SoftBank-Led Funding Triples Asia Health Startup’s Valuation

(Bloomberg) -- SoftBank Group Corp. led a $100 million investment in Biofourmis Pte, nearly tripling the valuation of a software startup that predicts problems for patients with heart conditions.

SoftBank’s financing came from the Vision Fund 2, a successor to the Japanese giant’s initial $100 billion fund. Existing backers EDBI of Singapore, MassMutual Ventures, Openspace Ventures and Sequoia Capital also joined the Series C round.

The investment round valued the company at more than $700 million, up from about $250 million previously, according to a person familiar with the matter, who asked not to be named because the information is private. A company spokesman declined to comment on its valuation.

Biofourmis, which was founded in Singapore before relocating its base to Boston, uses artificial intelligence to provide personalized care. It plans to use the capital to develop digital solutions across cardiology, respiratory, oncology and pain management for patients in the U.S., China and Japan, Chief Executive Officer Kuldeep Singh Rajput said in an interview.

“We believe Biofourmis is a leader in using AI and machine learning-based solutions to advance digital therapeutics,” said Greg Moon, Managing Partner, SoftBank Investment Advisers.

Rajput, who turns 29 this month, said he wasn’t planning to raise capital after closing a $35 million Series B round in May 2019. But SoftBank contacted him after the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“The pandemic really fast-forwarded the need for virtual monitoring of patients remotely at home, and we were able to customize our platform to monitor patients with Covid-19 in five countries,” Rajput said in a separate interview with Bloomberg TV’s Haidi Lun and Sophie Kamaruddin Thursday. “SoftBank had been following this, and in May and June we met up with them and they opened up multiple opportunities.”

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