Suzhou Natong BioNanotechnology Ltd. (Nanomed) announced it has signed a funding agreement with Softbank’s SB China Venture Capital (SBCVC). Nanomed had previously won the “Most Promising Company” Award in the Medical Device field at the BioBay Investor Forum co-organized by ChinaBio® LLC and the Suzhou BioBay life science park in August 2009. Financial details of the funding were not disclosed.

Formed by returnees including General Manager, Dr. Bai Xu, Nanomed focuses on developing innovative medical products for drug delivery. Its FMA™ Intradermal Drug Delivery Technology is a novel drug delivery platform using nanoscale MEMS (micro-electro-mechanical) technology. The company has applied for 12 patents, six of which have been granted, including one in the US. Nanomed expects the funding will help it become a global leader in Functional Micro Array (FMA) technology.

Nanomed’s FMA™ Patch has potential clinical use in several indications, including skin diseases, diabetes, tumors and pain relief. For example, Nanomed worked with Beijing PLA General Hospital to develop its Liteclear™ products which use FMA technology to treat acne. Studies showed that Liteclear produced a positive effect on patients suffering from acne that was evident within 12 hours. Inflammation was eased in 3-5 days, as opposed to several months or years for competing acne treatments.

Immediately after the closing of the funding, Nanomed signed an agreement with a Hangzhou medical products distributor, located in the Zhejiang province. The agreement designated the company as the exclusive agent in Hangzhou for Nanomed’s Liteclear acne products.

“We predict sales in Zhejiang province will reach 5 million RMB ($735,000) this year, and the total sales across all of China will be 10 million RMB ($1.5 million),” said Dr. Xu. “After three years, revenues could be as high as 300 million RMB ($59 million). In the US, sales will surpass $1 million this year,” he continued.

Nanomed attributes much of its success to support from the Suzhou Industrial Park (SIP) and SIP’s BioBay life science park. BioBay is recognized as the fastest growing life science park in China, with over 150 companies located in its campus of over 5 million sq. ft. ChinaBio is establishing its Accelerator in BioBay to assist U.S. companies wishing to have access to government and VC funding and resources available in China.

The funding from SBCVC was seen as an important milestone for the company. “In addition to supporting funds, SBCVC brings with it great entrepreneurial skills, along with a deep understanding of how the business and capital markets play a part in high-growth companies such as medical devices. These skills will aid Nanomed’s future development,” said Dr. Xu.

Established in 2000, SBCVC is a China venture capital firm that invests in various industries, including information technology, cleantech, healthcare, new materials, consumer and retail. Headquartered in Shanghai, SBCVC has offices in Beijing, Suzhou, Tianjin, Chengdu, Shenzhen and Taipei.

Disclosure: none.