LifeCell International Pvt Ltd, has raised around Rs 35 crore from Helion Venture Partners, an India focused venture fund, to support its plans of increasing market penetration of stem cell banking in India. The funding would also enable the company to invest in the development of novel cell based therapies. Post this deal, Kanwaljit Singh, Senior Managing Director at Helion, would join the LifeCell board. With this investment of Rs 35 Crores, Helion Venture Partners also becomes the first venture capital firm to invest in a stem cell banking company in India.
"The fund would be used to increase penetration in the country, where there is a huge potential for this segment. We’re delighted to have partners at Helion who share this vision, and look forward to leveraging their great experience in building a strong company that may soon graduate to become the world’s largest stem cell bank" said Mayur Abhaya, CEO and managing director of LifeCell.
The company is also looking at offering therapies in segments including immunotherapy, wound care and tissue regeneration, in collaboration with a partner. The company expects annual revenue to grow over Rs 100 crore this year, added a company announcement.
LifeCell recently emerged as “Most Recommended Stem Cell Bank” by a market research conducted by Nielsen India amongst practicing gynecologists in India in top 8 cities. Started in 2004, LifeCell is the market leader in preservation of stem cells from various human tissues such as umbilical cord and menstrual blood, having serviced over 65,000 clients across 110 locations in India and abroad. Its central processing and storage facility is in Chennai, with a recently opened back-up unit at Gurgaon. It also is a provider of other key services such as bedside stem cell processing and newborn screening.
Helion Venture Partners, is a Mauritius-registered early to mid-stage India focused fund, which manages assets worth $600 million and above. It is one of the most active risk capital players in the country, with a strong focus on consumer-facing and technology ventures