JAKARTA, Indonesia, March 20, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- PT Etana Biotechnologies Indonesia (Etana), an Indonesian biopharmaceutical company, has secured a new round of investment led by DEG followed by Yunfeng Capital, HighLight Capital and East Ventures. This round of financing will be used for further strengthening the company's pipeline and portfolio especially in Oncology area to be drug substances manufacturing facilities. Etana is committed to build production capacity for mammalian cell for monoclonal antibodies drug substance to ensure high local content production and technology capability. Currently, Etana focuses on local biopharmaceutical production for mRNA platforms, proteins and monoclonal antibodies.

"Etana as an Indonesian biopharmaceutical start-up, always strive to provide high quality, affordable and innovative biopharmaceutical products to serve the patients in Indonesia and South-East Asian countries. We will use the support obtained from the investors to develop local biopharmaceutical production capabilities in line with the policies promoted by the Indonesian government. Etana aims to tackle challenges in oncology and other life-threatening diseases for the South-East Asian market including vaccine. We believe these biological products can provide better treatment and greatly improve healthcare for the population," said Nathan Tirtana, President Director of Etana.

"As a development finance institution, DEG is committed to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This also includes improving health care. By working with Etana, we are helping to ensure that underprivileged people also have access to high-quality biopharmaceutical medicines and mRNA vaccines," said Monika Beck, DEG Management Board member.

With the maturation of China's innovative drug industries, China biologics desire to expand coincide with the Southeast Asia market demand for superior biological medicinal products. Etana as Southeast Asia leading biopharma has the capabilities of vaccine manufacturing, local clinical and registration, and has formed its own sales force. We believe in Etana's vision, led by Nathan, to be the leading Southeast Asia biopharma and vaccine enterprise," said Dr. Huang Xiao, Managing Director of Yunfeng Fund.

"We are excited to add on our initial investment in 2022 and continuously to support Etana which is led by a determined and seasoned founder Nathan. Etana's outstanding capabilities in manufacturing and registering innovative biopharmaceutical products in Indonesia are well received by Chinese biopharma partners, including multiple HLC's portfolio companies.  HLC is devoted to bringing the breadth of our network and the depth of our expertise to advance Etana's development in ASEAN and beyond," said HighLight Capital Investment Team.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the inadequacies of Indonesia's healthcare system, hence urging all stakeholders in the ecosystem to bring quick and innovative solutions for tackling the crisis. Etana’s innovative products, including various vaccines, cancer drugs, and other biological products, has contributed to strengthening the resilience of the national health system, and we are glad to support Etana. We believe Etana is at the forefront in bringing high quality, affordable, and innovative biopharmaceutical products to the region, together with East Ventures taking an active role in empowering this space further,” said Willson Cuaca, Co-Founder and Managing Partner East Ventures.

Etana became the first pharmaceutical company in ASEAN to have mRNA technology. MRNA technology is a flexible vaccine development platform so that it can respond quickly to the need for innovative and flexible biopharmaceutical products for cancer, vaccines, and others. It takes a fairly short time in the development of a new vaccine with mRNA technology, the vaccine product is developed and ready to enter the Clinical Trial Phase at approximately two months.

Etana produce a COVID-19 vaccine with an mRNA platform, the mRNA vaccine has received an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from the Indonesian Food and Drug Authority (BPOM), a halal provision from the Indonesian Ulema Council's (MUI) LPOM and a halal certificate from the Halal Product Assurance Agency (BPJPH) of the Indonesian Ministry of Religious Affairs.

Etana will produce bevacizumab biosimilar, a recombinant humanized anti-VEGF monoclonal antibody drug for cancer patients in Indonesia. The product itself has complied with the drug safety and efficacy standards set by the Indonesian Food and Drug Authority (BPOM) on June 2022, both in terms of product quality and production processes.

In addition, Etana also produces Erythropoietin (EPO) that is needed in dialysis treatment. Onward, the company plans to develop an adenovirus platform for vaccine production. The production is intended to meet domestic needs and is planned to be exported to the ASEAN market and several other countries.

Etana at a glance
Founded in 2014, Etana is an Indonesian biopharmaceutical company that is researching, producing, and marketing biological therapies for the Southeast Asian market. With a mission to serve patients by providing high quality, affordable, and innovative therapies, the company has built state-of-the-art local production facilities that meet international FDA and the Indonesian Food and Drug Authority (BPOM) standards. The facility is able to produce biological therapy with halal certification from the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI). Etana aspires to become a leading biopharmaceutical company in the ASEAN region through aggressive expansion in production capacity and product development, with a primary focus on oncology and vaccine products.

Etana is led by a local management team who come from various international and domestic educational backgrounds and have strong experience in the biopharmaceutical industry and are supported by a team of international investors and leading biopharmaceutical companies. Etana aims to provide innovative yet affordable therapies through local production, to support Indonesian government programs and larger market demands. Etana is currently a leading biotech company in Indonesia committed to the research and manufacture of monoclonal antibodies, mRNAs and other biological platforms. For more information about Etana, visit www.id.etanabiotech.com.

About DEG
For more than 60 years, DEG has been financing and advising private enterprises operating in developing and emerging-market countries. With a portfolio of around EUR 9.9 billion we're one of the world's largest private-sector development financiers. As an impact and climate investor we accompany companies that are addressing transformation and aiming to seize their opportunities. Our customers not only receive financing and advisory solutions tailored to their needs: they can build on our market knowledge, our impact and climate expertise and our international network. In this way, we contribute together to creating more skilled jobs and local income and to improving value creation on the ground in line with the SDGs.

Learn more: www.deginvest.de

About Yunfeng Capital
Yunfeng Capital is a leading private equity firm in China. Founded in 2010, Yunfeng Capital is committed to fostering future-ready companies. With a shared vision for building a better future, we work side by side with entrepreneurs to create long-term value. We have formed deep sector expertise and industry insights in our focused sectors, including Biotechnology, Technology, Business Services, Green Energy, Modern Agriculture, and Consumption. We are dedicated to promoting technological innovation and sustainable development to enable and drive industry transformation and upgrade.

Over the past 13 years, we have supported growth of over 200 portfolio companies, including industry leaders such as Alibaba Group, Alibaba Health, Cainiao Network, WuXi AppTec, Horizon Robotics, Montage Technology , Abogen, etc.

About HighLight Capital
HighLight Capital (HLC) is a private investment firm dedicated to creating long-term values through promoting technology innovations. Empowered by our deep knowledge in chemical, biological and material sciences, and leveraging our proprietary industry research and comprehensive enablement services, we strive to invest in companies that boost manufacturing efficiency and improve human wellness.

HLC currently manages over US$2.6 billion, with operations across key Asian growth hubs such as Shanghai, Singapore, Shenzhen and Hong Kong.

Since inception HLC has invested in over 120 leading companies, including Mindray, Wuxi Apptec, Tigermed, Pharmaron, Hongene, Zentalis, Singular, Lepure, United Imaging, Etana, BABO and more.

About East Ventures
East Ventures is a pioneering and leading sector-agnostic venture capital firm. Founded in 2009, East Ventures has transformed into a holistic platform that provides multi-stage investment, from Seed to Growth stage investments, for over 250 tech companies across Southeast Asia.

As an early believer in the startup ecosystem in Indonesia, East Ventures is the first investor of Indonesia's unicorn companies, namely Tokopedia and Traveloka. Other notable companies in East Ventures'portfolio include Ruangguru, SIRCLO, Kudo (acquired by Grab), Loket (acquired by Gojek), Tech in Asia, Xendit, IDN Media, MokaPOS (acquired by Gojek), ShopBack, KoinWorks, Waresix, and Sociolla.

East Ventures was named the most consistent top performing VC fund globally by Preqin, and the most active investor in SEA and Indonesia by various media. Moreover, East Ventures is the first venture capital firm in Indonesia to sign the Principles of Responsible Investment (PRI) supported by the United Nations (UN). East Ventures is committed to achieving sustainable development and bringing positive impacts to society through its initiatives and ESG-embedded practices.