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TORONTO, ONTARIO – Monday, March 07, 2005Axela Biosensors Inc., a leading developer of biosensor technology, today announced that it has secured over CDN$6 million in additional funding. The financing includes a CDN$3 million follow-on investment from existing investor VenGrowth Private Equity Partners Inc. (“VenGrowth”) and a US$2.5 million venture loan from MMV Financial Inc. The capital will enable Axela to continue to develop its novel “optical biosensor” technology in the lead-up to a planned Series B funding round.

Axela is a life science company commercializing biosensors for the diagnostic and drug discovery fields. Its innovative Diffractive Optics Technology (DOT™) enables researchers to receive time-critical, high-value information on biomolecular interactions at their lab benches. Understanding how different molecules interact is an important breakthrough in the discovery and development of new drug compounds.

“The study of interactions at the biomolecular level is an important and growing field within diagnostics and drug discovery research”, said Brian Hendry, SVP, MMV Financial. “Axela’s DOT™ biosensor technology offers significant time savings to diagnostic labs, clinicians and researchers at a lower cost than current methods. The Company has an excellent management team with extensive experience in commercializing new biosensor devices. We believe the Company has the opportunity to become the predominant provider of such technology over the next several years.”

“The DOT™ system has broad applications across a range of medical and research scenarios, creating diversified revenue opportunities and exceptional global potential for Axela,” said Jeff Courtney, General Partner, VenGrowth. “Multiple million dollar markets such as diagnostics, drug discovery, pre-clinical and clinical development and biologics development all require methods of detecting molecular interactions.”

“We are delighted to have secured the continued support and partnership of VenGrowth and to have attracted the financial backing of MMV Financial,” said Rocky Ganske, CEO of Axela., “VenGrowth is an investment leader in the Canadian life sciences space and MMV Financial is the pre-eminent provider of venture loans in Canada to life sciences companies, with an excellent management team and highly-respected backers.”

About Axela Biosensors Inc.

Axela Biosensors Inc. is a Toronto-based company that is commercializing a novel biosensor platform that enables clinicians in diagnostic labs and first line health care workers to rapidly identify therapeutic and clinically relevant protein biomarkers in complex media without the need of fluorescent tags. The platform will also enable researchers and scientists in academia and pharmaceutical research to rapidly detect and understand molecular interactions at their bench top in real-time.

 

 

About MMV Financial

MMV Financial is a Toronto-based specialty finance company providing creative debt solutions directly to mid-stage technology and life sciences companies, with a focus on the Canadian and North American sectors. Previously known as MM Venture Partners, the firm is backed by top U.S. and Canadian private equity firms and financial institutions including Conning Capital Partners of Hartford, Connecticut, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec of Montreal, and Wells Fargo Foothill, a part of Wells Fargo Company. For more information visit http://www.mmvf.com/

 

About VenGrowth

With over $1 billion in assets under management, VenGrowth Private Equity Partners Inc. ("VenGrowth") is Canada's largest private equity and venture capital firm managing both retail and institutional assets. Since 1982, VenGrowth's accomplished private equity managers have invested over $1.1 billion in 180 companies, building a strong track record of successful portfolio transactions. These investments have been made on behalf of over 180,000 individual investors and leading pension funds, banks, insurance companies and family foundations. Portfolio companies benefit from VenGrowth's substantial experience, resources, and hands-on investment style. VenGrowth's offices are located in Toronto (Corporate Headquarters) and Ottawa.

 

For more information or to arrange for an interview, contact:

 

Axela Biosensors Inc.

Phone: (416)-260-9050 x2251

Fax: (416)-260-9255

info@axelabiosensors.com

 

Brian Hendry

Senior Vice President

MMV Financial Inc.

Tel: (416) 977-9718
Fax: (416) 591-1393

bhendry@mmvf.com

 

 

Posted in: Life Sciences




 
     
 
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