PARIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Scipio bioscience, a Paris-based biotechnology company, developing a new generation of single-cell sequencing solutions, announces today that it has secured a €6.0 M Series A financing from an international syndicate led by M Ventures (Amsterdam, The Netherlands), the corporate venture capital arm of Merck. The initial shareholders Seventure Partners’ Quadrivum I (Paris, France) and High-Tech Gründerfonds (Bonn, Germany) participated in the capital increase, alongside additional investors Financière Arbevel (Paris, France) and investiere (Zürich, Switzerland).

“There is a substantial unmet need for cost-effective single-cell sequencing methods. The availability of such methods will drive single-cell market growth globally, both in the basic and clinical research fields. Scipio bioscience is pioneering affordable single-cell sample preparation for sequencing. We fully support the team to deliver a much-needed solution based on their disruptive technology and to grow Scipio bioscience into a major player in single-cell biology” says Arnaud Autret, Investment Principal at M Ventures.

Philippe Tramoy, Partner at the Quadrivium 1 seed capital fund at Seventure Partners, adds: “We are thrilled that our seed investment in Scipio’s truly deep tech project was crucial to turn its disruptive technology into a potential game changer. We look forward to getting to the next phases of development. ”

Prof Stuart Edelstein, President, says: “We are convinced that our user-friendly kit, requiring no specific equipment and accessible for any benchtop, will enable thousands of additional scientists to perform single-cell RNA-sequencing. This availability will change the way biological questions are addressed and ultimately benefit both basic research and clinical applications. We are delighted to initiate collaborations for beta-testing of our kit, initially with ICM (Brain & Spine Institute, Paris, France) laboratories, as the interactions so far with its world-class teams and cutting-edge core facilities have been extremely fruitful. Our goal is to extend collaborations to leading European research institutes.”

The €6.0 M Series A funding will fuel the final development of its single-cell RNA-sequencing kit, as well as marketing and business development efforts to prepare for commercial launch in 2022.

About Scipio bioscience

Scipio bioscience develops a new generation of single-cell sequencing solutions, to answer the growing needs of clinical and basic research labs. The patented technology is based on an innovative chemical approach conceived by its President and Co-Founder, Prof Stuart Edelstein, a world-renowned biophysicist. Pierre Walrafen, PhD, CEO and Co-Founder of Scipio Bioscience, directs a team composed of scientists with expertise in molecular biology, chemistry, and bioinformatics. The company, hosted in the iPEPS-ICM incubator of the Brain & Spine Institute (ICM, Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital, Paris), has developed the protocol from the initial proof-of-concept studies to a prototype kit ready for beta-testing by collaborating research teams. Scipio bioscience was supported by a grant from the Région Île-de-France and the Programme d’Investissement d’Avenir, operated by BPI France.

For more information: www.scipio.bio

About M Ventures

M Ventures is the strategic, corporate venture capital arm of Merck. Its mandate is to invest in innovative technologies and products with the potential to significantly impact the company’s core business areas. From its headquarters in Amsterdam and offices in the US and Israel, M Ventures invests globally in transformational ideas driven by great entrepreneurs. M Ventures takes an active role in its portfolio companies and teams up with entrepreneurs and co-investors to translate innovation towards commercial success. For more information, visit www.m-ventures.com

About Quadrivium 1 Seed Fund

The Quadrivium 1 Seed Fund is one of the venture funds managed by Seventure Partners. This fund finances French companies in the seed round (FNA - Future Investment Program) in the areas of Life Sciences & Digital Technologies, which are related to or linked to the academic cluster federated around the UPMC, Paris II University, Paris IV University, National Museum of Natural History, IRCAM, ENSCI, Technological University of Compiègne, CNRS, Curie Institute , Pierre Gilles de Gennes Foundation, Voir et Entendre Foundation and Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL).

About Seventure Partners

With €750 M net commitments under management as of the end of 2018, Seventure Partners is a leading venture capital firm in Europe. Since 1997, Seventure Partners has been investing in innovative businesses with high growth potential in two fields: Life sciences across Europe, Israel, Asia and North America and Digital technologies in France and Germany. Investments can range between €500 k and €10 M per round, or up to €20 M per company, from early to late stage. Seventure Partners is a subsidiary of Natixis Investment Managers. Natixis is a subsidiary of Groupe BPCE, the second-largest banking group in France.

For more details: www.seventure.fr/en Twitter: @seventurep

About the High-Tech Gründerfonds

High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF) is a seed investor that finances high-potential, tech-driven start-ups. With €895.5 M in total investment volume across three funds and an international network of partners, HTGF has already helped forge more than 560 start-ups since 2005. Driven by their expertise, entrepreneurial spirit and passion, its team of experienced investment managers and start-up experts help guide the development of young companies. HTGF’s focus is on high-tech start-ups in a range of sectors, including software, hardware and life sciences/ chemistry. To date, external investors have injected over €2 B into the HTGF portfolio via about 1,400 follow-on financing rounds. HTGF has also successfully sold interests in more than 100 companies.

Investors in the public-private partnership include the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Energy, KfW Capital, the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft and the commercial enterprises ALTANA, BASF, Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim, B. Braun, Robert Bosch, BÜFA, CEWE, Deutsche Post DHL, Dräger, Drillisch AG, EVONIK, EWE AG, FOND OF, Haniel, Hettich, Knauf, Körber, LANXESS, media + more venture Beteiligungs GmbH & Co. KG, PHOENIX CONTACT, Postbank, QIAGEN, RWE Generation SE, SAP, Schufa, Schwarz Gruppe, STIHL, Thüga, Vector Informatik, WACKER and Wilh. Werhahn KG.

About Financière Arbevel

Founded in 1997, Financière Arbevel, an entrepreneurial investment management company, has grown significantly since its takeover by the current owners in early 2009 – the AUM progressed from €25 M to €1.9 B as of today (of which €752 M under the umbrella SICAV “Pluvalca” comprising 9 sub-funds). The company currently employs a total of 34 staff, of which 13 are dedicated to fund management/investment research. Financière Arbevel is recognized for its expertise within the small & mid cap asset class. We are a research-driven organization with a strong emphasis on fundamental financial and strategic analysis, close relationships with top managements of listed companies (more than 1,000 company meetings last year) and a permanent quest for new investment themes offering structural growth opportunities. The digitalization, fintech, Industry 4.0, or the ageing of the world population are some of our favorite investment themes. We ensure we are following closely the latest developments within this universe, by participating in various conferences, trade fairs, sector-specific thematic events and by meeting regularly with managements of listed companies. Our small & mid cap DNA is spread across various strategies under the PLUVALCA family of funds with a cross-asset approach comprising our core equity funds, thematic equity funds, fixed income and diversified/flexible allocation funds). In 2015, the Norwegian sovereign wealth fund chose Financière Arbevel to manage its French equity mandate. In 2018, Financière Arbevel pursued its development by launching its first European private equity fund (FPCI form or “Professional private equity investment fund”) with a cross-over approach focused on the non-listed life-science universe, with the idea of accompanying a limited number of biotechnology start-ups in their development. www.arbevel.com

About investiere

investiere is the leading European startup investment platform for qualified and institutional investors. A team of investment professionals screens thousands of companies and presents the best investment opportunities on a digital platform after a rigorous due diligence process. investiere focuses on European high-tech startups. The investiere community consists of more than 4,000 qualified private investors, family offices and pension funds. Furthermore, numerous corporations rely on investiere’s expertise to screen, select and invest in promising startups. With CHF 100 M invested since inception in 2010, investiere is Switzerland’s most active startup investor. Switzerland’s third-largest bank, Zürcher Kantonalbank, is an anchor investor of investiere. To join investiere’s growing international investor community, visit www.investiere.ch.

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