News Archives
SENOMYX, INC. RAISES $36.8 MILLION TO FUND RESEARCH AND DISCOVERY OF MOLECULES THAT ENHANCE THE TASTE AND SMELL OF CONSUMER PRODUCTS
LA JOLLA, CA (March 11 , 2002) – Senomyx, Inc. (www.senomyx.com) announced today the completion of a $36,837,000 private placement of Series E preferred stock. These funds will be used to expand and accelerate the Company's research and development efforts toward developing new technologies to improve the world of taste and smell.
The financing was co-led by existing investor Rho Ventures, L.P., and new investor Merrill Lynch Ventures L.P. 2001. Other participants in the round included previous investors Bay City Capital, through its North American Nutrition and Agribusiness Fund, Domain Partners IV, L.P., and Prospect Venture Partners, L.P., as well as new investors Hambrecht & Quist Capital Management, OrbiMed Advisors, LLC and U.S. Trust's Excelsior Venture Partners III, LLC fund.
"Senomyx has emerged in a very short period of time as a strong innovator harnessing the power of modern biotechnology and aiming to accelerate and improve research in new industries. We are delighted to support the company and a very strong management team in their ongoing efforts," said Mark Leschly, Managing Director of Rho Ventures.
Paul A. Grayson, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer said, "We are pleased with the success of this financing despite the difficult market conditions. The financing was both extended and expanded due to the overwhelming interest from new and existing investors. We want to thank all of our Board of Directors, current investors, advisors, and collaborators, such as The Campbell Soup Company, Kraft Foods, Inc., Incyte Genomics, Inc. and Aurora Biosciences, Inc. for their support."
On the scientific front, Senomyx has continued to make significant progress. According to Mark Zoller, Chief Scientific Officer and Senior Vice President of Research, "Over the past year, the research effort has shifted from target discovery to product discovery in our key programs. In addition, the funding provided by the Series E financing will allow us to move new projects into discovery and will accelerate progress on our current collaborations with Kraft Foods, Inc. and The Campbell Soup Company."
About Rho Ventures
Rho Ventures is a New York-based venture capital firm with extensive investments in the technology, healthcare and electronic information sectors. Since it was founded in 1981, the firm has invested in numerous companies including Active Power, Capstone Turbine, Ciena, Commerce One, Compaq Computer and Copper Mountain. Venture investments in the life sciences arena include Diversa, Human Genome Sciences, Leukosite, MedImmune, Shire Pharmaceuticals and Versicor. Aggregate venture capital under management exceeds $1 billion. Additional information can be found at www.rho.com.
About Merrill Lynch Ventures L.P. 2001
Merrill Lynch Ventures is a private equity investment entity affiliated with Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. Merrill Lynch Ventures seeks minority investments in privately offered equity securities of U.S. and non-U.S. companies. Target investments include financings for companies in an early stage of development, primarily in the technology, telecommunications and healthcare industries. Additional target investments include growth equities and securities issued in conjunction with leveraged buyouts and other transactions involving financial restructuring or reorganization.
About Senomyx, Inc.
Senomyx seeks to be the leader in discovering new and improved proprietary flavor and fragrance molecules for use in a wide range of consumer products. Senomyx's integrated technology platform combines an enhanced understanding of the biology of taste and smell with many of the same technologies and advancements that pharmaceutical companies have recently begun using to more efficiently discover new medicines. Senomyx is incorporating receptor biology, combinatorial chemistry, high-throughput screening and bioinformatics into an integrated technology platform designed to enable the rapid, efficient discovery of new and improved proprietary molecules.
back to News Archives