment represents a strong validation of our approach to translate the novel CRISPR/Cas9 gene-editing technology into life-changing medicines for patients. We plan to use these proceeds to advance our current and future programs to the clinic and to expand our research and development organization in Cambridge, Massachusetts."
In October 2015, the company signed a four-year strategic research collaboration with Vertex Pharmaceuticals to develop new treatments for genetic diseases using CRISPR/Cas9. As part of the deal, Vertex agreed to provide CRISPR Therapeutics with a $75 million up-front cash payment as well as a $30 million equity investment.