Blueprint Genetics Announces $3.9 Million in Funding, Leading to US Expansion
Helsinki, Finland – August 29, 2014 – Blueprint Genetics is glad to announce that Inventure and Avohoidon Tutkimussäätiö, a Finnish foundation, have joined the existing investors of the company. Previously, the company has been financed by Finnish business angels and Tekes, the Finnish Funding Agency for Innovation. The funding for Blueprint Genetics now totals $3.9 million, allowing the company to accelerate international expansion.
Blueprint Genetics provides a clinical grade genetic diagnostics platform using a proprietary Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) technology. The company uses a targeted sequencing technology that was developed in Stanford University, providing superior quality, lead-time, and cost-efficiency. The panel tests of the company are the most comprehensive on the market.
Academic research has identified the molecular genetic background of more than 3,500 inherited diseases. Due to lack of sophisticated enough genetic diagnostics a large part of patients are left without diagnosis and clinical follow up. Blueprint Genetics is set to change this.
In 2013, the company entered the market with its first product category, providing diagnostics for inherited cardiovascular disorders. Today, Blueprint Genetics serves more than 60 hospital customers in 10 countries, and is constantly expanding. The company is now launching its US office to boost sales in North America.
“Our technology enabled us to introduce an unprecedented combination of large panels, low pricing, high sequencing quality and clinician friendly reporting. The excellent customer feedback that we have received encourages us to expand further to US markets and other disease categories”, says Tommi Lehtonen, CEO of the company.
Until today, a large part of clinical needs to diagnose inherited diseases has remained unaddressed due to the lack of sophisticated diagnostics. The proof of concept that Blueprint Genetics has received shows that with the right technology, NGS methods are ready for clinical use.
Tuomas Kosonen, Partner at Inventure comments: “Blueprint Genetics is one of the disruptive companies, combining software with human genome data. Finland has a strong background in both genetics research and software development, and Blueprint Genetics is a very good example of the knowhow being applied into commercial use on a global scale”.
Contact persons:
Tommi Lehtonen, CEO, Blueprint Genetics
Ekaterina Gianelli, Director, Inventure
About Blueprint Genetics
Blueprint Genetics provides clinical genetic diagnostics for professional use. The company uses a proprietary Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) technology that was developed in Stanford University. The company wants to remove the barriers of using genetic diagnostics in everyday health care by introducing an unprecedented combination of high sequencing quality, quick lead time and very cost efficient pricing. For more information, please visit www.blueprintgenetics.com.
About Inventure
Inventure is a leading early-stage venture capital company in the Nordics and Baltics. Inventure invests in innovative and fast-growing companies, led by exceptional entrepreneurs and willing to disrupt their industries. Inventure’s team is a great mix of experienced entrepreneurs, industry experts, and investment professionals committed to help start-ups build global success stories. Inventure operates in Helsinki, Shanghai, and New York. For more information, please visit www.inventure.fi.