Amsterdam, the Netherlands, Holzgerlingen, Germany, and Luxembourg, 12 December 2016-Curetis N.V. (the "Company" and, together with Curetis GmbH, "Curetis"), a developer of next-level molecular diagnostic solutions, and the European Investment Bank (EIB) today announced that the EIB granted Curetis a EUR 25 million senior, unsecured loan. The financing is the first growth capital loan under the European Growth Finance Facility (EGFF), launched in November 2016. It is backed by a guarantee from the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI). EFSI is an essential pillar of the Investment Plan for Europe (IPE), under which the EIB and the European Commission are working as strategic partners to support investments and bring back jobs and growth to Europe. 

 

The debt facility features typical market interest rates with more than half of the interest payments deferred into the repayment at maturity. The funding can be drawn in up to five tranches within the next 24 months; each tranche is to be repaid upon maturity five years after draw-down. The flexible terms allow Curetis to fund up to 50% of its expected medium-term R&D project requirements (incl. R&D staff costs, external R&D operating expenses, corresponding capital expenditures for R&D etc.) and will enable Curetis to fund the strategic expansion and enhancement of its Unyvero Platform and products.

 

Specifically, the funds will allow the further development and validation of complementary technology assets and corresponding IP and the funding of clinical trials. In addition, the funds will support the integration of the recently acquired GEAR database and assets.

 

“We are proud to get the support of the EIB,” said Dr. Oliver Schacht, CEO of Curetis. “The funding will allow us to further expand our leading position in molecular diagnostics by integrating complementary know-how and assets into our proprietary Unyvero Platform. Moreover, we will be able to significantly accelerate our R&D activities and develop a broader pipeline of applications for our Unyvero platform."

 

EIB Vice President Ambroise Fayolle, responsible for Germany and innovation in the EU Bank, emphasized: “This transaction demonstrates EIB´s firm commitment to support early-stage and fast-growing companies in Europe. Supporting R&D is one of the EIB’s key goals, and small midcaps like Curetis are instrumental for Europe’s knowledge economy, as they pursue innovation-intensive businesses and employ highly qualified people. Most importantly, this investment will contribute to accelerating the development and market launch of new diagnostics tests, helping to improve the diagnosis and survival rates of critically ill patients in Europe as well as to counteract increasing antibiotic resistance.”

 

European Commission Vice-President Jyrki Katainen, responsible for Jobs, Growth, Investment and Competitiveness, said: "The EFSI is playing a crucial role in ensuring that innovative smaller businesses have access to the finance they need to fund their research activities. Curetis is undertaking cutting-edge research on advanced diagnostics. The EFSI can help firms like Curetis reach the next level, while ensuring that Europe maintains its status as a centre of innovate healthcare product development."

 

 

Disclaimer

CAUTION - Investigational device. Limited by Federal (or United States) law to investigational use. The information contained in this communication does not constitute nor imply an offer to sell or transfer any product, and no product based on the Curetis Unyvero technology is currently available for sale in the United States of America or Canada. The analytical and clinical performance characteristics of any Curetis Unyvero product which may be sold at some future point in time in the U.S. have not yet been established.

 

Note to the editor:

 

About the European Investment Bank

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union, owned by its Member States. It makes long-term finance available for sound investment in order to contribute towards EU policy goals.

 

The Investment Plan for Europe

In December 2014, the EU Heads of State or Government decided to launch a EUR 315bn investment offensive. With this initiative, the EU Member States are addressing the continued lack of investment and innovation within the Union. The EIB Group, consisting of the European Investment Bank and the European Investment Fund, is playing a vital role in this investment drive. Through guarantees from the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), the EIB Group is able to take on a higher share of project risk, encouraging private finance providers to participate in the projects. Up to now, nearly 400 operations have been mounted with EFSI support, which are expected to mobilize a total investment of more than EUR 150bn. EFSI is supported by a new advisory service, the European Investment Advisory Hub, which will enable public and private project operators to structure their investment projects more professionally. The investment offensive also aims to make the regulatory environment in the EU more conducive to investment, especially in the digital, energy and capital market sectors.

 

About Curetis

Founded in 2007, Curetis is a molecular diagnostics company which focuses on the development and commercialization of reliable, fast and cost-effective products for diagnosing severe infectious diseases. The diagnostic solutions of Curetis enable rapid multi-parameter pathogen and antibiotic resistance marker detection in only a few hours, a process that today can take up to days or even weeks with other techniques.

 

To date, Curetis has raised EUR 44.3 million in an IPO on Euronext Amsterdam and Euronext Brussels and private equity funds of over EUR 63.5 million. Furthermore, Curetis has entered into a debt financing facility with EIB for up to EUR 25 million. The company is based in Holzgerlingen near Stuttgart, Germany. Curetis has signed collaboration agreements with Heraeus Medical and Cempra Inc. as well as several international distribution agreements covering many countries across Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

 

For further information, please visit www.curetis.com.

 

Legal Disclaimer

This document constitutes neither an offer to buy nor to subscribe securities and neither this document nor any part of it should form the basis of any investment decision in Curetis.

 

The information contained in this press release has been carefully prepared. However, Curetis bears and assumes no liability of whatever kind for the correctness and completeness of the information provided herein. Curetis does not assume an obligation of whatever kind to update or correct information contained in this press release whether as a result of new information, future events or for other reasons.

 

This press release includes statements that are, or may be deemed to be, “forward-looking statements”. These forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology, including the terms “believes”, “estimates”, “anticipates”, “expects”, “intends”, “may”, “will”, or “should”, and include statements Curetis makes concerning the intended results of its strategy. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties and readers are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. Curetis’ actual results may differ materially from those predicted by the forward-looking statements. Curetis undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise forward-looking statements, except as may be required by law.