St. Louis, Missouri
February 17, 2009
Biotechnology firm
Divergence,
Inc., a world leader in developing products for the control
of parasites in agriculture and medicine, today announced that
it has raised $11.8 million in a Series C financing round that
will further its efforts to create solutions for one of the
major causes of crop yield loss for farmers.
MidPoint Food and Ag Fund LP acted as lead investor in the
round. Other institutional investors included Prolog Ventures
and certain partners of William Blair & Co. The round included
41 returning investors including all members of Divergence's
Board of Directors. The financing more than doubles the amount
of equity capital raised by the company since its inception.
Proceeds from the financing will be used to advance Divergence's
nematicide program. The company is developing molecules for the
control of plant parasitic nematodes. Nematode control is the
largest unsolved pest problem in agriculture limiting the yield
of crops worldwide and causing billions of dollars in crop
damage annually. Divergence has discovered the first novel mode
of action for this market in more than 20 years. The new
molecules feature human and environment safety profiles that are
vastly superior to traditional nematicides. The funding will
also support the Company's continued development of crops that
are resistant to nematodes, as well as its innovative,
broad-based research platforms Harvest™, STEM™ and RNA
interference.
"This financing, especially given the sophistication of the
participating investors, provides further validation of
Divergence's revolutionary technology and the rapid advancements
of our projects in parasite control,"said Derek K. Rapp, Chief
Executive Officer of Divergence. "Through our internal programs
and corporate alliances in crop protection and animal health,
Divergence is committed to the development of parasite control
products for higher yielding agriculture and healthier people
and animals."
Upon the completion of this financing, Ronald L. Meeusen, Ph.D.,
Partner of Midpoint Food & Ag Fund, LP, will join the Divergence
Board of Directors. Dr. Meeusen brings to Divergence more than
25 years of corporate experience in agricultural biotechnology.
"There is tremendous value in the cutting-edge science of
Divergence,"said Dr. Meeusen. "As the first company in our
investment portfolio, Divergence exemplifies our goal to invest
in companies that can enable environmentally sustainable
agriculture and offer promise for human and animal wellness."
With the addition of Dr. Meeusen, the Board of Directors of
Divergence stands at seven people - Stanford J. Goldblatt,
Partner and Head of the Private Equity Practice at Winston &
Strawn; James P. McCarter, M.D., Ph.D., President and Chief
Scientific Officer of Divergence; John W. McCarter, Jr.,
President and CEO of the Field Museum in Chicago; Ronald L.
Meeusen, Ph.D., Partner of MidPoint Food and Ag Fund, LP; Ilya
B. Nykin, Managing Director of Prolog Ventures; Derek K. Rapp,
Chief Executive Officer of Divergence; and Mark W. Wong,
President and CEO of Agrivida, Inc.
Divergence, Inc., a world leader in the application of
genomics and informatics to agriculture and infectious disease,
discovers and develops products for the safe and effective
control of parasites. The company's initial focus is on
parasitic nematodes, devastating unseen pests that cause
billions of dollars in crop loss annually and widespread disease
in humans and animals. For more information visit Divergence's
Web site at
www.divergence.com. |
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