SANTERO announces a €8 million Series A funding round led by Newton Biocapital to develop novel antibiotics in the fight against antimicrobial resistance

SANTERO announces a €8 million Series A funding round led by Newton Biocapital to develop novel antibiotics in the fight against antimicrobial resistance.

·       The funding will enable the company to further develop its first-in-class inhibitors for the treatment of multi-drug resistant infections. 

·       It has the potential to be highly effective against multi-drug resistant bacteria, with the added benefit of prolonged efficacy before new resistance develops.

Brussels, 7^th of June 2023 – Newton Biocapital (NBC), a venture capital firm focused on investing and growing early-stage life sciences companies in Europe and Japan targeting chronic health conditions, has announced the closing of a successful €8 million Series A financing round for Santero.  

SANTERO, a spin-off company of the Université libre de Bruxelles, is dedicated to the development of first-in-class antibiotics against multi-drug resistant infections. With the global rise of multi-drug resistant bacteria, antibiotics are becoming less effective, leading to more severe infections and increased mortality. The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified antimicrobial resistance (AMR) as one of the top 10 global public health threats, responsible for nearly 5 million deaths worldwide each year, of which more than 1 million are directly attributable to drug-resistant bacteria.

The funds will be used to advance the development of SANTERO's revolutionary inhibitors specifically designed to combat multi-drug resistant infections. NBC led the investment round, joined by SFPIM, WE Life Sciences, Sambrinvest and a group of dedicated business angels led by Pierre Drion. This financial support will enable SANTERO to continue its ground-breaking antibiotic research and development initiatives to address the critical global problem of antibiotic resistance.

Since 2000, only five new classes of antibiotics have been marketed: oxazolidinones, lipopetides, pleuromutilins, tiacumicins and diarylquinolines, but none of them target the Gram-negative bacteria that cause the majority of AMR infections. If SANTERO is successful, the team will add a new treatment option for multi-resistant bacteria, significantly improving survival and recovery for patients and providing an important solution for society.

"We at Newton Biocapital are proud of our investment in SANTERO. The WHO has recognised antimicrobial resistance (AMR) as a major public health challenge. SANTERO's ground-breaking research has the potential to have a direct impact on patients' lives and contribute to the fight against AMR. Governments are also recognising the need to incentivise the development of new antibiotics in Europe and make them available globally. Our investment in SANTERO reflects our commitment to tangible solutions that benefit patients and society while addressing major global health challenges," said Philippe De Backer, Senior Partner at Newton Biocapital.

"We are very pleased to be joined by such experienced global investors," said Cedric Govaerts and Abel Garcia-Pino, founders of SANTERO. "They bring not only the necessary funds, but also the expertise and network that will be critical to SANTERO's success in bringing its first antibacterial therapeutics to the clinic and to patients."

"SFPIM is pleased to support the development of SANTERO's activities alongside NBC2, a fund in which it holds a 19% stake.  SANTERO is at the forefront of the fight against the escalating challenge of bacterial resistance to antibiotics. As the first intervention to address the critical issue of antibiotic resistance, which has a profound impact on hospitals, medical professionals and various health care institutions, SANTERO's innovative approach promises to provide a robust and sustainable solution," said François Fontaine, Investment Manager at SFPIM.

"We are delighted to be part of this adventure and to support a pioneering company like SANTERO, which aims to develop a new therapeutic solution to the global burden of antimicrobial resistance. We believe it is our mission to support such a societal and impactful project alongside other innovative players. At WE Life Sciences, we are committed to accompanying our local heroes on their fascinating yet challenging journey," says Christina Franssen, Investment Manager at WE Life Sciences.

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For more information, please contact:

Media:

Kaori Sano, Global Relationship Director

Mobile: +32 473 30 52 33

Email: kaori.sano@newtonbiocapital.com

About Newton Biocapital:

Newton Biocapital (NBC) is a VC firm focused on early-stage Life Sciences companies targeting chronic health conditions.  NBC is among the 8 VC firms certified by AMED in Japan to boost the pharma ecosystem and the only one with offices in Japan/Europe.  NBC’s diversified team of experts and its presence in Japan/Europe enable NBC to identify and select the most promising companies based on the outstanding research ecosystem in these two regions.  NBC provides investment opportunities that can help patients and society, as well as foster growth of the Japanese/European biotech ecosystems.  

NBC is a hands-on investor and leverages its expertise to help its portfolio companies focus on the right indication and clinical trial design, thereby helping them progress successfully through the challenging early drug development phases up to the proof of concept in patients.  NBC enables time- and cost-effective translation from science to proof of concept in patients that attracts potential acquirers and unlocks value – for patients, companies, and investors.

Partner with us to unlock life sciences innovation, grow the biotech sectors and make an impact both locally and internationally.

www.newtonbiocapital.com

About AMED (EN) & VC Certification Info (JP):

https://www.amed.go.jp/en/aboutus/index.html 

https://www.amed.go.jp/koubo/19/02/1902C_00003.html

About SANTERO:

SANTERO is a spin-off from the Université libre de Bruxelles focused on the development of first-in-class antibiotics for the treatment of multi-drug resistant infections. With a mission to combat the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance, SANTERO aims to revolutionise the field of antibacterial therapeutics and improve patient outcomes worldwide.

www.santero.be

About SFPIM:

SFPIM (Société Fédérale de Participations et d'Investissement in French or Federale Participatie - en Investeringsmaatschappij in Dutch) is the Belgian sovereign wealth fund. As a trusted partner, SFPIM helps Belgian companies, both SMEs and scale-ups, to become a reference in their sector by providing intelligent capital solutions. SFPIM also plays an important role in ensuring the long-term stability of the Belgian economy by helping to anchor strategic assets through smart capital solutions in both promising and established companies or ecosystems.  SFPIM invests in a wide range of companies and sectors, including both traditional sectors (such as life sciences & healthcare, finance, and aeronautics) and new and thriving sectors (such as energy & utilities, transport & mobility, and impact investing).  SFPIM also has assets under management for the Federal State.

www.sfpim.be

About WE Life Sciences:

WE Life Sciences invests in "local heroes", scientists and entrepreneurs in the life sciences who want to leverage their innovation to build a sustainable and fair global economy with roots in Wallonia.  As a public investment fund, we focus on diversity and cross-fertilisation in the broadest sense. We invest in life sciences companies at different stages of development, across a wide range of technologies and disease areas.  We are an early and patient investor; we invest in the most promising early-stage companies and can take a long-term view - longer than the average VC.  WE Life Sciences' role as a provider of VC to the life sciences sector enables innovators to explore areas, they may be reluctant to venture into on their own.  And by supporting innovative start-ups, we aim to strengthen the economic health of our region.

www.wallonie-entreprendre.be/nos-expertises/#life-sciences

www.linkedin.com/showcase/we-life-sciences/

About Sambrinvest:

Sambrinvest is a major VC player in the region of Charleroi Metropole, Belgium, thanks to 35 years of experience working alongside entrepreneurs, more than 300 companies in portfolio and over €200M under management.  We share our expertise with entrepreneurs at every development stage whilst respecting their management autonomy.  More than just another investment company, Sambrinvest also fuels the development of local ecosystems, such as Biotech, Digital and Engineering.  

www.sambrinvest.be