The UC Berkeley-linked cell biology technology provider has raised about $215m in venture funding.
Berkeley Lights, a US-based digital cell biology developer based on research at University of California, Berkeley, has filed to raise up to $100m in an initial public offering that would enable corporates Nikon and Varian Medical Systems to exit.
Founded in 2011, Berkeley Lights has created technology that captures single-cell specific information to support the development of cell-based products including antibody therapeutics or cell therapies.
The company made an $18.3m net loss in 2019 from $56.7m in revenue and plans to channel some of the IPO takings into research and development and sales and marketing.
Imaging technology producer Nikon led the company’s last round, a $95m series E in late 2018, with a $30m investment, participating alongside medical technology provider Varian.
Sequoia Capital, Walden-Riverwood Ventures, Black Diamond Ventures, Atinum Investment, Shangbay Capital, KTB Network, Paxion Capital, Cota Capital and AJS BioTree Healthcare Fund filled out the series E round.
Berkeley Lights secured $29.5m from undisclosed investors in 2016, having previously raised a total of $90m from backers including Sequoia Capital and Walden-Riverwood Ventures while it was still in stealth.
Nikon owns an 8.1% stake in the company, whose largest shareholders are Walden-Riverwood Ventures (25.5%), Berkeley Lights’ co-founder and former chief executive Igor Khandros (22.3%) and Sequoia Capital (15%).
The offering is set to take place on the Nasdaq Global Market. JP Morgan Securities, Morgan Stanley and Cowen and Company are joint book-running managers for the IPO while William Blair is also an underwriter.
– A version of this article first appeared on our sister site, Global Corporate Venturing.
