M&G invests in UK-based innovator e-therapeutics

M&G Investments has provided a further £13.5 million of funding and an increased shareholding in e-therapeutics, a UK-based innovator in computer technology for the development of life-transforming medicines.

e-therapeutics combines two platform technologies; a computational drug discovery platform and its specialised silenced RNA drugs, which target the liver specifically. The combination of these technologies shortens the time and cost it takes a drug from target discovery to market, which currently takes on average, around 10 years.

The additional funding will be used to scale up e-therapeutics’ operations and facilitate further growth, including enhancing its proprietary drug discovery and development platform capabilities. The investment is being facilitated through the issuance of Subscription Shares, increasing M&G’s holding in the company to 17.5%, signalling its long term commitment to supporting e-therapeutics’ aims and ambitions.

Michael Stiasny. Head of UK Equities at M&G Investments says: “With the potential to re-shape the conventional drug discovery model, we believe e-therapeutics’ unique platform and AI capabilities has the potential to increase the speed in which highly-specific drugs can be developed for patients, while increasing efficiency and reducing the costs associated with in-vitro trials. This investment demonstrates the crucial role patient capital can play in supporting the next generation of medical research.”

Ali Mortazavi, Chief Executive Officer of e-therapeutics says: “We are pleased to have continued our long-standing relationship with M&G, and this refinancing is an important step in us extending our cash runway and ability to prosecute our computationally derived drug targets.”