Orbis Medicines, a Denmark-based oral macrocycle drug discovery company, raised €90 million in Series A funding.
New Enterprise Associates (NEA) led the investment round with participation from new investors, including Eli Lilly and Company, Cormorant, The Export and Investment Fund of Denmark, and founding investors Novo Holdings and Forbion.
The Danish drug discovery company plans to use the recently acquired funds for the development of pipeline of its oral macrocycle drugs, called ‘nCycles,’ focused on validated blockbuster biologic targets.
Orbis Medicines is focused on pioneering a new era for oral macrocycle drug discovery. Macrocycles are a large and diverse family of compounds with highly desirable therapeutic properties but historically have been challenging to develop as oral drugs. Orbis Medicines’ programs are focused on high-value oral alternatives to blockbuster biologic drugs and targets to maximize value for patients.
“The support from this particular group of investors is further validation of the exemplary science and exciting potential of Orbis Medicines. The company is advancing the potential of macrocycles by developing orally available nCycles — a format preferred by patients, physicians, and healthcare systems, particularly for chronic diseases,” said Morten Graugaard, newly appointed Orbis CEO.
“The interest we have received demonstrates the market appetite for nCycles as an oral approach to both validated biologic targets and targets undruggable by other modalities. We have a clear strategy for rapid value creation that leverages the unique capabilities of our nGen platform and are excited to advance this important new class of drugs for patients,” added Morten Graugaard.