ObsEva announces €26m series A funding from venture capital firms

30 August 2013

Swiss company ObsEva has announced the closing of a CHF32m Series-A financing round (€25.6 million). This financing round was led by Sofinnova Partners, and co-led by Sofinnova Ventures and Novo A/S.

Founded in November 2012, ObsEva SA is a Swiss-based, speciality biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the development of innovative drugs for women's reproductive medicine. ObsEva's main focus is on therapies for preterm labour.

ObsEva also signed a licensing agreement with Merck Serono, the biopharmaceutical division of Merck KGaA, under which Merck Serono will grant ObsEva worldwide development and commercialization rights to certain Merck Serono compounds in the field of preterm labor.

The details of the agreement are not being disclosed. The funding will allow ObsEva to undertake the development of these compounds. As part of the deal, MS Ventures, the corporate venture capital fund of Merck Serono has taken a minority equity stake in the company.

"I am grateful to Merck Serono for the trust in ObsEva for developing the licensed assets. Preterm labour is a condition for which only products with limited efficacy or limiting safety are available. The cost of preterm births to the society is estimated at around 27 billion dollars every year in the USA," said Ernest Loumaye MD, PhD, CEO of ObsEva SA. "I am also very pleased to have the opportunity to work again with Sofinnova Partners and Sofinnova Ventures as well as to welcome Novo A/S, all three highly qualified investors."

Rafaèle Tordjman, Managing Partner at Sofinnova Partners, added, "After our initial seed funding that enabled the co-founders to establish the company, we are very enthusiastic about continuing to work with ObsEva. The young company benefits from a combination of a highly experienced founding team with a successful track record, and a novel generation of potentially best-in-class proprietary products for preterm labour and additional indications."