INVERSAGO-PHARMA
8.9.2020 14:02:07 CEST | Business Wire | Press release
Inversago Pharma Inc. (“Inversago” or “the Company”), the peripheral CB1 blockade company, today announced it has secured a US$35 million (€32 million) Series B financing round led by Forbion, with co-investment from the Fonds de solidarité FTQ, and strong participation from existing investors Genesys, JDRF T1D Fund, Amorchem, Anges Québec Capital, adMare BioInnovations and angels.
Proceeds will be used to develop Inversago’s best-in-class peripherally-acting CB1 inverse agonist candidate INV-101 to clinical proof-of-concept, and advance the research on other selected compounds.
Clinical and scientific data suggest that the peripheral CB1 pathway is activated in a majority of metabolic and fibrotic diseases, including Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS), NASH, type-1 diabetes and diabetic nephropathy; conditions with currently inadequate treatment options. CB1 inhibition has previously shown to be an effective clinical treatment in several diseases and conditions, albeit with a CNS liability related to the central CB1 blockade. Inversago compounds are peripherally-acting only, thus adopting a safe and potent approach.
“Today’s financing is a recognition of the progress achieved over the past two years by our team,” said François Ravenelle, PhD, CEO and founder of Inversago Pharma. “We are privileged to have secured the financing from a transatlantic syndicate of leading and committed investors like Forbion and the Fonds de solidarité FTQ. It allows the Company to make important strides towards its objective of leveraging the full medical potential of a peripheral CB1 blockade,” added Dr. Ravenelle.
In conjunction with this financing, Inversago appointed Carlo Incerti, MD, an Operating Partner at Forbion, as Chairman of the board of directors, Marco Boorsma, PhD, a General Partner at Forbion, and Patricia Allen, a biotech leader, as directors of the Company. Ms. Allen will also serve as Chair of the Audit Committee.
“I am delighted to join Inversago when the Company is transitioning from the pre-clinical stage to the first human trials,” said Carlo Incerti, MD, Chairman of the board of directors. “The science behind the CB1 pathway is extremely sound and documented and Inversago’s compounds could be very impactful in therapeutic areas that are largely unmet, like metabolic dysfunctions and fibrosis. Importantly, the peripherally-acting nature of these molecules could give them a safe and effective therapeutic window, without the known liabilities of centrally-acting blockers,” concluded Dr. Incerti.
Dr. Incerti brings to Inversago over three decades of development and commercialization experience in the biopharmaceutical industry. After a successful scientific career and prior to joining Forbion, Dr. Incerti was Senior Vice President, Chief Medical Officer and Head of Global Medical Affairs at Sanofi Genzyme.
Dr. Boorsma adds over 20 years of scientific, operational, business development and venture investment expertise to the Company. He manages Forbion’s Canadian investments and serves on the boards of several other bio-pharmaceutical companies.
Ms. Allen is a recognized biotech finance and operations leader who raised over US$2B in financings and business development deals during her career. She served most recently as Chief Financial Officer at Zafgen, Inc., now Larimar Therapeutics. She currently holds positions on the boards of Yumanity Therapeutics and Deciphera Pharmaceuticals, where she is also the audit committee chairperson.
“I am thrilled to join the board of Inversago, one of the few companies that remains focused on developing a treatment for people with PWS, for which I remain truly passionate,” said Ms. Allen. “I look forward to working with the other directors and the entire team at Inversago to advance their new generation of CB1 blockers in PWS and other important diseases, where the unmet medical needs remain very high. I also look forward to lending my biotechnology and public company experience and expertise at such an exciting time as the Company advances towards the clinic,” added Ms. Allen.
About Inversago Pharma
Inversago Pharma is a preclinical-stage, biotech company specialized in the development of new therapies focusing on CB1 blockade, based on first-in-class, peripherally-acting, CB1 inverse agonists. The Company aims to provide new treatment options that improve the lives of patients affected by metabolic conditions such as Prader-Willi Syndrome (PWS), non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), type 1 diabetes (T1D) and diabetic nephropathy. For more information, visit inversago.com
About Forbion
Forbion is a dedicated life sciences venture capital firm with offices in The Netherlands, Germany and Singapore. Forbion invests in life sciences companies that are active in the (bio-) pharmaceutical space. Forbion’s investment team has built an impressive performance track record since the late nineties with successful investments in over 66 companies. Forbion manages well over EUR 1.25 billion across ten funds. Forbion is a signatory to the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment. Besides financial objectives, Forbion selects investments that will positively affect the health and well-being of patients. Its investors include the EIF, through its European Recovery Programme (ERP), LfA, Dutch Venture Initiative (DVI), AMUF and EFSI facilities and KfW Capital through the Programme, “ERP – Venture Capital Fondsinvestments”. Forbion operates a joint venture with BGV, the manager of seed and early-stage funds, especially focused on Benelux and Germany. For more information, please visit: www.forbion.com .
About the Fonds de solidarité FTQ
The Fonds de solidarité FTQ (fondsftq.com ) is a capital development fund that channels the savings of Quebecers into investments. With net assets of $13.8 billion as at May 31, 2020, the Fonds has helped create and protect 221,267 jobs. The Fonds has 3,329 partner companies and 707,935 shareholders-savers.
Picture of our CEO and company logotype available for download at: inversago.com/en/media/
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200908005305/en/
Link:
About Business Wire
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Vertex Presents New Data on ALYFTREK® at European Cystic Fibrosis Conference5.6.2026 18:00:00 CEST | Press release
- ALYFTREK Phase 3 data on children with cystic fibrosis ages 2 to 5 with vanzacaftor/tezacaftor/deutivacaftor-responsive genotypes including F/F and F/MF shows 65% reached sweat chloride levels of <30 mmol/L; Vertex on track to initiate global regulatory submissions in first half of 2026 - - Long-term 96-week interim analyses from two open-label extension studies demonstrate positive safety and efficacy profile of ALYFTREK in people with cystic fibrosis ages 6 and older -- Phase 3 data on TRIKAFTA® in children 1 to <2 years also presented; Vertex has initiated global regulatory submissions - Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (Nasdaq: VRTX) today announced data demonstrating the potentially transformative impact of treating cystic fibrosis (CF) with ALYFTREK ® (vanzacaftor/tezacaftor/deutivacaftor) in children ages 2 to 5, as well as data from 96-week interim analyses of two open-label extension studies of ALYFTREK in children 6 to 11 years and people 12 years and older demonstrating
Owkin to Build AI Agents as Part of a Multi-Year K Pro Collaboration with Sanofi5.6.2026 13:00:00 CEST | Press release
Owkin, the agentic AI company pioneering Biological Artificial Superintelligence to transform drug discovery and development, today announced a multi-year collaboration with Sanofi to co-develop next-generation biopharma agents, to be backed by a five-year license for K Pro, Owkin’s AI Scientist. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260605704506/en/ K Pro, Owkin's AI scientist for biology, powered by multimodal patient data for smarter biopharma decision making. Owkin and Sanofi have collaborated since 2021 through a €90 million strategic partnership focused on target identification in oncology and patient subgrouping. The collaboration was later expanded to include drug positioning for Sanofi’s immunology pipeline. This new collaboration represents the next evolution in the partnership. During the five-year collaboration, Owkin will lead the end-to-end development of novel AI-driven biopharma agents purpose-built
DFNS Rebrands as the Core Banking Platform for Digital Assets5.6.2026 12:41:00 CEST | Press release
DFNS today announced a rebrand, marking its evolution from a wallet infrastructure to the first core banking platform for digital assets. The company is introducing a new logo, website, and market position as fintechs and institutions move their products and operations onchain. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260603859127/en/ Banks, fintechs, asset managers, trading firms, payment providers, market infrastructures, and clearing houses have stopped asking how to "add crypto." They're asking how to run financial products, controls, workflows, and client services on blockchain rails, with the reliability expected of core infrastructure. Some are going further still, exploring whether the blockchain can serve as the ledger itself, where an account is an onchain object rather than a row in a database. Where IBANs, virtual accounts, and blockchain wallets converge into one governed financial account. “DFNS was built
Compass Pathways Announces New Employee Inducement Grants Under Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4)5.6.2026 12:30:00 CEST | Press release
Compass Pathways plc (Nasdaq: CMPS), a biotechnology company dedicated to accelerating patient access to evidence-based innovation in mental health, announced today that Compass granted equity awards under the Compass Pathways plc 2026 Inducement Plan to seventeen newly hired non-executive employees. The equity awards were granted on June 1, 2026 and consisted of options to purchase an aggregate of 157,000 shares and restricted share units or, in the case of employees in the United Kingdom nominal cost options, covering an aggregate of 74,700 shares. The options have an exercise price per share equal to $14.19, the closing price of the Company’s American Depositary Shares on the Nasdaq Global Select Market on the grant date, and will vest over a four-year period with 25% vesting on the first anniversary of the date of the grant and the remaining 75% vesting in equal monthly installments over the three-year period thereafter, subject to each employee’s continued employment. The restrict
Renewable Electricity, Soft Wheat Flour From Regenerative Agriculture, Initiatives to Support Local Communities: Barilla Shares These and Other Projects in “Stories of Sustainability.”5.6.2026 10:00:00 CEST | Press release
Barilla continues to advance its commitment to tastier products with less sugar and salt;An investment of 30 million euros in 2025 to quadruple photovoltaic capacity across plants, as part of a €168 million five-year plan focused on energy efficiency, renewable energy and sustainable water management.Barilla continues to expand regenerative agriculture practices across its global value chain, with over 816,000 tons of raw materials sourced through the Barilla Sustainable Farming program.4,000 tons of products donated worldwide and €2 million allocated to social causes in 2025, supporting communities across Barilla’s global footprint through food donations and social initiatives. A slimmer Tagliatelle pack that saves 150 tons of cardboard and cuts transport-related CO₂ emissions by 20%1; ready-made sauce jars made with around 65% recycled glass; the progressive scaling of regenerative agriculture practices across Barilla’s value chain and initiatives supporting inclusion and equal oppor
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom