Broncus inhales $38M to treat lung disease, eyes IPO
Broncus Technologies, developer of devices to treat emphysema and other lung ailments, may make a second run at going public after bringing in $38 million in seventh-round funding to break even, reports VentureWire. The Mountain View, Calif. company first filed for a $75 million IPO last November, but withdrew in June due to the flagging lifescience market.
Resuscitated in July with $10 million in debt financing from Western Technology Investment, Broncus plans to release two cancer-fighting products by mid-2009. This should help buoy the company when the IPO market thaws (it’s been an especially tough year for biotech).
Broncus draws some confidence from the fact that all of its investors chose to return for the recent round, including Abingworth Management, Bio*One Capital, Charter Ventures, HBM BioVentures, JAIC America, Menlo Ventures, Pac-Link Ventures, Saints Capital, Saratoga Ventures and Sightline Ventures. New backer Ares Life Sciences led the round with $25 million. Previously, Broncus has raised $80 million.
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About the Author, Camille Ricketts
Camille is the lead writer for GreenBeat. She came to VentureBeat from Google where she worked on its traditional platforms team, particularly in TV. Before that, she was a reporter for the Wall Street Journal in New York and London. Follow her on Twitter at @camillericketts, and follow VentureBeat on Twitter at @venturebeat.
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