• EvlaBio secures €21 million Seed Funding to complete preclinical development and progress towards IND-enabling studies.
   
• The financing round is led by Kurma Partners as well as AdBio Partners, Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund, NRW.Venture (NRW.BANK) and HTGF.
   
• EvlaBio’s lead program consists of a first-in-class therapeutic monoclonal antibody treatment of left ventricular hypertrophy in the setting of chronic kidney disease with the potential to transform outcomes for millions of patients.

Düsseldorf, Germany and Zurich, Switzerland - July 7th - EvlaBio, a life science startup pioneering innovative therapies for the treatment of Left Ventricular Hypertrophy (LVH) in the setting of Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD), announced today the successful closing of its seed funding round, one of the largest seed rounds closed in Germany to date. The financing will support the advancement of EvlaBio’s lead program, a first-in-class therapeutic monoclonal antibody targeting specifically the FGF23/FGFR4 signaling in the setting of CKD, one of the key drivers for LVH, which can lead to heart failure.

Founded with a mission to address high unmet medical need in the cardiorenal field, EvlaBio is developing a targeted treatment for patients suffering from CKD with limited therapeutic options. The company’s lead asset is a novel monoclonal antibody designed to inhibit the pathological FGF23/ FGFR4 cardiac signaling axis — a critical driver of cardiac remodeling in patients with CKD.

“Despite recent advances, the clinical need in LVH in the context of CKD remains significant, with high prevalence and substantial negative impact on patients’ outcomes. Even with improved management of hypertension and anemia, LVH often persists or even progresses in CKD patients”, said Wenzel von der Heydte, CEO & Co- Founder of EvlaBio. “EvlaBio’s approach is unique in its ability to directly target a key pathway on the cardiomyocyte level. This new therapeutic avenue has the potential to improve lives of millions of patients.”

The program originates from Lead Discovery Center GmbH (LDC), a company established in 2008 by the technology transfer organization Max Planck Innovation, where it has been developed in collaboration with KHAN Technology Transfer Fund I GmbH & Co KG (KHAN-I).

“Blocking cardiac FGF23/FGFR4 overdrive has the strong potential to become a very promising treatment option for millions of patients facing a high risk of cardiac remodeling and progression to heart failure in CKD,” said Thomas Kirmeier, COO & Co- Founder of EvlaBio. “Heart failure is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in this patient population and our therapeutic approach offers a promising strategy to modify disease progression at its root.”

The seed round was led by Kurma Partners, AdBio Partners, Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund, NRW.Venture (NRW.BANK) and HTGF, and will enable EvlaBio to complete preclinical development and progress towards IND-enabling studies.

Hadrien Bouchez, Partner at Kurma Partners added: ”We're excited to partner with EvlaBio as they advance their groundbreaking approach targeting the FGFR4/FGF23 pathway. The team's deep scientific expertise and compelling preclinical data position them to address cardiac hypertrophy in CKD patients—a significant unmet medical need affecting millions worldwide. Their differentiated approach offers meaningful advantages over existing therapeutic options. This investment reflects our commitment to supporting innovative companies poised to transform patient outcomes in areas of high unmet need”.

Clément Bertholet, Managing Partner at AdBio Partners added: ”This investment in EvlaBio, the first one for AdBio Partners in Germany, is driven by the key features of the product developed by the team to target the well-known FGFR4/FGF23 pathway. We are thrilled to support the company through its development to ultimately bring innovative treatments to patients in need”.

Marek Kozlowski, Senior Investment Director at NRW.BANK, commented: “The FGFR4/FGF23 axis is a very well-validated target pathway, yet its clinical potential remains unrealized. EvlaBio’s research and development program can finally change this. With a substantial seed funding from NRW.Venture and this high-quality syndicate, EvlaBio is well-positioned to advance the development of the lead candidate to the next value inflection point”.