Press Release
Conor Hanley's BiancaMed secures €2.5 million investment
December 2006
BiancaMed, a medical technology start-up, is pleased to announce following its board meeting today that it has secured €2.5 million in investment. The investment round was oversubscribed and was led by DFJ ePlanet Ventures with participation from existing corporate investor ResMed. BiancaMed, whose target markets are the fast growing mobile and home-health sectors, was founded in 2003 and is based in NovaUCD, the Innovation and Technology Transfer Centre at UCD.
BiancaMed, whose vision is to provide easy-to-use mobile phone and home based wellness and health monitoring technologies and services for use in daily life, was co-founded by Dr Philip de Chazal, Dr Conor Hanley and Professor Conor Heneghan as a spin-off from UCD’s
Speaking about the investment, Dr Conor Hanley, CEO said, “BiancaMed is delighted to have secured this significant investment from such a prestigious global investor, with a proven track record in growing successful medical technology companies. BiancaMed is also delighted to welcome Dennis Atkinson and Donald Fitzmaurice to the Board.” He added, “The money raised will be used to accelerate our technology development and our entry in to rapidly growing markets that are expected to be very large.”
Increasingly stressful lifestyles, a rise in chronic diseases and obesity and an aging population are directly contributing to skyrocketing health care costs. BiancaMed is providing mobile phone and home based solutions that empower individuals and patients to better manage their wellbeing and health. In short, BiancaMed aims to transform wellbeing and health by providing the ultimate convenience in personal health monitoring.
At the core of BiancaMed’s product platform is a very sensitive motion sensor that detects heart rate and respiration - without having to touch a person - completely wirelessly. The sensor, combined with the company's sophisticated health analysis software, provides solutions to monitor sleep, diet and exercise - the three elements of wellbeing. The company's product line, initially including baby, home health and exercise monitors, will ultimately be converged with the convenience and ease of a mobile phone.
Donald Fitzmaurice of DFJ ePlanet Ventures speaking about the investment said, “We are very excited about BiancaMed and are looking forward to working closely with the founders and management to grow a successful company. Furthermore, all the ingredients for success are present: a major opportunity in personalised healthcare, a visionary and experienced team and a proven ability to innovate clinically at the outset.”
For further information contact:
Conor Hanley, BiancaMed, Tel: +353 1 7163799; email conor.hanley@biancamed.com
Editors Notes
About BiancaMed
BiancaMed, established in 2003 and based in NovaUCD, the Innovation and Technology Transfer Centre at University College Dublin, specialises in the development of software and sensors to monitor personal wellbeing in everyday life.
For more information about BiancaMed, consult www.biancamed.com
About DFJ ePlanet Ventures
DFJ ePlanet Ventures is a premier global venture capital firm, founded in 1999 by Asad Jamal in partnership with Draper Fisher Jurvetson, to capitalize on the growing trend towards globalization. With over $650 million under management, DFJ ePlanet seeks to provide superior returns to its investors through strategic investments in early and late stage information technology, consumer Internet, medical devices and wireless companies throughout the globe. DFJ ePlanet operates offices in
About ResMed
ResMed is a leading manufacturer of medical equipment for the treatment and management of sleep-disordered breathing and other respiratory disorders. ResMed is dedicated to developing innovative products to improve the lives of those who suffer from these conditions and to increasing awareness among patients and healthcare professionals of the potentially serious health consequences of untreated sleep-disordered breathing. For more information on ResMed, visit www.resmed.com.
NovaUCD
NovaUCD is University College Dublin’s €11 million Innovation and Technology Transfer Centre. NovaUCD is responsible for the commercialisation of intellectual property arising from UCD research and for the development of co-operation with industry and business. NovaUCD as a purpose-built centre also nurtures new technology and knowledge-intensive enterprises. NovaUCD has over 40 incubation units, including bio-incubation units, and provides innovators and entrepreneurs with the necessary support and knowledge to take their ideas from proof of principle to commercial success. Twenty-six knowledge-intensive companies are currently located in NovaUCD including BiancaMed. NovaUCD has been funded through a unique public-private partnership that includes AIB Bank, Arthur Cox, Deloitte,