Yorkshire Business Angels instrumental in CamStent funding round success
Medical materials company, CamStent Ltd, has successfully completed a second funding round and Yorkshire Association of Business Angels (YABA) members have played a crucial role in its success.
Following on from the £350,000 raised in the first funding round in July 2011, CamStent aimed to raise a further £400,000 to progress the application of its patented polymer coatings which resist the growth of bacteria in medical devices. The funding round was oversubscribed and closed when applications reached £508,000.
Based in Cambridge, CamStent presented at a YABA Investment Forum in November 2010, attracting six YABA investors to its first funding round. All six angels have re-invested in the second round and have been joined by a seventh YABA member.
The initial funding round enabled CamStent to carry out the testing and development of the technology’s first application. The polymer film coating resists the growth of bacteria, known as biofilms, on medical implants and devices. Coating catheters in the polymer film can prevent urinary tract infections caused by bacteria, which account for 40 per cent of all hospital-acquired infections.
The technology can also be applied in cardiology, coating heart stents to reduce inflammation, and in the marine sector where the coating can repel biofilms, such as algae, which cause corrosion. CamStent will use the new investment to take the company’s proprietary technology for urinary catheters through validation, experimental trials and regulatory submission ahead of human clinical trials.
“We’re very grateful for the on-going support of the YABA business angels and welcome our new investors,” says CamStent CEO, Dave Hampton. “On the back of our encouraging microbiology results and a successful 12 months, there was a high level of interest in this funding round leading to significant oversubscription. We’re looking forward to accelerating our first coating application, for urinary catheters, towards human clinical trial and licensing.”
Business angel, Stephen Savage, is one of the six original YABA investors: “With the security of a Technology Strategy Board award and all the development milestones having been met, I have been delighted to be part of the second round of funding which has ended up by being oversubscribed – a testament to CamStent’s potential.”
