Reaxa completes second round of funding
A Manchester-based company, best known for its development of precious metal catalysts used to drive the production process for some new drugs, is to enter the second round of financing for the next stage of its commercial expansion programme.
A Manchester-based company, best known for its development of precious metal catalysts used to drive the production process for some new drugs, is to enter the second round of financing for the next stage of its commercial expansion programme.
Reaxa, the company behind the development the EnCat range, has received venture capital to expand the commercial resources and bulk-scale production of the range.
The EnCat [polymer encapsulated catalyst] range has been trialled by over 250 customers in the two years since the company was formed. Precious metal catalysis drives the production process for nearly 30% of all new drugs.
The funds will come from the North West Business Investment Scheme managed by YFM Private Equity (YFM), Rising Stars Growth Fund II managed by Enterprise Ventures (EV) and private investors via Reaxa's corporate finance advisors Acceleris.
By combining cleaner, more cost-effective catalysis with reduced process waste and enhanced metal recovery and recycling, Reaxa's technologies deliver higher process yields, with lower costs and less environmental impact.
Reaxa CEO Dr Pete Jackson,said: .
"We now have secured the support to complete the transition from a catalysis R&D company to a commercial scale operator focused on growth. Increased scale for Reaxa means higher volume process intensification for customers with significant cost and environmental impact benefits."
Reaxa is also looking to expand its current, 23-product range, with development of nickel and rhodium-based EnCat catalysts - and range extensions to its QuadraPureâ"žÂ¢ and QuadraSilâ"žÂ¢ metal scavengers.
Continuous flow systems have a major role in future re-engineering for cleaner and faster API production - and that continuing development of clean-up resins for in-line, cartridge-based applications is therefore high on the development agenda, backed up by expertise in Prof Ley's group at Cambridge University.
In the leading product family of EnCat encapsulated catalysts, Reaxa has added platinum EnCat - Pt(0)EnCat 40 - a versatile hydrogenation catalyst and the eighth in the award-winning EnCat range.
Recent launches have also included the spherical carbon-based organic scavenger QuadraPure C - designed to remove "small-molecule" contaminants and impurities from APIs (in particular from large bio-molecules), aqueous solutions and waste streams.