The European Investment Bank is to pony up a €30m loan to Dublin biotech company Nuritas, the first time the bank has invested directly in an Irish biotech venture.
Aimed at increasing and accelerating the development of artificial intelligence and DNA analysis to improve global healthcare, the support will allow Nuritas to access tranched financing as required to scale up its development.
Future investment by the company, backed by the EIB, will scale up the development of new therapeutics in areas such as anti-aging, anti-inflammatory and diabetes treatment.
Founded just four years ago by mathematician and bioinformatician Dr Nora Khaldi, Nuritas developed a a proprietary artificial intelligence platform which it says can accelerate the discovery of a healthcare product from concept to market in less than three years.
The company uses its AI suite to identify novel peptides, with in-silico predictions validated by its in-house laboratory and multidisciplinary team of scientists.
In Association with
Nuritas received taxpayer funding of €1,100,000 through Enterprise Ireland in 2017, following on from €300,000 received from the state agency in 2016.
The rationale for the State Aid isn't apparent, as Nuritas Ltd raised a total of €16m in private equity funding through 2017. The company booked a loss of €1.7m in 2017 as headcount increased from 16 to 29 people. Nuritas ended the year with balance sheet cash of €16.5m. Year-end trade debtors amounted to €166,000.
The company recently relocated to Joshua House on Dawson Street in Dublin, next to the Mansion House. The five-storey over-basement prime location is owned by Dublin City Council and extends to 16,000 square feet. Nuritas has signed up for a 20-year lease with a break option in year 10.
EIB vice president Andrew McDowell said: “Nuritas has already demonstrated through Peptaide, their first product launched this year, how the discovery of healthcare products can be accelerated using artificial intelligence.
“During due diligence over recent months the EIB has been impressed by its innovative use of technology and the number of global deals already achieved, and it now becomes the first Irish biotech firm to benefit from the EIB’s European Growth Finance Facility.”
Nuritas chief executive Emmet Browne added: “As a proud European company, we are delighted to be Ireland’s first biotech company to benefit from such insightful support, which really delivers a potent signal of the region’s desire to drive truly disruptive innovation.
“We have already received outstanding and smart investment from three continents, including from the Irish government via Enterprise Ireland. The European Union’s recognition through this facility allows us to accelerate our existing strategy, while also significantly broadening our capabilities in new areas such as novel drug discovery.”
Photo: Nora Khaldi and Andrew McDowell
