Nano Cures Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology startup in Austin, announced last week a $90 million "pre-IPO" funding round that was led by a $20 million investment from Opulence Capital Management, based in Dubai.
The money will fuel the company's Covid-19 platform that aims to allow pharmaceutical companies to distribute self-administered nasal, dermal and oral vaccines in Southeast Asia, Latin America and other areas that may have less access to vaccines.
Nano Cures, led by CEO Steve Papermaster, is also working on universal coronavirus vaccines and therapeutics for annual protection against coronaviruses.
"As Covid-19 has made abundantly clear, a 21st century technology-enabled approach is needed that refreshes how we proactively solve public health challenges and threats," Papermaster, a serial entrepreneur who has led companies such as Powershift Group and Perficient, said in a statement.
The company said in the announcement it will open up its platform to other pharmaceutical companies, "providing dynamic new ways to conquer the pandemic and deliver billions of doses directly to those in need." Nano was founded in 2014, according to Crunchbase.
The $90 million funding round is one of the largest of 2021 for an Austin company. And biotech has been a hot sector for initial public offerings: businesses in that industry raised $11.4 billion through 65 IPOs in 2020, up from $4.9 billion raised in 41 IPOs in 2019, according to PitchBook data.
