Oxford, United Kingdom – 16 August 2021 - Beckley Psytech, a private company dedicated to addressing neurological and psychiatric disorders through the novel application of psychedelic medicines, today announced it has successfully completed an oversubscribed Series B financing, raising $80m (£58m) from venture capital (VC) investors to fund its promising research programmes. The Series B financing was initially set at $50m and was upsized to $80m due to overwhelming interest from investors to support Beckley Psytech in broadening and accelerating the clinical development of its innovative research pipeline.
Beckley Psytech will use the proceeds to complete the ongoing Phase 1b trial with low-dose psilocybin in patients suffering from SUNHA, a rare and debilitating headache condition estimated to affect 45,000 people in the US and Europe, and to initiate a Phase 1 dose-ranging study on a novel formulation of intranasal 5-MeO-DMT before starting a Phase 2 trial in Treatment Resistant Depression. The funding will also support the expansion of the company’s pipeline with new, unique and proprietary psychedelic compounds.
The financing round is led by Integrated, a healthcare focused VC which partners with companies and entrepreneurs that are transforming the health and well-being of communities around the globe. The science-focused investor consortium includes Prime Movers Labs, which funds breakthrough scientific startups; Adage Capital Management LP, a Boston based institutional investor; Palo Santo; Delphi VC; Leafy Tunnel; Negev Capital; and existing investor Bicycle Day Ventures..
Cosmo Feilding Mellen, CEO of Beckley Psytech, said: “My life’s passion has been to unlock the therapeutic potential of psychedelics as I believe these compounds could help millions of people around the world. The progress Beckley Psytech has made in attracting exceptional talent to the team and advancing our ambitious clinical development programmes over the past two years has been tremendously exciting. As we embark on our next phase of growth, our strong syndicate of expert investors will support us in bringing much-needed innovative treatments to patients suffering from neurological and psychiatric conditions."
Jay Newmark, general partner of Integrated, commented: “Cosmo and his dedicated team at Beckley Psytech have created an exceptional research and development platform. Their highly differentiated approach, which treats not only large indications such as depression but also rare indications such as SUNHA, is allowing accelerated access to market. We deeply appreciate our value alignment with this team and eagerly anticipate their progress in improving access to these medicines.”
Dr Amy Kruse, partner, Prime Movers Lab, said: “It is nearly impossible to find a team with more experience in developing psychedelic medicines for neurological conditions than the one at Beckley Psytech. The COVID-19 pandemic brought mental health to the public’s attention in a profound way. The excitement around psychedelics in the mental health market is very real because they are transformative medicines that will soon make their way into the lives of millions of people who desperately need them.”
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