Pharma container firm SkyCell has raised $62m in growth funding round that will be used to expand its presence in Asia and the US.
The investment was led by MVM Partners together with a consortium of family offices and a leading Swiss insurance company.
Existing investors including the Swiss Entrepreneurs Fund managed by Credit Suisse and UBS, and the BCGE Bank’s growth fund also participated in the round.
SkyCell said the funding will be used to expand SkyCell’s global footprint, with particular focus on the US and Asia.
The company said this follows an acceleration in business relating to world healthcare concerns as more pharma companies need to protect their crucial supply chains, with first quarter revenues up by three times from the previous year.
“Modern pharmaceuticals have changed and are now even more sensitive to temperature changes and other common factors during air transport, such as vibration,” SkyCell said.
“The market is worth around $2.8bn per annum, growing at a rate of 15-20% as the regulatory environment around the world strengthens to place increased responsibility on pharmaceutical companies to ensure products remain viable after transit.”
Richard Ettl, chief executive and co-founder of SkyCell, said: “Covid-19 has put the pharma supply chain in the spotlight and reliable vaccine delivery is now more in demand more than ever.
“From the outset, we have been focused on building a technology driven solution that directly solves this problem, whilst also reducing costs and environmental impact. In recent months we have seen a further shift, as more pharmaceutical companies turn to us as their primary provider to eliminate risk in the current environment where time is of the essence.”
