Billionaire Hedge Fund Manager Michael Platt Leads $25 Million Investment in UK Biotechnology Company Engitix

Notable British billionaire hedge fund manager Michael Platt made a considerable investment in a UK biotech firm known as Engitix Ltd, adding $25 million to the development.

Michael Platt, one of the founding executives and CEO of BlueCrest Capital Management, is managing the funds through his personal investment vehicle, Netherton Investments Ltd, as he looks to help support Engitix’s development of experimental therapies for cancer and fibrosis.

Funding Targeting the Development Stage Before Clinical Trials

Engitix intends to employ this capital towards pre-clinical stages of development in several programs that target both solid cancers and fibrotic diseases, as stated by Engitix. The investment also further enables the development of its technology platform, which is focused on the ECM, which is essentially a scaffold that is essential to the functioning of cells and tissues.

Engitix’s Chief Executive Officer, Giuseppe Mazza, described the infusion of funds as an addition to the company’s capability of translating its knowledge into potential therapies.

Michael Platt’s Role & Investment Focus

Michael Platt is well recognized in the finance sector as an influential hedge fund trader and as head of BlueCrest, founding the firm in 2000. Apart from his interests in biotech and tech, his investment portfolio may include other investment ventures he may personally undertake.

According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, the net worth of Michael Platt is approximately 12.8 billion USD. This is due to the success he has had in the field of hedge fund management for many years.

Background on Engitix and ECM Research

Engitix is focusing on the extracellular matrix, a non-cellular part of tissue. The company is trying to use targeting of this matrix to develop new drug compounds that have the potential to change the pathogenesis in a diseased state in cancer patients, as well as those suffering from fibrotic diseases.

The company has previously raised funds through its Series A round, with contributions from Michael Platt’s investment vehicle and others, paving the way for what it is doing currently regarding research.