Nextech Invest leads Blueprint Medicines US$ 25 Million Series B Financing

Nextech Invest AG / Nextech Invest leads Blueprint Medicines US$ 25 Million Series B Financing . Processed and transmitted by NASDAQ OMX Corporate Solutions. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. Zurich (Switzerland), January 09, 2014 - Nextech Invest Ltd., the Swiss specialist cancer venture capital investor, announced today the successful completion of a US$ 25 million Series B financing of Blueprint Medicines, Boston, USA. Nextech led the round, which also included founding investors Third Rock Ventures, Fidelity Biosciences as well as public investors Biotech Value Fund, L.P., Casdin Capital, LLC and other undisclosed investors. "The strong team of leaders and scientific founders behind Blueprint Medicines have successfully built a product engine and resulting product-candidate pipeline that brings to life the vision of treating patients based on specific genomic drivers of cancer. We believe this approach is core to the future of oncology therapy with the promise of significantly improving survival while minimizing toxicities for patients," said Thilo Schroeder, Ph.D., of Nextech Invest Ltd. "Blueprint Medicines stands out for its high quality science and early track record for successful execution." Blueprint's lead programs include the first known selective inhibitors of the KIT D816V mutation, which is the genomic driver of systemic mastocytosis, as well as a key genomically defined subset of patients with gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST). The Company's pipeline also includes the first known isoform-selective FGFR4 inhibitors for patients with hepatocellular carcinoma with FGF19 amplification, the first clear genomic driver in liver cancer and other tumors. Blueprint expects to initiate clinical trials for these programs in 2015. About Nextech Invest Ltd. The global specialist life sciences venture capital firm Nextech Invest Ltd., established 1998 in Zurich, Switzerland, focuses on investing in oncology related companies. Supported by an outstanding Scientific Advisory Board of seven world-leading oncologists chaired by Professor David Livingston, Deputy Director Dana-Farber Cancer Institute/Harvard Cancer Center, Nextech is investing in emerging companies with pioneering innovations in cancer research that have compounds in advanced clinical trials. Nextech has a total of US$ 100 million in two oncology funds under management. Nextech has made eleven investments to date, of which three have already been exited and two more have gone public just recently. Nextech is a longstanding member of leading networks in private equity, such as EVCA, SECA and EVPA. Nextech works closely with the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC). For more information, please contact: Alfred Scheidegger PhD, Founding Partner & CEO Nextech Invest Ltd. Tel.: +41 44 366 66 12 scheidegger@nextechinvest.com www.nextechinvest.com Press release (PDF): http://hugin.info/158778/R/1753650/591575.pdf This announcement is distributed by GlobeNewswire on behalf of GlobeNewswire clients. The owner of this announcement warrants that: (i) the releases contained herein are protected by copyright and other applicable laws; and (ii) they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein. Source: Nextech Invest AG via GlobeNewswire [HUG#1753650]