Jeito Capital becomes major investor in SparingVision as part of €44.5 Million financing

• Jeito Capital has selected SparingVision as its first French investment following the fund I launch in January 2020
• SparingVision is focused on the discovery and development of innovative therapies for the treatment of blinding inherited retinal diseases

Paris, France, 21 October 2020 – Jeito Capital (“Jeito”), a rapidly emerging independent investor dedicated to biotech and biopharma, today announces that it has become a major investor in SparingVision, a French preclinical stage biotech company focused on gene therapy in ophthalmology. The €44.5 million financing round brought together new investors alongside Jeito including 4BIO Capital, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Enterprise and Ysios Capital; along with further investment from current holders, Bpifrance and Foundation Fighting Blindness. SparingVision becomes Jeito’s first French, and second European, after Neogene Therapeutics, investment following Jeito’s fund I launch in January 2020.

Proceeds from the financing will be primarily used to advance the development of SparingVision’s breakthrough treatment, SPVN06, for the mutation-agnostic treatment of retinitis pigmentosa (“RP”). Most notably, the funding will support SparingVision’s GMP activities (including the manufacturing of a first clinical batch of the product, currently ongoing), the IND/CTA regulatory activities and the conduct of a first-in-man study, scheduled to start in 2021. The company also intends to further expand its management team and commence operations in the US.

SPVN06 is a proprietary, mutation-agnostic, AAV gene therapy consisting of one neurotrophic factor and one oxidative stress reducing enzyme which, acting synergistically, aim to slow or stop the degeneration of photoreceptors. Loss of photoreceptors leads to blindness in RP, one of the most common inherited retinal diseases that affects two million patients worldwide. There is currently no treatment approved for RP patients independently of their genetic background.

SparingVision also announces today that the company’s Chairman of the Board, Stéphane Boissel, has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of the company. Sabine Dandiguian, Managing Partner at Jeito, will join the SparingVision Board.

Rafaèle Tordjman, Founder and CEO at Jeito, said: “We are delighted to become a significant investor in financing SparingVision’s new round, which marks our first French investment since Jeito’s launch and brings together a strong syndicate of investors from the US and across Europe, including France, the UK and Spain. SparingVision has made significant progress since its creation in 2016 and has the potential to provide a breakthrough treatment for patients suffering from retinitis pigmentosa, the most common inherited retinal degeneration for which there is currently no approved therapy to treat all genetic forms. The company has an ambitious strategy and we look forward to providing the leadership team with long term, strategic support as the company expands its business, progresses its lead therapy into clinical development and builds out its portfolio in ophthalmology.

“Jeito’s deal flow continues to be strong in Europe and beyond, and we remain on track to announce future investments in due course.”

Stéphane Boissel, SparingVision’s President and Chief Executive Officer, said:“We are delighted to have closed this financing round, which demonstrates the excitement around SparingVision’s lead compound, SPVN06. With its singular mutation-agnostic approach, SPVN06 could have a much broader commercial potential than most gene therapy products for RP currently in development and will be used as an anchor to build an economically-viable portfolio of therapies in the field of ophthalmology. Our shareholders, both new and existing, are all long term, strategic and patient-centric investors that share our vision and we are excited to be working with them to achieve our goals.”

ENDS

About Jeito Capital
Jeito Capital is an international investment company with a patient benefit driven approach that focuses both on financing ground-breaking medical innovation and promoting positive societal impact. Jeito has a unique, long-term investment strategy, with the aim of providing continuity from clinical development to market access for breakthrough drugs with validated proofs of concept. This continuity is expressed both in the support provided to entrepreneurs by the Jeito Capital team and by the investment of significant capital to ensure the growth of companies, the acceleration towards commercialization and faster access to these major innovations.  Jeito Capital is based in Paris with a presence in Europe and the United States.  

About SparingVision
SparingVision is a biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of innovative therapies for the treatment of blinding inherited retinal diseases. SparingVision is developing SPVN06, a gene-independent treatment for retinitis pigmentosa, the most common inherited retinal degeneration. There is currently no treatment to treat all genetic forms of this rare retinal disease that leads to blindness and affects nearly 2 million worldwide. SparingVision is a spin-off of the Paris Vision Institute. SparingVision’s investors include 4BIO Capital, Bpifrance, Foundation Fighting Blindness (US), Fondation Voir & Entendre, UPMC Enterprises, Jeito Capital and Ysios Capital. For more information, please visit www.sparingvision.com

• University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
• FOUNDATIOIN FIGHTING BLINDESS
• SparingVision SAS