Ventus Therapeutics, a US-based small molecule drug developer, completed a $100m series B round yesterday led by investment manager RA Capital Management.
GV, a corporate venture capital subsidiary of internet and technology group Alphabet, also took part in the round, as did Alexandria Venture Investments, the VC arm of real estate investment trust Alexandria Real Estate Equities.
BVF Partners, Casdin Capital, Cormorant Asset Management, Fonds de solidarité FTQ and Versant Ventures filled out the round.
Founded in Canada, Ventus is working on small molecule therapeutics targeting the body’s innate immune system, with cancer and autoimmune, inflammatory and neurological disorders all possible future targets.
Ventus’s founding team includes Hao Wu, a professor of biological chemistry and molecular pharmacology at Harvard Medical School, and Richard Flavell, the Sterling professor of immunobiology at Yale University.
The academic co-founders also include Judy Lieberman, endowed chair in cellular and molecular medicine and professor of paediatrics at Harvard Medical School.
Thomas Tuschl, professor and head of the molecular biology lab at Rockefeller University, and Feng Shao, investigator and deputy director for academic affairs at China’s National Institute of Biological Sciences, are also co-founders.
Josh Resnick, managing director at RA Capital, is taking a board seat at Ventus in conjunction with the round, which came after founding investor Versant Ventures led a $60m series A round for the company in May 2020 that also featured GV.
Marcelo Bigal, president and chief executive of Ventus, said: “This support from strong crossover investors will enable the next stage of evolution for Ventus as we build the resources to leverage the full potential of our platforms and product pipeline.
“We have made rapid and substantial progress over the last twelve months, including the emergence of the ReSolve platform and expansion of our pipeline. Ventus is on an exciting growth trajectory, as we continue to unlock high-value targets that have been elusive in the past and advance our lead products for patients with devastating diseases.”
– A version of this article first appeared on our sister site, Global Corporate Venturing.

US-based small molecule drug developer Ventus Therapeutics completed a $100m series B round yesterday featuring GV, a corporate venture capital subsidiary of internet and technology group Alphabet.

Investment manager RA Capital Management led the round, which included Alexandria Venture Investments, the VC arm of real estate investment trust Alexandria Real Estate Equities, as well as BVF Partners, Casdin Capital, Cormorant Asset Management, Fonds de solidarité FTQ and Versant Ventures.

Founded in Canada, Ventus is working on small molecule therapeutics targeting the body’s innate immune system, with cancer and autoimmune, inflammatory and neurological disorders all possible future targets.

Josh Resnick, managing director at RA Capital, is taking a board seat at Ventus in conjunction with the round, which came after founding investor Versant Ventures led a $60m series A round for the company in May 2020 that also featured GV.

Marcelo Bigal, president and chief executive of Ventus, said: “This support from strong crossover investors will enable the next stage of evolution for Ventus as we build the resources to leverage the full potential of our platforms and product pipeline.

“We have made rapid and substantial progress over the last twelve months, including the emergence of the ReSolve platform and expansion of our pipeline. Ventus is on an exciting growth trajectory, as we continue to unlock high-value targets that have been elusive in the past and advance our lead products for patients with devastating diseases.”