In recent years, Proteros has formed collaborations with drug developers including AstraZeneca on the strength of its ability to go after technically challenging drug targets. The service provider has worked on more than 10,000 projects for more than 200 biopharma companies and established itself as a player in the market for hit to lead optimization services.
Now, Proteros has secured money to build on its progress to date. Inflexion, a middle-market private equity firm, has provided the cash in return for a minority stake in the drug discovery service provider.
“I am excited to have Inflexion on board as a partner. Their track record in backing innovative businesses combined with their operational experience within all areas of rapidly growing companies gives me great conviction they are well placed to support Proteros in its further growth trajectory,” said Torsten Neuefeind, founder and CEO of Proteros.
Details of the size of the investment remain private but Inflexion’s investment approach provides some insights, with the private equity group typically investing between £10m ($12m) and £400m for minority or majority stakes in its portfolio companies.
Proteros will use the money to expand its footprint in the US, both organically and through potential acquisitions. The service provider already has a presence in Boston and San Diego but it is based out of Martinsried, one of two science suburbs on the outskirts of the German city of Munich.
As well as expanding geographically, Proteros plans to “drive sustainable growth across all of its business units such as, cryo-EM, fit for purpose biologics and proteins, as well as integrated discovery solutions services.
”Proteros opened a cryo-EN facility in 2020 and began working with Thermo Fisher Scientific to develop experimental methods, protein sample preparation processes, and workflows.