The News

DBV Technologies raises €6 million (EUR) in Series B investment and secures new corporate investor

21/01/2009

21 January 2008, Paris, France: DBV Technologies, a biopharmaceutical company specialising in the development of non-invasive epicutaneous diagnostics and immunotherapies for allergy , announced today it successfully closed a €6million (EUR) investment with new investor ALK-Abello, a leading worldwide immunotherapy company, and returning investor Sofinnova Partners. DBV will use the €6million (EUR) investment to progress Phase I clinical trials for its peanut allergy treatment.

Sofinnova Partners led the round, investing €4million (EUR) alongside returning investors, with ALK-Abello investing €2million (EUR). In addition to an equity sharehold in DBV Technologies, ALK-Abello  will also have a seat on DBV Technologies’ Board of Directors. In return, ALK-Abello will provide its expertise in preclinical and clinical product development to DBV.

DBV Technologies Chairman and CEO Jean-Francois Biry said: “We are delighted to have attracted such an experienced corporate investor. We are sure their expertise in clinical development will be invaluable for the development of our pipeline, including our upcoming Phase I peanut allergy trials. Also we are very pleased to be financially sponsored again by our leading financial investor,Sofinnova Partners.”

ALK-Abello President and CEO Jens Bager said:”We are very pleased to bring our long lasting expertise in Allergy to this promising Biopharmaceutical company and its innovative therapeutic approach towards Peanuts Allergy.”

Notes to Editors

About DBV Technologies
DBV Technologies, based in  Paris,France is a speciality pharma  company specialising in the development of non-invasive epicutaneous diagnostics and immunotherapies for allergy diagnosis and treatment. The Company is lead by CEO Jean-François Biry and was born out of the experience of Doctor Pierre-Henri Benhamou, a paediatrician specialising in gastro-enterology, allergosis and nutrition, and Bertrand Dupont, a qualified engineer from the Arts et Métiers Institute. DBV’s lead product, Diallertest® Milk, is on sale in France and  other countries for the diagnosis of cow’s milk protein allergy.
Founded in 2002, DBV Technologies has 16 employees(2008) and is based in the Pépinière Paris Santé Cochin, in Paris’ 14th arrondissement.

About VIASKIN®
DBV Technologies’ globally patented VIASKIN® technology is a unique delivery system which retains active compounds on a carrier using electrostatic forces only. The delivery platform allows active compounds to be presented to the epidermis of the skin without breaking the blood-skin barrier. In not breaking the blood-skin barrier, DBV Technologies’ allergen diagnosis and specific immunotherapy  treatments avoid inducing systemic shock – one of the most serious concerns associated with current desensitisation therapies. DBV’s VIASKIN® technology is in development for the treatment of allergies through Epicutaneous Specific Immunotherapy(EPIT) and for the administration of vaccines. The company is currently seeking partnerships in these areas. DBV’s lead product, Diallertest® Milk, utilises VIASKIN® technology and is on sale in France and  other countries for the diagnosis of cow’s milk protein allergy.

About Diallertest® Milk
DBV’s lead product, Diallertest® Milk, is on sale in France and  other countries for the diagnosis of cow’s milk protein allergy.  DBV Technologies licensed its Diallertest® range to international baby food and clinical nutrition specialist Numico(part of DANONE). Diallertest® Milk represents a revolution for paediatrics and was awarded an International prize for Technological Innovation by the Altran foundation in 2003.

Facts about peanut allergy
Peanut allergy is one of the most severe food allergy.In the US more than 6 million people suffer from peanuts allergy.This disease can be life threatening when inducing a systemic shock in case of accidental ingestion of peanuts by severely IgE mediated patients..

About ALK
ALK is a research-driven global pharmaceutical company focusing on allergy treatment, prevention and diagnosis. Our mission is to improve quality of life for allergic people by developing pharmaceutical products that target the actual cause of allergy. ALK is the world leader in allergy vaccination (immunotherapy) – a unique treatment that induces a protective immune response which reduces and potentially halts the allergic reaction. Allergy vaccination is traditionally administered as subcutaneous injections or sublingual droplets. Our aim is to extend the use of allergy vaccination by introducing new convenient vaccines, thereby offering many more patients a causal allergy treatment. Following this strategy, the world’s first tablet-based vaccine against grass pollen allergy, GRAZAX®, was launched in Europe in 2007, and ALK has entered into a strategic partnership with Schering-Plough in North America. ALK has approximately 1,500 employees with subsidiaries, production facilities and distributors worldwide. The company is headquartered in Hørsholm, Denmark and listed on NASDAQ OMX Copenhagen A/S. 'ALK' is an abbreviation of 'Allergological Laboratory Copenhagen (København)'. Further information is available at www.alk-abello.com and www.GRAZAX.com.