Robocath, a company that designs, develops and commercializes cardiovascular robotic systems for the treatment of vascular diseases, has secured 40 million euros ($43 million) in a series C round of financing. This was led by MicroPort Scientific Corporation, a major listed industrial player in the cardiovascular field, with participation from institutional investors (Zhejiang Silk Road Fund, Luxembourg CLIIF managed under TUS-Holdings, CS Group, and Anaxago) as well as existing Robocath investors.¹

The financial payment of 40million euros will enable the company to aggressively expand its sales and marketing efforts for its first robotic-assisted platform, R-One. It will also allow the company to broaden and accelerate the product development of its second-generation robot to address more PCI procedures and start peripheral and neurovascular applications.

“We believe that the future growth of medical device therapies will be driven by innovative robotics platform technologies to facilitate procedures and open up next generation capabilities such as remote and AI,” said Dr. Alex He, general manager of Medbot (MicroPort’s robotics subsidiary). “We are thrilled to partner with Robocath to commercialize its highly innovative proprietary vascular robotics platform in the Chinese market.”

On completion of this operation, existing Robocath investors,¹ as well as Philippe Bencteux, chairman and founder of the company, will hold more than two thirds of the company’s capital.

R-One is the first solution developed by Robocath. It uses a unique technology that optimizes the safety of robotic-assisted coronary angioplasty. This medical procedure consists of revascularizing the cardiac muscle by inserting one or more implants (stents) into the arteries that supply it with blood. Every 30 seconds, somewhere in the world, this type of procedure is performed.

R-One is designed to operate with precision and perform specific movements, creating better interventional conditions. Thanks to its open architecture, R-One is compatible with market-leading devices and cath labs.

In a prospective, randomized, controlled pre-clinical trial, R-One demonstrated safety and efficacy as it achieved 100 percent technical procedure success and no MACE (Major adverse cardiovascular events). R-One received the CE marking in February 2019 and started its clinical application in September 2019. Currently R-One is available in Europe and Africa.

Robocath aims to become the world leader in vascular robotics and develop the remote treatment of vascular emergencies, guaranteeing the best care pathway for all.

In connection with this investment, Robocath and MicroPort have also signed a strategic agreement to set up a China-based joint-venture company. With more than 7,000 global employees, MicroPort has an established expertise in medical devices manufacturing and commercialization dating back to its founding in 1998 and is a leader in its domestic Chinese market in the cardiovascular field. The company has a full line of stents and balloons products worldwide and generated revenue of $793 million (729.5 million euros) in 2019 (approximately one third from its cardiovascular business). Over the last five years, the company had an average turnover growth of 17 percent. MicroPort has been listed on the Hong-Kong Stock Exchange Market since September 2010.

“This financial round gives Robocath the resources to achieve its overall ambitions,” saidLucien Goffart, CEO of Robocath. “MicroPort’s commitment demonstrates the relevance of our value proposition. Thanks to the excellent technological and commercial synergies between our companies, we will accelerate our development and together build a great future in the vascular robotic field. This will benefit patients, physicians and ultimately healthcare systems.”

Capitalizing on this shared expertise and through this joint-venture, Robocath will open the Asian market with the commercialization of its first robotic-assisted platform. This expansion will be facilitated by local manufacturing of consumables and robot’s assembly to ensure optimal distribution of Robocath products in this market. Both companies will also carry out research and development activities related to next generation long-distance, remote control over 5G network technologies and will develop artificial intelligence algorithms to be used with robotic-assisted platforms. 

“With this financing round, Robocath enters a new phase in its strategic development. I am proud of how far we have come since the creation of the company and would like to thank all our historical shareholders for their renewed support and our new shareholders for their strong buy-in to our plans,” said Philippe Bencteux, chairman and founder of Robocath. “I’m delighted to welcome Mr. Jonathan Chen, chief international business officer at MicroPort, Dr. Alex He, general manager of Medbot, a MicroPort’s robotics subsidiary, and Mr. Haitong Wang, managing partner at Zhejiang Silk Road Fund, to our strategic committee.”

For this operation, Robocath was advised by MAVIE Technologies and Bionest Partner Finance, fundraising advisors, and Dechert and L2B law offices.
 
Reference
¹ GO CAPITAL, NCI, Cardio Participations, M Capital, Supernova Invest, Normandie Participations, Crédit Agricole Normandie, Unexo, Caisse d’Epargne Normandie