Diagnostic firm MedGenome completes series C funding round of Rs 2.6 bn

MedGenome Labs, a genetic diagnostics company, announced the completion of its Series C funding round of $40 million (Rs 2.6 billion) with participation from HDFC Ltd, HDFC Life and HDFC Asset Management.

In August last year, the Bengaluru-based company had secured $30 million as a part of the same funding round (Series C round) led by Sequoia India and Sofina sa, which also saw the participation from Zodius Capital, Infosys co-founder Kris Gopalakrishnan, and former Cognizant chief executive officer Lakshmi Narayanan.

The latest funding will accelerate the company’s expansion in the clinical genomic testing market, especially in Tier-II and Tier-III cities, it said.

“We believe understanding genetic information can have a big impact on Indian health care industry through early detection of disease risk and development of new medicines. We have decided to support MedGenome in its endeavour to make genetic tests affordable and accessible widely," said Deepak Parekh, chairman, HDFC Group.

MedGenome plans to establish more genetic centres in hospitals across the country to support clinicians and to enable patients to take informed decisions.

It claims to have completed over 100,000 genomic tests and supported clinicians in diagnosing more than 40 per cent unresolved cases. 

"MedGenome’s goal is to significantly reduce the burden of inherited diseases in India and assist clinicians in implementing precision medicine. We are excited about partnering with HDFC to increase adoption of genomics across India," said Sam Santhosh, founder and chairman, MedGenome. 

It is estimated about 6 per cent of the children born in India have inherited pediatric diseases which is double the worldwide occurrence rate.