Co-Led by Legend Capital, Top Gene Delivery Enterprise VectorBuilder Secures CNY410mn in Series C Round

VectorBuilder Biotechnology (Guangzhou) Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “VectorBuilder”), a top gene delivery enterprise, recently announced the completion of its Series C round with CNY410 million, co-led by Legend Capital. The proceeds will facilitate VectorBuilder in continuously promoting the upgrading and capacity expansion of the gene delivery R&D and production technology platform, further accelerate the global business presence, and boost the R&D of life sciences and genetic medicines.
VectorBuilder was founded by Dr. Bruce Lahn, a world-renowned molecular biologist who was a tenured professor at the University of Chicago and a researcher at Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI). The company provides services such as scientific research and clinical carrier CRO, gene-drug CDMO and gene delivery IP out-licensing, covering the entire field of life science and gene medicine. VectorBuilder has provided more than 1.2 million gene delivery solutions to more than 4,000 scientific research institutes and pharmaceutical companies worldwide, and its gene-drug CRO and CDMO projects are spread all over North America, Europe, Japan and South Korea.

Dr. Bruce Lahn, Founder and Chief Scientist of VectorBuilder, said: “I’d like to take this opportunity to extend my sincere gratitude to investors for the support and trust. Due to a robust technical accumulation and an excellent business model in the gene delivery industry, VectorBuilder enjoys the highest market share in the global gene carrier scientific research market, and we jointly launched the construction of a 45,000-square-meter gene delivery R&D and production base with Guangzhou Development District Investment Group in April 2022. We hope to take this financing round as an opportunity to further accelerate the comprehensive upgrade and optimization of the technology platform and promote the expansion of production capacity and global presence. VectorBuilder has become a pioneer in the entire gene delivery industry chain by empowering basic scientific research and accelerating the clinical application of gene drugs. We believe VectorBuilder will enter thousands of life science laboratories worldwide and become a well-known brand in the field of life science. We will empower the gene-drug industry through core technologies and help China to “overtake” on the genetic drug track. At the same time, we hope to overcome genetic diseases, improve human health, and provide irreplaceable value to the industry and the world.”

Jeff Wang, Managing Director of Legend Capital, said: “VectorBuilder is the world’s leading gene delivery company, providing full-chain solutions from basic scientific research to clinical application of gene delivery. It is an honor to participate in the future development of VectorBuilder. Dr. Bruce Lahn is an expert in the field of biotechnology innovation, and we are optimistic about VectorBuilder’s comprehensive ecological service platform for gene delivery in life science and biomedicine. VectorBuilder has developed the world’s first system providing online design, offline production carrier construction and downstream application service, serving thousands of top biopharmaceutical companies and research institutes. We believe VectorBuilder has a promising future as the genetic medicine industry develops.”

About Legend Capital

Founded in 2001, Legend Capital is a leading VC&PE investor focusing on the early-stage and growth-stage opportunities in China, with offices across Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Hong Kong, and Seoul, Korea.

It currently manages USD and RMB funds of over US$10 billion in commitments, and has invested in around 600 companies, covering technology, healthcare, consumer, enterprise service and intelligent manufacturing sectors. Rooted in China, Legend Capital participated in the rise of many world-leading companies by solid investment coverage and systematic post-investment value-add. Over the years, Legend Capital has also become a widely recognized name in bridging key resources in China and overseas through cross-border activities, and a valuable partner to Chinese and overseas investors.

Legend Capital values long-term sustainable investment and incorporates ESG into its long-term development strategy. As a UNPRI signatory since November 2019, Legend Capital is among the first group of top VC/PE firms in China to join the initiative.

For more information, please visit www.legendcapital.com.cn/index_en.aspx and follow us on LinkedIn @Legend Capital (https://www.linkedin.com/company/legend-capital).






Topic: Press release summary

Co-led by Legend Capital, Huili Biotechnology Completes Series A Financing Round with Hundreds of Million RMB

Jiangsu Huili Biotechnology Co., Ltd (“Huili Bio”), a next-generation synthetic biology enzyme computational design platform, recently announced the completion of its Series A financing round with hundreds of million RMB. This financing round was co-led by Legend Capital and the fresh capital will be used to accelerate the construction and operation of large-scale production facilities, the R&D of new product pipelines and the expansion of the talent team.

Founded in 2018, Huili Bio is dedicated to the computational design of enzyme components at the core of synthetic biological reactions. With cutting-edge achievements, Huili Bio is one of the few bio-manufacturing companies with comprehensive capabilities in core technology, mass production on a large scale and closed-loop commercialization. It provides solutions in multiple fields such as pharmaceutical intermediates, animal protection and food. In addition to an R&D center in Tianjin, Huili Bio has also established a production base in Taizhou City, Jiangsu Province, which is under the expansion of flexible production line.

Huili Bio’s enzyme computational design platform is the first computational platform in China to realize the full-scenario design of enzymes. This platform enables the company to transform products in the pharmaceutical field, so as to achieve high efficiency from laboratory development, industrial production to commercialization, reducing costs by nearly 30% and increasing yields by almost 70% compared to traditional chemical methods, and also helps Huili Bio deploy more than 10 innovative products in various fields.

Commenting on the financing, Henry JI, Executive Director of Legend Capital, said: “The synthetic biomaterials market is vast and an important area in the green and low-carbon direction. As the core component of synthetic biology, the design and transformation of enzymes will benefit more traditional biotechnology industries with low-cost and sustainable green production methods. Legend Capital has long focused on investment in the ‘IT+’ industry, and Huili Bio is a model of combining information technology and biotechnology (IT+BT). With a background in combining industry and research, Huili Bio is a company with differentiated product selection and multi-pipeline extension capabilities. The company has mastered the industry’s leading enzyme computing design technology and has rapidly achieved the scale production of high-value-added products such as pharmaceutical intermediates through the layout of the whole industry chain and has been fully recognized by the industry’s head customers. Legend Capital is glad to join hands with Huili Biotech to contribute to China’s biological ‘intelligence’.”

As an intersection of information science, life science and material science, synthetic biology and bio-based materials have been the focus of Legend Capital’s carbon-neutral technology investments. Under the background of carbon peaking and carbon neutrality, Legend Capital’s investments focus on energy decarbonization, vehicle electrification/intelligence, synthetic biology, etc. Energy decarbonization includes photovoltaic, wind power and smart grid; vehicle electrification/intelligence includes lithium battery vehicles, hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, battery recycling and others. Legend Capital has made investments in the field of synthetic biology by investing in outstanding companies such as Huili Bio, Zhongke Guosheng, and Tidetron Bio.

About Legend Capital
Founded in 2001, Legend Capital is a leading VC&PE investor focusing on the early-stage and growth-stage opportunities in China, with offices across Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Hong Kong, and Seoul, South Korea.

It currently manages USD and RMB funds of over US$10 billion in commitments, and has invested in around 600 companies, covering technology, healthcare, consumer, enterprise service and intelligent manufacturing sectors. Rooted in China, Legend Capital participated in the rise of many world-leading companies by solid investment coverage and systematic post-investment value-add. Over the years, Legend Capital has also become a widely recognized name in bridging key resources in China and overseas through cross-border activities, and a valuable partner to Chinese and overseas investors.

Legend Capital values long-term sustainable investment and incorporates ESG into its long-term development strategy. As a UNPRI signatory since November 2019, Legend Capital is among the first group of top VC/PE firms in China to join the initiative.

For more information, please visit www.legendcapital.com.cn/index_en.aspx and follow us on LinkedIn @Legend Capital ( https://www.linkedin.com/company/legend-capital ).






Topic: Press release summary