NeoStem, a provider of adult stem cell collection and banking services, has completed a private placement financing totaling $11m from three Asia-based investors, including a private equity firm operating in partnership with strategic investors drawn from leading Asian families and businesses.
The investing firms are RimAsia Capital Partners, a pan-Asia private equity firm investing $5m; Enhance Biomedical Holding based in Shanghai, also investing $5m and Elancrest Investments, a Singapore-based firm, investing $1m.
The financing consists of units priced at $12.50 per unit, with each unit consisting of one share of the company’s series D convertible redeemable preferred stock and 10 warrants each to purchase one share of common stock.
The funds will be used to support the development of NeoStem’s very small embryonic-like stem cells technology licensed from the University of Louisville and help advance NeoStem’s expansion activities in China, including those relating to its pending acquisitions and medical tourism – defined as travel by people whose primary and explicit purpose is to access in a foreign country medical treatment not yet available in their own nation.
A portion of the funds also will be used to expand US-based operations. In addition, a portion of the proceeds will be used to repay $1.12m in bridge financing received from RimAsia Capital Partners in February and March 2009, interest on the bridge financing and other costs advanced by RimAsia in connection with the company’s expansion activities in China.