Acutus Medical Inc. revealed plans after the Nasdaq closing bell on Nov. 8 to abandon the electrophysiology business as part of a massive restructuring that will leave the company entirely committed to manufacturing and distribution of Medtronic plc’s left-heart access products. The shift will put 65% of Acutus employees out of work and leaves the future of its cardiac ablation and mapping products up in the air.
Med-tech saw some good news in October, with total financings value reaching $1.22 billion, an increase of 89.23% from the $645.75 million in September. However, the increase didn’t make up for the broader year-over-year decline in med-tech investments.
Access Vascular Inc. (AVI) closed a $22 million series C funding round that it plans to use principally to increase production capacity for its Mimix hydrophilic biomaterial vascular access devices. The company’s catheters are designed to evade identification as foreign bodies, reduce bacterial adhesion and eliminate catheter-related thrombus development.
Immuone Ltd. raised £2 million (US$2.4 million) to fund expansion of its operations to meet growing demand for its 3D human lung model. The company is hoping that its model will replace animal testing which is not always accurate at predicting the impact of drugs on humans. The funding came from the MEIF Proof of Concept & Early Stage Fund, Mercia’s EIS funds and Pioneer Group.