- First EIB support for medtech investment in Israel
- New financing to accelerate development of rapid infectious disease testing
- Automated rapid testing to improve COVID-19 detection and identify respiratory coinfection
Research and development of fully automated testing of bacteria and infectious diseases by POCARED Diagnostics will be accelerated by EUR 22 million of European Investment Bank specialized venture debt. The new loan is supported by the ‘InnovFin – EU Finance for Innovators’ Infectious Diseases Finance Facility backed by Horizon 2020, the European Union’s research and innovation programme.
POCARED Diagnostics is currently finalizing development of a new microbiology testing system that can provide results within hours, instead of a few days at present, that has the potential to revolutionise infectious disease diagnosis.
“We are honoured to be selected by the European Investment Bank to be the first Israeli medtech company to be supported by the Infectious Disease Financing Facility. The EUR 22 million venture debt financing will allow POCARED to accelerate development of our diagnostic system. The POCARED test will provide real-time results to clinicians and enable faster treatment of infections. For the first time, clinicians will have all the information required to prescribe the most effective antibiotic treatment. This will save unnecessary patient suffering while reducing total healthcare costs and better control the overuse of antibiotics” says Jonathan Gurfinkel, President and CEO of the company.
“The European Investment Bank is committed to accelerating development of research that strengthens the fight against infectious diseases and reducing the threat of COVID-19 to patients with underlying medical conditions. We are pleased to provide EUR 22 million of new venture debt financing to enhance POCARED development of rapid microbiology testing. Israel is home to world class research and development and we are pleased to provide the first EIB financing for Israeli medtech investment and build on our strong engagement supporting biotech investment in this country.” said Gelsomina Vigliotti, Vice President of the European Investment Bank.
“Innovative testing devices play a very important role in managing pandemics and have a broader impact on the healthcare for society. Therefore, we are happy to contribute to POCARED’s efforts to improve infectious diseases diagnosis and refine the use of antibiotics.” said Mariya Gabriel, European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth.
Rapid testing key for improving patient treatment and fighting Antimicrobial Resistance
The new POCARED test will enable, for the first time, an optimal, evidence based, patient treatment and transform the fight against Antimicrobial Resistance.
Rehovot based POCARED will use the new EIB financing to complete technological development and commercialization of the new system.
Building on EIB track record supporting innovation
Since 2015, the EIB has deployed more than EUR 3.0bn in venture debt and quasi-equity operations, supporting more than 150 highly innovative companies.
The venture debt program of the EIB was established to fill the persistent market gap and increase support for growth stage companies promoting disruptive innovation. Through the venture debt program, the EIB has supported the creation of more than 30,000 highly skilled jobs.
The European Investment Bank has provided EUR 1.7 billion for business, water and energy investment in Israel since 1981.
Background information
The InnovFin Infectious Diseases Finance Facility is dedicated to supporting the fight against infectious diseases. This joint European Commission and EIB Group initiative is part of Horizon 2020, the 2014-2020 EU research and innovation programme. Delivered directly by the EIB, the facility enables the Bank to provide between €7.5 million and €75 million of funding to innovative players in the development of vaccines, drugs, medical and diagnostic devices and research infrastructure for combating infectious diseases, and mainly goes to projects that have completed the preclinical stage and that require clinical approval for further development. The facility has been increased by €400 million to boost its capacity for tackling the outbreak of the coronavirus, with the total EU contribution to the facility via Horizon 2020 estimated at almost €700 million.
POCARED Diagnostics Ltd, is an in-vitro diagnostic and pre-analytics company utilizing cutting edge technologies to deliver next generation platforms. POCARED’s CULTURE-FREE Microbiology® technology is revolutionizing infectious disease diagnosis and practice with real-time automated results. This saves several critical days in reporting compared to current practices.
