Lithera Announces Second Closing of $27.3 Million Series C Financing

Funds to Support Development Efforts to Advance LIPO-202


SAN DIEGO, July 18, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Lithera, Inc. ("Lithera" or "the Company"), a clinical stage pharmaceutical company focused on aesthetic and medical indications, today announced that it has completed a second closing of its Series C preferred stock equity financing, securing an additional $6.7 million in equity capital and bringing the total capital raised in this round to $27.3 million. This tranche was led by existing investor RusnanoMedInvest ("RMI," a subsidiary of RUSNANO), and includes new investors Mirae Asset Venture Investment ("MAVI"), a venture capital arm of Mirae Asset Financial Group ("Mirae Asset," one of the leading financial groups in Korea), and Andrea Holdings International Ltd. Additional undisclosed investors also participated in the financing.

Lithera expects to use the proceeds for general corporate and working capital purposes, primarily to support clinical, regulatory, and manufacturing efforts to advance the Company's lead product candidate, LIPO-202 (Salmeterol Xinafoate for Injection), a novel, physician-administered, injectable pharmaceutical product designed to produce localized non-ablative reduction of subcutaneous abdominal fat.

"Securing this additional financing from high-quality new and existing investors demonstrates confidence in LIPO-202 ahead of our Phase 2 RESET Trial data readout later this summer," said George Mahaffey, President and CEO of Lithera. "We believe the abdominal body contouring market can be greatly expanded with LIPO-202. Physicians and patients desire an injectable product that is safely and quickly administered, provides rapid results, and has minimal impact on lifestyle."

Roberts Mitani, LLC served as advisor to Lithera in connection to the financing.

About Lithera:

Lithera is a clinical stage company developing pharmaceutical and biomedical products addressing both lifestyle and medical indications in aesthetic medicine and ophthalmology. Using FDA-registered drugs approved for use in other indications, Lithera's products target and stimulate natural fat tissue metabolism to achieve non-ablative, non-surgical fat tissue reduction in specific locations. Our lead product candidate, LIPO-202 (Salmeterol Xinafoate for Injection), is a novel injectable pharmaceutical product designed to produce local, selective fat tissue reduction (pharmaceutical lipoplasty). LIPO-202 is currently under development for the aesthetic reduction of subcutaneous fat in the periumbilical area. LIPO-102 (Salmeterol Xinafoate and Fluticasone Propionate for Injection) is currently under development for the treatment of symptomatic exophthalmos (protrusion of the eye from the orbit) associated with thyroid-related eye disease (the thyroid condition is also known as Graves' Disease). Founded in 2007, the Company has assembled an exceptional team of senior executives, employees and advisors and has been financed by top-tier venture capital firms. For more information on Lithera, Inc., please visit www.lithera.com.

Lithera, LIPO-102, LIPO-202 and the Lithera logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Lithera, Inc. Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others.



            

Contact Data