Startup · $51.6m raised
UQ spin-out sold to Novartis in 2015
Melbourne, VIC
Every investor coverage indicates participated in a round Spinifex Pharmaceuticals raised.
| Investor | Rounds | Invested |
|---|---|---|
| Canaan Partners | Series C | - |
| GBS Venture Partners Ltd. | Unnamed stage | - |
| GBS Ventures | Unnamed stage | - |
| Novo Ventures | Series C | - |
| Symbiosis Group | Unnamed stage | - |
| Symbiosis Group Limited | Unnamed stage | - |
| UniQuest | Unnamed stage | - |
| Uniseed | Unnamed stage | - |
The transaction that ended Spinifex Pharmaceuticals's run as a startup, per published coverage. It closes the funding history too, where it is the ladder's last rung.
| Bought by | Kind | Announced | Price | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Novartis International | Acquisition | 29 Jun 2015 | US$200m+ (A$260m+) | bionity.com, news-medical.net, PR Newswire |
| Novartis | Acquisition | 29 Jun 2015 | US$700m (A$911m) | Startup Daily (24 Jul 2025), Business News Australia, materresearch.org.au, @AuManufacturing, Startup Daily (15 Nov 2023), GBS Ventures (8 Sep 2016), anthillonline.com, GBS Ventures (30 Jun 2015), clinicalleader.com, novartis.com |
Companies Spinifex Pharmaceuticals acquired or merged with, per published coverage. Buying a company is not investing in one: nothing here counts in the deals column.
| Name | Role | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| Dr Andrew Baker | Chairman (former) | GBS Ventures, clinicalleader.com |
| Dr Michael Thurn | Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer | GBS Ventures (3 Aug 2006), GBS Ventures (26 Jul 2005) |
| Dr Tom McCarthy | CEO (former) | Business News Australia, materresearch.org.au, @AuManufacturing, GBS Ventures (30 Jun 2015), clinicalleader.com, news-medical.net, PR Newswire, GBS Ventures (3 Jun 2014), GBS Ventures (21 Jun 2012) |
| Heath Lukatch | Chairman | news-medical.net, PR Newswire |
| Prof Maree Smith | Founder | bionity.com, news-medical.net |
Stories naming Spinifex Pharmaceuticals. Where several outlets covered the same round, they are bundled under whichever ran the fullest account.
Sanofi is buying Vicebio for up to US$1.6 billion in the biggest-ever exit of Australian university IP, with UQ keeping equity; the article also recalls the Inflazome and Spinifex sales and Vicebio's Medicxi seed.
UniQuest and Molecule to Medicine have formed Curlew Bio to develop anti-inflammatory drugs, backed by $1 million from UniQuest's Extension Fund; the article also recalls Novartis's 2015 purchase of Spinifex Pharmaceuticals.
Uniseed adds Monash and a four-university NSW collaboration, lifting its third fund by $6.75 million to $56.75 million; the article recalls past portfolio sales to Novartis, Shire and Schneider Electric.
Venture fund Uniseed led a million-dollar slice of probiotic drinks maker PERKii's four-million-dollar round, its first deal from its new $50 million fund, to fund a national launch.
Also Startup Daily
GBS Ventures reports Novartis has agreed to acquire chronic-pain drug developer Spinifex Pharmaceuticals for US$200 million upfront plus milestones, recalling the company's 2005, 2008 and 2014 venture rounds and its Australian investors.
Also GBS Ventures·novartis.com·clinicalleader.com·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·anthillonline.com·@AuManufacturing·materresearch.org.au·Business News Australia
Chronic-pain drug developer Spinifex Pharmaceuticals has agreed to be bought by Novartis for US$200 million upfront plus undisclosed milestones, centred on its lead candidate EMA401.
Pain-drug developer Spinifex Pharmaceuticals hires Dr Ronald Marcus as chief medical officer; CEO Tom McCarthy cites a recent $45 million raise backing further phase 2 trials of EMA401.
A brief GBS Ventures news post announcing Spinifex Pharmaceuticals' US$45 million Series C raise, with particulars left to an attached download.
GBS Ventures news stub linking to an attached document reporting Phase II trial results for Spinifex's EMA401, which showed the drug reduced pain in postherpetic neuralgia.
Profile of Australian biotech Spinifex Pharmaceuticals and its neuropathic pain drug EMA401, covering phase II trials, the science behind its AT2 approach, and its venture backers as it weighs a future series C.
Spinifex Pharmaceuticals won a $1.67 million federal Commercial Ready grant to advance its neuropathic pain drug, after a $3.25 million syndicate raise the previous July; it was spun out of the University of Queensland.
University of Queensland spinout Spinifex Pharmaceuticals landed $3.25 million from Symbiosis, GBS Venture Partners and Uniseed to advance its neuropathic pain therapy toward toxicology testing.
Also GBS Ventures·GBS Ventures·clinicalleader.com·bionity.com