Oslo, Norway-based Regenics – a biotechnology company – has successfully raised NOK 20.4 million (USD 1.9 million, EUR 1.7 million) in the first tranche of a non-brokered private placement seeking to raise NOK 54 million (USD 5 million, EUR 4.5 million).
Recently formed Icelandic holding company Nordic Blue – which focuses on investments in the blue economy – participated in the funding round. The funding will be used to initiate trials of Regenics’ “Collex” product, which is an advanced wound dressing.
As part of the private placement, Regenics, two of the company’s largest investors, and Nordic Blue entered into an agreement granting rights to Nordic Blue – including the right to name two members of the board of directors. One of those two members will be from the Haf investment fund, which is managed by Iceland Funds and is the largest investor in Nordic Blue, according to Regenics.
"We are excited to bring in such knowledgeable investors who have had previous success in the field of biotech and who recognize the potential our company and products represent," Regenics Board Chair Jan A. Alfheim said. "Their investment and participation at the board level will be of great value in helping Regenics bring our first lead candidate Collex into a Phase 1 clinical trial in treatment of burns and further onto the market."
Collex is designed to aid the healing of partial thickness burns and chronic wounds. Regenics said the product uses a hydrogel wound dressing made of marine-sourced ingredients and is in a pre-clinical stage.
Regenics said one of the major innovations that has gone into creating Collex is “HTX,” a product sourced and purified from unfertilized salmon roe.
"We are excited to embark on this journey with Regenics, which aligns perfectly with the marine biotech emphasis in the investment strategy of the Haf investment fund,” Haf Manager Brynjolfur Eyjolfsson said. “We believe that Regenics has established a strong foundation and has an enormous potential in the field wound care. Partnering with experienced investors to pave the way for success is decisive and we look forward to the journey ahead."
Haf was created in February 2023 by Íslandsbanki’s mutual fund management firm Íslandssjóðir, or Iceland Funds. The investment fund has ISK 10 billion (USD 72 million, EUR 65 million) under its direct management, with an investment capacity that is higher than that thanks to co-investment incorporated in the funds’ structure. The investment fund is focused on ocean-related investment opportunities, including raw materials, seafood technology, and biotechnology.
Haf became the largest shareholder of Thor Landeldi, a company developing a 20,000-metric-ton Atlantic salmon farm in Laxabraut, Iceland, in October 2023.
