Cardio drug maker Portola Pharmaceuticals takes $60M extension

San Francisco-based drug company Portola Pharmaceuticals has taken a $60 million extension to its third round of funding to see it through Phase II trials for betrixaban, a drug intended to prevent blood clots.

The company is also working on an antiplatelet agent called PRT060128. If its drugs do well in trials, the company will likely head to an IPO, as we reported alongside its last $70 million fundung.

Managing Application Performance by Understanding Applications Learn more,… Continue Reading

Cardiovascular biotech Portola Pharmaceuticals raises $70M, eyes IPO

Portola Pharmaceuticals, a South San Francisco, Calif., biotech aiming to develop treatments for blood clots and other heart-related problems, raised $70 million in a third round of financing dominated by late-stage and public-market investors.

Among new investors in the round were Brookside Capital; AllianceBernstein; Teachers’ Private Capital, the private investment arm of Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan; Goldman Sachs, T. Rowe Price, IBTM and CIDC. They were joined by existing investors Abingworth, Alta Partners, Advanced Technology Ventures,… Continue Reading

Cancer-drug maker Aveo raises $53M

Aveo Pharmaceuticals, a Cambridge, Mass. cancer-drug company, raised $53 million in a fourth round of funding from a coalition of mostly blue-chip life-science investors.

New investors included Biogen Idec, Bessemer Venture Partners, Merlin BioMed Group, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group and Vatera Holdings, an investment vehicle owned by Kos Pharmaceuticals founder Michael Jaharis. Schering-Plough also provided a $10 million equity investment as part of a collaboration agreement.

The round also included new funding from existing investors Highland… Continue Reading

Roxro Pharma gets $21.65M commitment for pain management

Roxro Pharma, a Menlo Park developer of drugs for acute pain management, has won $21.65 million more in commitments to extend its second round of funding, VentureWire reports (sub required).

The financing came from the company’s existing Series B investors: Prospect Ventures, Sutter Hill Ventures, Thomas Weisel Healthcare Venture Partners, Mediphase Venture Partners, Voyager Funds and Fimei SpA, said Roberto Rosenkranz, chairman and chief executive of Roxro. The company raised an original $21.65 million in Series… Continue Reading

Portola Pharma gets $20M debt financing

Portola Pharmaceuticals, a South San Francisco biotech company developing cardiovascular and vascular disease therapies, has raised $20 million in debt financing from Hercules Technology Growth Capital.

Portola is already backed by venture firms Abingworth, Alta Partners, ATV, Frazier Healthcare Ventures, MPM Capital, Prospect Ventures and Sutter Hill Ventures.

The company said it has two drug candidates in clinical development: 1) an oral Factor Xa inhibitor in a Phase II trial for the prevention of Deep Vein Thrombosis… Continue Reading