Merck Serono spin-off Poxel raises €16M in first round

Funding

Poxel SA, a diabetes drug development specialist, has raised €16 million in a first round funding led by Edmond de Rothschild Investment Partners (EdRIP) with InnoBio fund, managed by CDC Entreprises within FSI France Investment programme and Crédit Agricole Private Equity.

Most of the funding will be used to advance the company’s lead programme, Imeglimin, an oxidative phosphorylation inhibitor, in the treatment of Type II diabetes.

Imeglimin is a first-in-class oral anti-diabetic that has demonstrated efficacy and safety in diabetic patients in two Phase IIa trials. It is being developed both as a monotherapy and in combination with key treatments. Poxel, a spin-off from Merck Serono, has five further anti-diabetic programmes in early development.

This substantial funding is very encouraging and is a real testimony to the potential of our company,” said Thomas Kuhn, CEO at Poxel.