54gene - Afrikan Heroes

Nigerian Health Tech Company to Advance Drug Discovery in Africa

September 17, 2021

54gene founder and CEO Dr. Abasi Ene-Obong

Nigeria’s leading health-tech startup 54gene with the major objective of advancing African genomics research for improved global health outcomes, has secured $25M in a Series B round to expand its mission in Africa. Led by Cathay AfricInvest Innovation Fund, other participants at the funding round are Adjuvant Capital, KdT Ventures, Plexo Capital, Endeavor Capital, Ingressive Capital and others.

In April of 2020, the biotech startup closed a $15 million Series A. Their recent funding brings the company’s total investment to over $45M since it was founded by Dr. Abasi Ene-Obong in 2019.

The company continues to lead the new generation of health technology in Africa. In December of 2020, 54gene unveiled the first genome sequencing lab in Nigeria in partnership with Illumina, an American biotech company.

In 2020, in the thick of the pandemic, 54gene worked closely with Nigeria’s Center for Disease Control (NCDC) in conducting COVID-19 tests across the country and played a pivotal role in purchasing necessary equipment like PPE, test kits, and others needed to combat the virus.

The company plans to use the new funding to expand its capabilities in drug discovery in Africa for Africans and the global population. As part of its expansion plans, 54gene will focus on sequencing, target identification and validation, and precision medicine clinical trials. The company also plans to use this new funding to enter more African countries.

To scale global ambitions and drive the company’s vision, 54gene is bringing global experts with years of experience to take on high-level and strategic roles within the business.

Colm O’Dushlaine has been appointed as Vice President of Genomics and Data Science. O’Dushlaine joins 54gene with 18 years of experience in statistical genetics of large-scale datasets and was formerly at Regeneron Genetic Center and the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT.

The company has also appointed Peter Fekkes as its Vice President of Drug Discovery, and Teresia Bost as General Counsel. Fekkes is a drug development expert who has developed and led drug discovery programs at Novartis, FogPharma and H3 Biosciences; while Bost is coming in with over 20 years of experience in the healthcare industry. Bost held various senior counsel roles at Celgene; worked as Vice President & Associate General Counsel at Jazz Pharmaceuticals; and was appointed General Counsel at Quartet Health.

Jude Uzonwanne also joins as the company’s Chief Business Officer. Jude was a former partner at IQVIA, ZS Associates, and also held multiple roles at the Monitor Group, Bain and Company, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

54gene also plans to expand its genomics and molecular diagnostics division across Africa and has also brought in Michelle Ephraim as its pan-Africa General Manager of Diagnostics, to lead this new business unit. Ephraim has held various sales leadership roles across Africa for Leica Biosystems, PerkinElmer, and Merck Millipore.

“It’s truly incredible to witness the impact of African scientists in global research and it is critical to global health that this continues. We want to scale our contribution to global drug discovery by extensively developing life science capabilities on the continent and this additional capital will catalyse our endeavours.” Ene-Obong commented.

“In this round, we have brought in partners that keep us true to our mission of equalizing healthcare and who can help us replicate our success throughout Africa. We believe the world will benefit from an African global drug discovery company that leverages the deep insights found in genomics research in diverse populations and ensures true equity for the African population. It’s exciting to see our company shift into the next gear as it targets becoming one of the top global companies in genomics research.” He concluded.

Cathay AfricInvest Innovation Fund is a joint initiative between Paris-based venture capitalist Cathay Innovation and Tunisia-based private equity firm AfricInvest. The fund targets startups or ventures that leverage technology and innovative business models to respond to African socio-economic challenges. 54genes joins the fund’s portfolio which includes South Africa’s Aerobotics and WhereIsMyTransport and Nigeria’s Migo.

Speaking on their investment Yassine Oussaifi, Partner at Carthay AfricInvest, said “As a pioneer in genomics and precision medicine in Nigeria, 54gene has built a unique health technology platform leveraging African resources to unlock scientific discoveries for the benefit of African and global communities. At Cathay AfricInvest Innovation, we’re dedicated to backing innovative, inclusive solutions that connect African technology and research with global innovation ecosystems to help them scale.”

“54gene works across drug discovery, molecular diagnostics and clinical trials, boosting access and affordability of various healthcare solutions that will have a positive impact worldwide. We look forward to working with the 54gene team on their development on the continent and beyond.”

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

French VC Firm Cathay Innovation Makes Inroad Into Nigeria, Leads $25m Funding Round In 54gene

Since 2020, Cathay Innovation Fund — the venture sub of Paris-based private equity firm, Cathay Capital — has not relented in investing in Africa. After previously in investing South African agritech and mobility startups Aerobotics and WhereIsMyTransport respectively, the investor has gone west to Nigeria, where it has led a $25 million Series B funding round in genomics startup 54gene.

Also joining Cathay in the latest funding round are previous lead investor Adjuvant Capital as well as KdT Ventures, Plexo Capital, Endeavor Catalyst and Ingressive Capital.

“In this round we have brought in partners that keep us true to our mission of equalizing healthcare and who can help us replicate our success throughout Africa,” 54gene CEO Abasi Ene-Obong said in a statement. “We believe the world will benefit from an African global drug discovery company that leverages the deep insights found in genomics research in diverse populations and ensures true equity for the African population.”

The company raised $15 million in Series A funding a year ago and $4.5 million in seed funding two years ago.

Since its inception, 54gene has raised more than $45 million in total.

Part of the new funds will be used by 54gene to hire and educate more personnel.

The money will also be used to develop the company’s sequencing, target selection and validation, and precision medicine clinical trial capabilities. Its spread over the African continent is also significant.

Why The Investors Invested

The company has recorded appreciable growth since its last funding.

Last September, 54gene opened its own genetics sequencing and microarray facility in Lagos, rather than relying on third-party health centers such as hospitals and sending samples abroad for analysis. This was done in collaboration with Illumina, a biotech company based in the United States.

Since its last fundraising, the startup has grown its biobank capacity from 60,000 to 300,000 samples, getting closer to its longer-term goal of managing up to 500,000 samples, according to the CEO.

The startup also most recently partnered with the Tanzania Human Genetics Organization, and Ene-Obong says 54gene is in various stages of talks with more partners.

Apart from 54gene, Cathay Innovation’s other investment in Nigeria was in a cloud-based lending platform Migo, an investment it made two years ago in 2019.

Adjuvant Capital’s reinforcement of its investment in the startup is not coming as a surprise as the VC targets mostly healthcare startups.

“Adjuvant’s strategy aims to drive meaningful improvements in the public health of low- and middle-income countries while pursuing top-tier financial returns,” the company notes.

A Look At What The Startup Does

Founded in 2019 by Dr. Abasi Ene-Obong, at its core, 54gene is focused on creating the largest biobank of pan-African DNA in the world. It is a mission that could have a crucial impact on drug development, disease detection and quality of life on the continent.

The company’s primary access to revenues is paid co-development of drugs and medicine working with pharmaceutical companies. “When the drug is in the market…and approved medicine, [54gene] and the pharma company will share revenues,” said Ene-Obong.

54gene plans to exert leverage over the pricing process through its practice of co-developing drugs.

“When you are a service provider to big pharma you can’t really make such a request. But when you are a development partner you co-own a significant stake of what’s being developed and have more of a say,” said Ene-Obong.

54gene Nigeria 54gene Nigeria

Why Investors Backed South African Mobility Startup, WhereIsMyTransport, In A Rare $14.5m Series A

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance.
He is also an award-winning writer

54gene Launches Trust to Amplify Africa’s Capacity in Scientific Research

July 23, 2021

54gene founder and chief executive officer (CEO) Dr Abasi Ene-Obong

Leading health tech startup, 54gene has launched a trust that sets to reinvest 5% of proceeds from commercial drug discovery programs on African scientists and communities while further empowering skills development and training and improving healthcare delivery across the African continent. The health tech company which centers on advancing the field of African genomics to unlock scientific discoveries as well as improve diagnostic and treatment outcomes within Africa and the global community hopes the trust will help push Africa’s contributions to the health industry to the global front burner.

Being part of the company’s commitment to Africa in establishing a more sustainable and thriving cyclical ecosystem across Africa’s scientific development space, the trust will also ensure a better quality healthcare delivery for the communities in which the company operates.

54gene is focused on creating a pipeline of novel drugs for global populations, based on insights drawn from the healthcare and research ecosystem in Africa and wants to ensure that the 1.5 billion people in Africa benefit from its endeavors.

While ensuring Ethical, Legal, Social Implication (ELSI) guidelines are rigorously followed, 54gene is focused on advancing better health outcomes for global populations through precision medicine and addressing the unmet need for novel therapeutics in healthcare.

The company has created a proprietary platform that powers drug discovery through its substantial bio- and data-repository of deeply-phenotyped and diverse datasets. It has the potential to power understanding across multiple disease areas such as cancers, neurodegenerative diseases, sickle cell, autoimmune and rare diseases, and infectious diseases.

The new trust has been designed to enable a consistent provision of better diagnostics and medicines for Africans as well as amplifying capacity building within the scientific research space across Africa.

Dr Abasi Ene-Obong, Founder & CEO of 54gene said that “The biggest challenge in drug discovery in Africa is adequate infrastructure and the extensive need for capacity building.

As we work on delivering on our promise of precision medicine for Africans and the global population, we are striving to ensure that our work involves current African scientists and leaders in the field as well as supports the creation of more skilled Africans in science and additional jobs across the continent.

“This initiative is designed to continue fostering partnerships within the African scientific body, to reflect the leadership of Africans in global drug discovery research, and to generate sustainable healthcare delivery systems that will ultimately benefit African communities participating in the scientific work that advances better outcomes for all.

It is the inclusion of African talent that will make our drug discovery work successful in bridging the disparity gap within genomics data. Africa has the ability to contribute far beyond the 1% in global drug discovery that is currently taking place within the continent, and we believe 54gene will help accelerate those contributions.“

The 54gene trust will be managed by an advisory committee. As the company’s commercial operations grow, the demonstrated Commitment to Africa and creation of the trust will ensure an African footprint and sustainable growth in global drug discovery across the continent.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

54gene Unveils World-Class Research Laboratory in Lagos

January 27, 2021

Nigeria’s leading medical research startup, 54gene has completed its world class scientific research laboratory with the capacity of carrying out entire human genome sequencing and a variety of other scientific investigations. The laboratory which is located in Lagos State, Nigeria is flagship scientific research centre of 54gene which was launched in 2019, 54gene is a research, services and development company that utilises human genetic data from diverse African populations to improve the development, availability and efficacy of medical products that will prove beneficial to Africans and the wider global population.

It could be recalled that 54gene raised a US$15 million Series A round last year to help it scale operations and launch new initiatives, of which there have since been plenty (see here, here, here, here and here), and it has now unveiled its new lab.

Hosting a suite of world-class molecular genomics capabilities, including the Illumina Novaseq 6000 and NextSeq 550Dx the lab is part of 54gene’s mission to enable Africans to conduct genomics research, and will be fully operational from this month. It is geared to crucially expedite internal and external research projects designed to facilitate precision medicine for Africans and the global population.

The startup is currently conducting research to discover novel biological insights based on genetic modifiers, by deriving information from its unique and rich data set. This will allow the company’s researchers to determine the underlying drivers of infectious and noncommunicable diseases prevalent on the African continent as well as genetic variants unique to its population. The new lab strengthens 54gene’s capacity to enable more research that yields insights from the world’s most diverse populations to solve some of the biggest global healthcare challenges.

Speaking on the mission of the company, its founder and chief executive officer (CEO) Dr Abasi Ene-Obong said that over the last two years, 54gene’s growth has been underpinned by a supremely experienced world class team, and the collaboration of key stakeholders on the continent. “I am proud of the impact our work is making scientifically and economically on the African continent and globally; and the many scientists around the world, who collaborate with 54gene.”

“Our vision is not just to address the health disparities in Africa but to distinctly advance research in some of the most common and rare diseases that affect the global population. To do this we need to scale our operations and continue to collaborate on cutting edge research. The possibilities are immense and we look forward to expanding this impact even more.”

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Health Startup, 54Gene Unveils Human Genome Sequencing Lab in Nigeria

December 8, 2020

54Gene, the Nigerian leading health startup has achieved another milestone through the completion of their state of the art lab capable of carrying out whole genome sequencing of humans. The laboratory which is powered by Novaseq 6000, a best-in-class sequencing technology solution produced by American biotech company Illumina is the first in the country. Built in partnership with Illumina the lab would be deployed to meet the country’s health needs.

Speaking on the development, the CEO Abasi Ene-Obong said the partnership with Illumina would help 54Gene “make advanced molecular diagnostics more accessible to the [Africa] region, while creating hundreds of skilled jobs in molecular biology and bioinformatics.” With the lab now completed, African samples stored in 54gene’s biobank can be genotyped, sequenced and analyzed without having to send them overseas. This should reduce the financial costs and time taken to carry out these processes. Beside the capacity for whole human genome sequencing, Ene-Obong says the lab “hosts a suite of other molecular genomics capabilities.”

Established in 2019, 54Gene has emerged as one of Africa’s most intriguing startups in health research. Its push into DNA research on Africans has earned it recognition for charting the way in a specialised territory where precision engineering meets precision science. 54Gene aims to produce groundbreaking knowledge on the genetic makeup of Africans that will produce original healthcare solutions more suited to the continent’s populace. A genome sequencing lab located in Africa is one giant step on that mission.

The African genome is believed to be the oldest human genome. As such, Africa has more genetic diversity than any other continent. However, less than 3% of genomes analyzed in global health research comes from Africans. 54Gene is positioning to plug this gap and seize the opportunity that could come from building an unprecedented knowledge base on African DNA. Ene-Obong, who holds a PhD in cancer biology and two Masters – in business and management, and human molecular genetics – has gone about this task with rapid intentionality with support from local and international venture capital.

They have raised two distinct rounds; a July 2019 seed round of $4.5 million, and a $15 million Series A in April this year led by Adjuvant Capital, a fund backed by the International Finance Corporation and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. At the peak of Nigeria’s pandemic response, 54Gene was a visible actor in assisting government efforts. First by raising $500,000 in March through a crowdfund to boost capacity for COVID testing, and later by rolling out mobile test labs in some states.

In October, 54Gene was made the Nigeria country partner for the International Registry of Healthcare Workers Exposed to COVID-19 (UNITY Global) Study. This happened around the time the startup launched its Clinical Program Services. The division’s mandate is to provide end-to-end clinical development services, intelligence, logistics, and infrastructure for clinical trials in Africa, beginning with Nigeria.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Nigerian Healthcare Startup 54gene Secures $15m In Series A Round Of Funding

April 15, 2020

Apparently a time when the attention of the world is turning to healthcare, 54gene — a U.S. and Nigeria based startup — that collects African genetic code for use in health research and drug development has closed a $15 million Series A round, in part, to address a deficiency in these processes.

“As of the time we launched, less then 3% of all genome wide association studies globally had been conducted in Africa. There was a lack of data coming from Africans…and the diaspora,” 54gene founder and CEO Dr. Abasi Ene-Obong said.

“We are trying to address the gap that currently exists in precision medicine for people of the African continent,” Abasi further said.

Here Is The Deal

This round of funding was led by the New York based VC Adjuvant Capital, signalling the VC’s first investment in an African startup.
In addition to funds from Adjuvant — which itself is backed by The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and Novartis — 54gene is a 2019 Y Combinator alum and received follow-on funding from the Silicon Valley accelerator. This round also saw participation from KdT Ventures and Better Ventures.
54gene will use the funding to address the inefficiency in the collection of African genetic code for use in health research and drug development.
With the $15 million — which brings total VC to $19.5 million — the startup will expand its biobank capabilities to 200,000 samples, with a longer term goal to manage up to 500,000. 54gene is also boosting its lab capabilities. “With this funding we are about to expand that lab so we can process actual genetic data for tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of people,” said Ene-Obong.
54gene also plans to hire across the organization, from seeking a new VP of finance to adding additional scientists.
The company recruits research participants in Africa through studies at venues, such as hospitals, to take genetic samples via swab or blood tests. “Participants have to give us their informed consent before any testing,” explained Ene-Obong.

54gene may be a major contender for the top-funded African startup in a year ruined by COVID-I9

Why The Investor Invested

Adjuvant Capital’s investment in the startup is not coming as a surprise as the VC targets mostly healthcare startups.

“Adjuvant’s strategy aims to drive meaningful improvements in the public health of low- and middle-income countries while pursuing top-tier financial returns. Adjuvant’s focus areas include:

a) Neglected, high-burden, and emerging infectious diseases, including antimicrobial resistance and pandemic threats

b) Maternal, newborn, and child health challenges

c) Reproductive and sexual health

d) Improving nutrition in undernourished populations in the developing world,” the VC notes on its website.

However, it should be noted that 54gene has its headquarters in the United States and its facility in Africa and this fact must have influenced, to a large extent, the VC’s investment in the Africa-focused startup.

Managing Partner Jenny Yip has since confirmed Adjuvant Capital’s lead on the $15 million investment.

A Look At What 54gene Does

Founded in 2019 by Ene-Obong, the startup is headquartered in Washington, DC with a biobank facility in Lagos that holds capacity for 60,000 samples.
54gene claims to have over 300 researchers, clinicians and geneticists across Africa and a research lab in Nigeria.
The company’s primary access to revenues is paid co-development of drugs and medicine working with pharmaceutical companies. “When the drug is in the market…and approved medicine, [54gene] and the pharma company will share revenues,” said Ene-Obong.
54gene plans to exert leverage over the pricing process through its practice of co-developing drugs.

“When you are a service provider to big pharma you can’t really make such a request. But when you are a development partner you co-own a significant stake of what’s being developed and have more of a say,” said Ene-Obong.

However, the startup declined to disclose any current big pharma partners or which health issues in Africa it’s aiming genetic research toward tackling.

“I can say we will prioritize diseases that affect Africans disproportionately,” Ene-Obong said.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance.
He is also an award-winning writer

Nigerian Biotech Startup 54Gene Raises $500,000 To Boost COVID-19 Testing in Nigeria

March 27, 2020

Health and biotech company 54Gene has raised $500,000 for a fund aimed at improving Nigeria’s capacity to carry out tests for COVID-19. The money raised for the Nigeria COVID-19 Testing Support Fund will ramp up testing for the disease by up to 1,000 additional tests a day, the company said.

Here Is All You Need To Know

The fund will be managed to assist Nigeria’s Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) in conducting more tests across the country.
54Gene will work with the NCDC and other stakeholders to start purchasing the necessary equipment and materials within days.
The purchased equipment will be installed in public hospitals and laboratories across Nigeria. When the pandemic passes, they will remain in those locations for use by medical researchers and clinicians in case of any future outbreaks, the company said.
According to 54Gene CEO Abasi Ene-Obong, the initiative for the fund was an expression of his company’s “extremely ambitious mission” to expand Nigeria’s testing capacity. He expects that the effort will increase the present rate by no less than 10 times in the coming weeks.
The NCDC has welcomed 54Gene’s help in increasing its potential to do more tests.
Chikwe Ihekweazu, Director General of NCDC

“This is the kind of support we need. Identify a problem, run with it and include a sustainability plan in your solution. We are very grateful for this new partnership with 54gene at a critical point in our health security,” Chikwe Ihekweazu, Director General of NCDC, said.

The improved capacity will be achieved by buying testing instruments, biosafety cabinets, personal protective equipment and other materials for the safety of health workers and caregivers involved in Nigeria’s response effort.

About The 54Gene Fund

54Gene launched the fund on Thursday, March 27th, 2020 with $150,000. Other donors like Union Bank, a first generation Nigerian financial institution, helped to boost the amount to $500,000.
Fundraising is still in progress to raise the capacity to 5,000 tests per day.

A Look At What 54Gene Does

Since its founding in 2019, 54Gene has gained praise for an out-of-the box business capable of putting Africa on the global healthcare map. The startup secured a $4.5 million seed funding barely 7 months after it launched. The sum was raised from investors like YCombinator, Fifty Years, Better Ventures, KdT Ventures, Hack VC and Techammer.
At its core, the company is focused on creating the largest biobank of pan-African DNA in the world. It is a mission that could have a crucial impact on drug development, disease detection and quality of life on the continent.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance.
He is also an award-winning writer.
He could be contacted at udohrapulu@gmail.com

Nigerian e-health startup 54gene Raises $4.5m To Build Africa’s First DNA Biobank

July 3, 2019

This year has not been particularly bad for health startups in Africa. The latest on the list of newly funded startups in Africa is the Nigerian six-month-old e-health and genomics startup 54gene which has raised a US$4.5 million in a seed round of investment to allow it to build the first African DNA biobank.

A Look At The Funding

This round of funding, totaling US$4.5 million came from Y Combinator, Fifty Years, Better Ventures, KdT Ventures, Hack VC and Techammer, among others.
The startup plans to use the funds to pioneer and build the world’s first African DNA biobank, install electronic data capture systems in the leading tertiary hospitals in Nigeria, and expand its teams in Nigeria and the United States (US).
It is also planning expansion elsewhere in Africa.
54gene is a product of Stack Dx, which raised funding from early-stage VC firm Micro traction to develop the platform in January.
Since then, the startup has been selected to take part in the Y Combinator and Google Launchpad Africa accelerator programs, and it has now raised a sizeable seed round.

“The genomic revolution has taken place everywhere except for Africa; home to more than one billion people, and the very birthplace of humankind. What many people don’t realise is how genetically diverse Africa is, and that Africans have married within their tribes for thousands of years, which makes our DNA ideal for studying loss-of-function type mutations that can be replicated into new drugs. We believe this will be done through partnering with pharmaceutical industry players to drive groundbreaking research and layering a data science capability on the data being collected,” said Abasi Ene-Obong, founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of 54gene.

54gene Is Set to Build The Largest Database of Genomic and Phenotypic Consented Data of Africans.

54gene’s unique data sets will be used exclusively for research; to proactively address the significant gap the genomics market currently poses for Africa, using African DNA to focus on drug discovery opportunities that will improve access.
The startup has successfully completed pilot programs in three of Nigeria’s largest academic tertiary hospitals and is strategically expanding its biobanking activities to 10 of the country’s academic tertiary hospitals.
The biobank’s focus has also expanded from oncology to include cardiology, neurology, endocrinology and sickle cell disease.
54gene expects to secure 40,000 biobank samples by the end of this year and is working closely with research institutions on the continent, pharmaceutical companies, technology partners and healthcare regulators, to achieve this.
‘
World Economic Forum

“This capital infusion allows us to move swiftly. We are delighted to welcome like-minded, highly experienced investors, who will embark on this journey with us, to secure Africa’s pharma future and to impact millions of people’s lives through improved healthcare and drugs provision. We are committed to curating one of the most interesting genomic and phenotypic datasets in the world that will power the development of new drugs that benefit people of all races,” Ene-Obong said.

Seth Bannon, a founding partner at Fifty Years, said it was a “dirty secret” that the world’s genomic datasets were overwhelmingly Caucasian.

“By building datasets that are more inclusive, 54Gene will help democratise molecular medicine while unlocking insights that will lead to better therapeutics for everyone,” he said.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based Lawyer with special focus on Business Law, Intellectual Property Rights, Entertainment and Technology Law. He is also an award-winning writer. Working for notable organizations so far has exposed him to some of industry best practices in business, finance strategies, law, dispute resolution, and data analytics both in Nigeria and across the world.

Afrikan Heroes

Tag: 54gene

Nigerian Health Tech Company to Advance Drug Discovery in Africa

In April of 2020, the biotech startup closed a $15 million Series A. Their recent funding brings the company’s total investment to over $45M since it was founded by Dr. Abasi Ene-Obong in 2019.

The company continues to lead the new generation of health technology in Africa. In December of 2020, 54gene unveiled the first genome sequencing lab in Nigeria in partnership with Illumina, an American biotech company.

In 2020, in the thick of the pandemic, 54gene worked closely with Nigeria’s Center for Disease Control (NCDC) in conducting COVID-19 tests across the country and played a pivotal role in purchasing necessary equipment like PPE, test kits, and others needed to combat the virus.

To scale global ambitions and drive the company’s vision, 54gene is bringing global experts with years of experience to take on high-level and strategic roles within the business.

Colm O’Dushlaine has been appointed as Vice President of Genomics and Data Science. O’Dushlaine joins 54gene with 18 years of experience in statistical genetics of large-scale datasets and was formerly at Regeneron Genetic Center and the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT.

Jude Uzonwanne also joins as the company’s Chief Business Officer. Jude was a former partner at IQVIA, ZS Associates, and also held multiple roles at the Monitor Group, Bain and Company, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

“54gene works across drug discovery, molecular diagnostics and clinical trials, boosting access and affordability of various healthcare solutions that will have a positive impact worldwide. We look forward to working with the 54gene team on their development on the continent and beyond.”

Kelechi Deca

French VC Firm Cathay Innovation Makes Inroad Into Nigeria, Leads $25m Funding Round In 54gene

Why The Investors Invested

A Look At What The Startup Does

Charles Rapulu Udoh

54gene Launches Trust to Amplify Africa’s Capacity in Scientific Research

Kelechi Deca

54gene Unveils World-Class Research Laboratory in Lagos

Kelechi Deca

Health Startup, 54Gene Unveils Human Genome Sequencing Lab in Nigeria

Kelechi Deca

Nigerian Healthcare Startup 54gene Secures $15m In Series A Round Of Funding

Here Is The Deal

Why The Investor Invested

A Look At What 54gene Does

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Nigerian Biotech Startup 54Gene Raises $500,000 To Boost COVID-19 Testing in Nigeria

Here Is All You Need To Know

About The 54Gene Fund

A Look At What 54Gene Does

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Nigerian e-health startup 54gene Raises $4.5m To Build Africa’s First DNA Biobank

A Look At The Funding

54gene Is Set to Build The Largest Database of Genomic and Phenotypic Consented Data of Africans.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/Afrikanheroes/