DURHAM – Humacyte, which officially merged with the special purpose acquisition company Alpha Healthcare Acquisition Corp. after shareholders of the SPAC voted to approve the move last week, is receiving an immediate infusion of capital from Fresenius Medical Care, to the tune of an additional $25 million.
Fresenius initially invested $150 million in Humacyte in a strategic partnership formed in 2018, which was extended earlier this year as Humacyte prepared to merge with Alpha Healthcare Acquisition Corp.
Fresenius was also the lead investor of a private investment in public equity (PIPE), backing Humacyte’s move to merge with the SPAC.
In a statement last week, following the closing of the business combination transaction, Humacyte shared that the company received gross proceeds of approximately $245 million, “including a $175 million PIPE financing and $70 million of cash held in the former AHAC trust account.”
Other investors in the company through the PIPE included OrbiMed, Monashee Investment Management, Alexandria Venture Investments, UBS O’Connor, Morgan Creek Capital, the company said in a statement. Other health care related funds participated, as well, the company stated.
The combined company officially began trading on Friday, priced at $10/share on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol HUMA. The stock price Monday afternoon was $13.63, a gain of 11.72% on the day. That’s up about 36% since the merger was completed.
The stock closed up more than 9% Monday at $13.30.
According to a statement, Fresenius’ original investment in Humacyte will be exchanged for shares in the combined company.
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“Humacyte’s regenerative medicine technology has great potential in many areas of healthcare,” said Franklin W. Maddux, MD, Global Chief Medical Officer of Fresenius in a statement. “We are committed to helping Humacyte achieve market approvals with this renewed investment, to bring their technology into the mainstream of health delivery.”
The partnership between the company now includes the granting of exclusive rights to market Humacyte’s human acellular vessel outside of the United States by Fresenius Medical Care, “including enhancements and modifications for vascular trauma applications,” according to the statement.
“Our partnership with Fresenius Medical Care has developed very positively over the last three years, and we are very pleased with the company’s renewed commitment to our shared goals,” said Laura Niklason, CEO of Humacyte. “Our two teams have worked well to prepare for the commercialization of our human acellular vessels globally since the formation of the partnership, and we look forward to collaborating further to benefit patients and care providers, as well as the growth of our two companies.”
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