PERTH, Australia – With a fresh injection of A$28.9 million (US$22.4 million) in grant funding from the Australian government and a capital raise of A$40 million, 4dmedical Ltd. is well on its way to commercializing its first lung imaging product in the U.S. and Australia. 4dmedical’s X-ray velocimetry (XV) technology is the first FDA-cleared respiratory imaging solution that uses mathematical models and algorithms to convert sequences of X-ray images into four-dimensional quantitative data.

Via Surgical Ltd. has secured an investment from Taiwanese manufacturer Catcher Technology Co. Ltd. to bring its Fastouch deployable suture fixation system that assists hernia repair to Asia.

The COVID-19 pandemic has imposed a lot of drag on clinical trials for life science companies, but those companies have also broadened their horizons when it comes to financing their R&D efforts. Jeffrey Ellis and Dennis Howell, of Deloitte, told BioWorld that while these alternative sources of funding are attractive to drug and device makers with a lot of ongoing R&D projects, federal regulators are keeping a close eye on the associated financial reporting, creating a novel regulatory risk for the unwary drug or device maker.

HONG KONG – SK Bioscience Ltd.’s shares soared as much as 30% in their KOSPI board debut on Thursday. The 22.95 million shares on offer opened at ₩130,000 (US$115.08) and were trading at ₩169,000 by the close of the trading day, raising ₩1.5 trillion, or $1.33 billion. SK Bioscience had priced the shares at the top of the ₩49,000 to ₩65,000 range.

Happify Inc. secured $73 million through a series D fundraising round and related financing to expand the company's digital health platform. Deerfield Management Company led the latest round, with participation by Omega Capital Partners, Ion Crossover Partners, and existing investors.