Hamburg, Germany - Evotec Neurosciences (ENS), a subsidiary of Evotec OAI AG (Deutsche Börse: EVT, TecDAX 30), today announced that it has secured a € 25 million first round of venture capital financing. The private placement was led by TVM Techno Venture Management (Munich, Germany) and co-led by 3i plc (London, UK) and MVM (London, UK). Ventech (Paris, France), Star Ventures (Munich, Germany) as well as undisclosed private individuals participated as co-investors in the round.
 
With the first tranche of the series A financing being paid out, Evotec OAI will initially own 42% of ENS. As a consequence, ENS' results will now be consolidated in Evotec OAI's financial statements "at equity".
 
"We are delighted to have attracted some of the leading investors in the life science industry to support our growth strategy" said Dr. John Kemp, CEO of Evotec Neurosciences. "This substantial funding, following last week's announcement of a significant in-licensing agreement with Roche on NMDA receptor NR2B subtype selective antagonists, will allow accelerated development of our proprietary and in-licensed compounds, helping us to build an exciting and broad-balanced portfolio of CNS drug candidates. "
 
"Closing one of the largest first rounds of financing in a difficult environment for European biotech is a further validation of the quality of Evotec OAI's R&D investments. It will allow ENS to further expand its portfolio in the field of CNS diseases and to generate significant value creation in the longer term" said Joern Aldag, President and CEO of Evotec OAI.
 
Dr. Hubert Birner, General Partner at TVM, stated: "This investment is a strong commitment to an early stage biotech company. We have not seen Series A investments in Germany of that size for a very long time. It is driven by ENS' novel approaches to treat neurodegenerative disease, the track record of ENS' senior management team, as well as the company's close relationships with the pharmaceutical industry and Evotec OAI."
 
About Evotec Neurosciences GmbH
Evotec Neurosciences (ENS), established in May 1999, currently employs 25 people at its main site in Hamburg, Germany. The company is dedicated to developing better therapeutic products for the treatment of major CNS disorders. Its current focus is on Alzheimer's disease and other neurological disorders. The company's strength is the seamless integration of target identification and validation, drug discovery and development by combining its internal expertise with the leading drug discovery platform of Evotec OAI and the research excellence of renowned pre-clinical and clinical partners.
ENS' short to medium term strategy is to build a broad and well-balanced product portfolio, including Disease-to-IND, Target-to-IND and Lead-to-Clinical-Proof-of-Concept projects.
http://www.evotec-neurosciences.com
 
About Evotec OAI AG
Evotec OAI has established itself as the partner of choice for drug discovery and development services for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies world-wide, maintaining its leadership role through innovation and unmatched customer service. The Company's business strategy is clearly focused on drug discovery. It has established the most comprehensive technology platform and skills that integrate its world-class biology and chemistry capabilities. Evotec OAI leverages this discovery engine in providing assay development and screening through to compound optimisation and drug manufacturing services to a broad and well-established network of customers. In addition, the Company engages in selected discovery programmes itself to develop drug candidates for early out-licensing. Evotec OAI's instrument and technology business is now successfully handled by its affiliate, Evotec Technologies. With over 600 people in Hamburg, Germany, and Oxfordshire, UK, Evotec OAI is dedicated to returning value to its shareholders and employees through a sustainable business strategy that balances short-term and long-term revenue opportunities.
http://www.evotecoai.com
 
About TVM
Techno Venture Management (TVM), is a German-U.S. venture capital firm and a leader in transatlantic venture investments with offices in Munich and Boston. In total, TVM manages investment capital of over $1 billion. TVM funds have made investments in more than 200 technology and life science companies in Europe and the United States. For further information regarding TVM, please visit http://www.tvmvc.com.
 
About 3i
3i makes capital, know-how and an international network available for the founding and development of companies. Its investment portfolio ranges from start-ups and early-phase financing to spin-offs and buy-outs.
As one of the world's leading venture capital companies, 3i has 31 offices and experienced investment teams in Europe, the Far East and the US. In the last financial year, ending 31 March 2003, the 3i group invested _x0080_1.31bn in 400 companies (including investor pools).
In Germany, 3i has invested over _x0080_1.9bn in 500 companies since 1986. The portfolio in the German-speaking region currently comprises 230 holdings with an investment volume of over _x0080_1.1bn.
3i has bought into healthcare companies since the early 1980s and to date has conducted over 200 investments in this sector. In the German-speaking world alone, there are over 50 healthcare companies in 3i's portfolio.
http://www.3i.com
 
About MVM
MVM is a venture capital company founded in 1997 with offices in London and Boston. It is dedicated to investing in start up and early-stage life science companies. MVM is an active, involved investor providing its investee companies with advice and assistance to support their growth and development, from identifying commercially relevant opportunities and recruiting high calibre staff to fund raising and partnering. MVM manages two funds: the UK Medical Ventures Fund (a $70 million fund) and the MVM International Life Sciences Fund (a $200 million fund). http://www.mvfund.com
 
About Star Ventures
Star Ventures (STAR) is an international venture capital fund that invests in early-stage, high-tech companies in Israel, the United States and Germany. STAR has a truly global approach and focuses on companies that are already active internationally or are preparing to establish international business activities.
With close to $1 billion under management across 15 funds, STAR has built a portfolio of 168 companies, with more than 50 exits through IPO's (mainly NASDAQ) or trade sales. Typical areas of interest are information technology, enterprise software and industrial technology as well as medical device and biotech companies. STAR is headquartered in Munich, Germany, with offices in Herzelia, Israel, and Dallas, Texas, USA. For more information about STAR please visit
http:// www.star-ventures.com
 
About Ventech
Founded in 1998, Ventech is an early stage venture capital investor dedicated to IT and life sciences. Based in Paris, Ventech has a strong focus towards early stage opportunities originating from Germany, Switzerland and France. Ventech manages two funds: Ventech I (_x0080_62 million) and Ventech capital II (_x0080_112 million).
http://www.ventech.fr
 
Contact Evotec
Dr Dirk Ehlers, CFO
Phone: +49 (40) 56081-241
Email: dirk.ehlers@evotecoai.com
 
Anne Hennecke, IR
Phone: +49 (40) 56081-286
Email: anne.hennecke@evotecoai.com
 
Contact TVM
Monika Schlesinger
Phone: +49 (89) 998 992 - 0
Email: schlesinger@tvmvc.de