Advising Nuclera on its US$75 million series C financing

We have advised Nuclera, a biotech company accelerating protein expression and purification workflows based in Cambridge, UK and Boston, US, on its US$75 million series C financing.

The fundraise was led by Elevage Medical Technologies, backed by Patient Square Capital, and joined by British Patient Capital, the largest domestic investor in UK venture and venture growth opportunities, Cambridge Innovation Capital, Jonathan Milner, GK Goh, M&G Catalyst, E Ink Holdings, Michael D. McCreary, and Verve Ventures. The investment will enable the continued commercialization of Nuclera’s eProtein Discovery™ benchtop system, particularly in the US and across Europe.

Nuclera is a biotech company where its eProtein Discovery™ benchtop system accelerates protein expression and purification workflows within research labs. The system reduces the timelines and costs associated with protein expression and purification through automated construct screening to inform protein scale-up resulting in mg amounts in less than 48 hours.

Commenting on the transaction, corporate partner Ross McNaughton said, "It has been a pleasure to support Nuclera on this pivotal round. From its acquisition of E Ink’s digital microfluidics unit to its $58 million series B funding, Nuclera is continuing to develop as one of the UK's life sciences success stories, and we look forward to continuing our relationship in its journey of growth." 

Dr Michael Chen, CEO and co-founder, Nuclera, commented: “This significant investment demonstrates continued confidence in our team, our eProtein Discovery system, and our potential to revolutionize the way proteins are made. A big thank you to the Taylor Wessing team for their continued support along the way. Their deep sector expertise coupled with acute commercial awareness have helped to drive this financing forward smoothly and efficiently." 

The deal consisted of partner Ross McNaughton, senior associate Oli Denne and associate Nadege Serna in the Corporate team, partner Ann Casey in the Tax and Incentives team, and partner Adrian Toutoungi and senior associate Charlie Adams in the Patents team.