For the second time in five months, Connecticut Innovations has invested more than a half-million dollars in Ipsogen.
Ipsogen Inc. is the North American subsidiary of Ipsogen SAS, an 8-year-old biotech firm based in Marseille, France that develops tests used by oncologists to determine the effectiveness of cancer treatments.
In May, the state’s quasi-public investment wing invested $500,000 to help Ipsogen establish its North American headquarters in New Haven. This month, Ipsogen received $680,000 to expand its operations in the state. The latest investment was part of a $3.36 million round of venture capital that the company had raised.
It is not the first time that Connecticut Innovations has invested in a company twice in a short period of time.
“We’ve definitely done it in the past,” said Peter Longo, Connecticut Innovations deputy director and executive vice president. “It’s sort of what we view in as the third leg to our stool. We’re trying to attract companies from neighboring states, helping them to broaden what they can do and, here, setting up their headquarters here.”
Longo said Ipsogen’s decision to set up their headquarters in the state was a big boost and something they would like to see happen again.
In a statement, Ipsogen’s CEO Vincent Fert praised Connecticut Innovations for investing again “rapidly” and said that the biotech cluster in Connecticut offers a “very dynamic and entrepreneurial environment.”