EyeGate Pharma Closes $12M Series B Venture Financing

EyeGate Pharma, a specialty pharmaceutical company pioneering the use of iontophoresis technology to safely and non-invasively deliver therapeutics for ocular indications, today announced that it has closed on a $2 million extension of its Series B venture round, bringing the total of the financing to $12 million. This additional funding comes from The Nexus Group. This extension brings the total venture investment in EyeGate to $16 million.

The first tranche of EyeGate's Series B round was co-led by Innoven Partenaires and existing investor Ventech, both of Paris, France. EyeGate had originally announced it had planned to secure funding for up to $10 million and in keeping the round open for potential U.S. venture firms to become part of the syndicate, secured an additional $2 million in funding. As part of the transaction, Thomas E. Hancock, Principal of The Nexus Group, will be joining EyeGate Pharma's Board of Directors.

Stephen From, President and Chief Executive Officer of EyeGate Pharma, commented on the announcement, "EyeGate is pleased to welcome Nexus to our investor group and Tom Hancock to the Board of Directors. EyeGate will greatly benefit from his direction based on the depth of his experience in corporate, research and banking roles. Adding a prominent U.S. investor of Nexus' caliber is an important milestone for the Company after beginning operations in Waltham, MA in October of 2006."

Thomas E. Hancock commented, "EyeGate has built an impressive ocular delivery platform with a strong intellectual property position that will address large markets with unmet medical needs. This platform fits well into the broader therapeutic ophthalmology space and has the potential to deliver a pipeline of commercially attractive compounds. It also provides significant opportunities for partnering. We are delighted to be working with the Company and the other investors to build a leading company in this exciting area."

Mr. From continued, "The EyeGate® II Delivery System represents a much needed safe and non-invasive alternative to ocular injections, implants or eye drops for drug delivery with higher localized concentration to the front and back of the eye. This additional funding will help to accelerate EyeGate Pharma's clinical candidate for severe uveitis, which will be delivered using the EyeGate® II Delivery System, into the clinic in the second half of 2007."

Prior to joining The Nexus Group, Mr. Hancock was a Senior Analyst and Managing Director at U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray, responsible for covering biopharmaceuticals and drug discovery tools. Previously, he was a biotech analyst at NationsBanc Montgomery, was one of the early management employees at COR Therapeutics, Inc. and was in laboratory research and business development at Genentech, Inc. Mr. Hancock holds a BS, Molecular Biology and an MBA, both from UC Berkeley.

About EyeGate Pharma

EyeGate Pharma was founded in 1998 with technology licensed from Bascom Palmer Eye Institute at the University of Miami. EyeGate's transscleral (across the sclera, or white protective outer membrane of the eye) iontophoresis delivery platform, the EyeGate® II Delivery System, was designed by ophthalmologists for ophthalmologists. This non-invasive system can be applied to safely deliver a wide range of therapeutics to both the anterior and posterior chambers of the eye. An 89-patient pilot study, using the Company's first-generation delivery device, demonstrated exceptional patient tolerance with a significant decrease in inflammatory markers and a concurrent increase in visual acuity. A typical application takes less than five minutes and has been shown to be extremely well tolerated in patients suffering from severe uveitis and other inflammatory ocular diseases. Clinical studies utilizing the EyeGate® II Delivery System, are scheduled to begin 2H 2007.