Merck venture arm leads $7.3M seed round into NZ biotech Precision Chroma

What's the deal? Precision ChromaDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, a Christchurch-based biotechnology startup, has raised a US$8.41M seed round led by M VenturesDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, the corporate venture arm of global pharmaceutical company MerckDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →.

What's the endgame? The company is developing a new method of chromatography for faster and simpler purification of biological products. It will use the funding to help build a pilot-scale plant.

Why now? Backing from Merck's venture arm signals pharmaceutical interest in cheaper, faster purification tools as biologic drug production scales up.

The signal: At $7.3 million, the round sits in the top 4% of all seed rounds raised by health startups in New Zealand, a market where deals of this size are rare. The involvement of a global pharma backer underscores how New Zealand biotech is drawing strategic capital from beyond its borders.

Read more: nbr.co.nz

Image credit: Precision Chroma