Novo Holdings buys into Oxford Biomedica

Novo Holdings, part of the Novo Nordisk Foundation, has bought a 10% stake in the cell and gene therapy specialist Oxford Biomedica, and its LentiVector platform, for £53.5 million. OXB supports partners in the development and commercialisation of their gene and cell therapy programmes, and also develops its own product portfolio, including OXB-102 (AXO-Lenti-PD), a Parkinson’s disease candidate which was outlicensed to Axovant Gene Therapies, and from whom the firm recently received a milestone payment as it commenced phase II clinical trials. Two years ago the company was making a loss of almost £2million, yet 2018 saw gross income rise by 72% to £67.9 million.
John Dawson, CEO of Oxford Biomedica, said: “We are delighted that Novo Holdings has become a shareholder in Oxford Biomedica. Novo Holdings is a well-known and highly regarded long-term investor with significant expertise in working with innovative, life sciences businesses to unlock their growth potential. This experience will be a great asset far beyond the financial commitment they have made to the Group and their collaboration and support will be highly valuable as we seek to scale up our operations both on the platform and on the proprietary product portfolio.”