Oversubscribed round led by Two Sigma Ventures and RA Capital
Company has raised $73 million to date
NEW YORK, May 29, 2024 — Gameto, a biotechnology company dedicated to advancing treatment options in women’s health, has closed an oversubscribed $33 million Series B financing round, led by Two Sigma Ventures with RA Capital and participation from existing investors, including Insight Partners, Future Ventures, and BOLD Capital Partners. Gameto’s investor group is also joined by Olivia Walton’s Ingeborg Investments, Stacey Bendet Eisner, Founder, CEO, and Creative Director of alice + olivia, and Chelsea Hirschhorn, Founder and CEO of Frida.
This latest funding brings Gameto’s total capital raised to $73 million. In the U.S., the financing will support the clinical development of Fertilo, their novel investigational in vitro maturation (IVM) solution containing engineered ovarian support cells (OSCs) to mature eggs outside of the body. Following productive discussions with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Gameto received tentative approval to proceed to Phase 3 trials, subject to the completion of certain assay and manufacturing requirements. The funding will continue to support the commercial launches of Fertilo in Australia and Latin America where it is already being used in the clinic.
“I am proud of the strong scientific foundation, driven and high performing team, innovative pipeline and encouraging data that we have cultivated at Gameto, and I am incredibly excited to amplify and build upon this momentum with the addition of leading investors with extensive expertise in reproductive medicine,” said Dr. Dina Radenkovic, Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of Gameto. “These funds will support our late stage clinical development in the U.S., post-market surveillance outside the U.S. and the creation of a commercial operations function. We are honored to have added the teams at Two Sigma, RA Capital, and others to our stellar investor base, and we’re pleased to see increased investor confidence in our platform technology and a recognition of the pressing need for modern treatments in the historically underfunded women’s health space, despite a challenging market. I believe that each small step we take in investing in women’s health can lead to a giant leap in medical breakthroughs and innovation.”
Gameto’s novel approach uses cellular engineering to create a pure population of highly potent OSCs from a female clinical-grade human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC) line that recreates the dynamic, bidirectional follicular environment in a dish when co-cultured with immature eggs. This technology is designed to replace hormonal injections and shorten the in vitro fertilization (IVF) and egg freezing cycle from 10-14 days to 2-3 days.
“Gameto’s pioneering approach to IVF has the potential to impact families and societies on a global scale,” said Dusan Perovic, Partner at Two Sigma Ventures. “In addition to making treatments much easier and more accessible for women, Gameto’s advanced IVF/egg-freezing solution addresses a massive societal need as we’re living longer and looking to start families later in life while facing rising female and male infertility rates. There’s also a growing demand for IVF from a broader group of people, such as those with certain genetic disorders now discoverable by carrier screening, and single and same-sex parents starting families, to name a few. By harnessing cutting-edge breakthroughs in genetic sequencing and cellular engineering – tools that didn’t exist until recently – Gameto is poised to upend traditional IVF treatments to make them more accessible, convenient, and faster for anyone to start a family.”
“It’s astounding how little innovation has gone into improving IVF over the past 45 years,” said Laura Stoppel, a Principal at RA Capital Management. “Gameto is a pioneer in the women’s health industry, and we believe Fertilo represents a much-needed option for women as they navigate their fertility journey.”
“This investment is among the most personal any investor can make,” added Peter Kolchinsky, Managing Partner of RA Capital Management and father of two children. “Many at our firm have been blessed by what IVF makes possible, and know the ordeal that women tolerate at the outset of that journey just to conceive. To contemplate the importance of easing that burden, of expanding the freedom of many to have children when they are ready, it’s hard to overestimate the potential impact of such an advance on humanity, for all of our society, for the rest of time.”
Gameto is also supported by existing investors including Anne Wojcicki of 23andMe, Bob Nelsen of ARCH Venture Partners, Arcadia Investment Partners, Overwater Ventures, Plum Alley, Lux Capital, FJ Labs, SALT Fund, Myelin VC, TA Ventures, Jack Abraham of Atomic, YES VC and Dan Rose.
About Fertilo
Fertilo, Gameto’s lead investigational program, is a solution derived from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) and designed to mature eggs outside of the body as part of minimal hormonal stimulation cycles for in vitro fertilization and egg freezing. Gameto’s goal in developing Fertilo is to make fertility treatments more convenient, safer, and accessible for a wider patient population. Fertilo has received different regulatory classifications in foreign jurisdictions, and after consultation with national regulators, has been cleared for commercialization in Australia and in large markets in Latin America.
About Gameto
Gameto is a biotechnology company developing novel treatment solutions for women’s health, starting with infertility. Gameto brings together an experienced scientific management team with the vision and passion to develop a product suite to support women throughout their reproductive journeys. Gameto’s lead program, Fertilo, aims to make IVF and egg freezing shorter, safer, and more accessible through reduced hormonal injections by maturing eggs outside of the body. Gameto is led by physician-turned-entrepreneur Dina Radenkovic as CEO and serial entrepreneur and founder of one of North America’s largest fertility networks Prelude Fertility, Martin Varsavsky, as Chairman. For more information, go to gametogen.com or follow us on Twitter and Instagram @gametogen and on LinkedIn.
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