Cellogen Therapeutics has closed a ₹20 crore Series A round led by Kotak Alternate Asset Managers, the biotech startup disclosed on 12 June according to inc42.com.

The Bengaluru-based firm, founded in 2021 by ex-Biocon scientists Dr. Ananya Rao and Dr. Sameer Mehta, will use the capital to complete pre-clinical validation of its lead CAR-T construct targeting solid tumours and to file an IND application with India’s drug regulator by March 2025. Kotak Alts picked up a minority stake through its healthcare-focused fund, with the transaction advised by boutique investment bank Aurum Capital, inc42.com reported.

Cellogen’s platform modifies T-cells with proprietary chimeric antigen receptors aimed at pancreatic and colorectal cancers, a segment where only two domestic players—ImmunoACT and Immuneel—have reached human trials. The fresh capital values the company at roughly ₹100 crore pre-money, placing it in the same bracket as ImmunoACT’s 2022 Series A, signalling sustained investor appetite for home-grown cell-therapy pipelines amid tightening global capital markets.

The company plans to initiate Phase I/II trials at Tata Medical Centre, Kolkata, in the second half of 2025 and is scouting for a 20,000-sq-ft GMP facility near Hyderabad to scale lentiviral vector production. A follow-on Series B of $12-15 million is already being discussed with global strategics, Dr. Rao told inc42.com, contingent on IND clearance by mid-alyst.

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