Finance Watch: Semma Raises $114m As VC Funding Keeps Up Brisk Pace

Semma closed a $114m Series B round to fund development of insulin-producing cells. Also, Tesaro and Catalyst are among recent public company financings, while Otonomy shifted gears, laying off sales staff.

Finance Watch

The recent $114m Series B round raised by Semma Therapeutics Inc. reflects two positive trends about the venture capital environment for biopharmaceuticals companies – both the number of companies and the amount of money raised by new and early-stage firms are rising.

Cambridge, Mass.-based Semma launched in 2015 with a significant amount of venture capital – a $44m Series A round to support the development of stem cell-derived beta (SC-beta) cells that...

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