Cell and gene therapy platform Immuneel Therapeutics announced a Series B funding round of more than ₹100 crore on Monday, with participation from new investors including Singularity AMC and Rainmatter by Zerodha, as well as existing investors Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Eight Roads Ventures and F-Prime Capital. According to reports from Mint, this brings the company's total funding to about ₹488 crore as of April 2024, with the company not disclosing its latest valuation. The funding will be used to scale up its CAR-T therapy business in India, expand internationally and advance its research pipeline. As per Mint, the round also saw participation from high-net-worth individuals and existing backers, with investors citing the company's focus on reducing treatment costs while expanding indications for CAR-T therapies as a key factor behind the investment.
As reported by Mint, Immuneel has achieved over 100 patients in commercial settings with very encouraging results, having tied up with more than 50 hospitals in India. The company commercialized its CAR-T therapy, Qartemi, in India in January 2025, which is approved for adult patients with lymphoma and leukemia and priced at roughly ₹5-6 lakh, about 10% of global CAR-T therapy costs of $350,000-$700,000. Chief Executive Amit Mookim told Mint that the company has just started exports to the Middle East (West Asia), building on its encouraging early commercial traction in India. According to Mint, the fundraising comes after the commercial launch of Qartemi, which the company describes as India's first approved CAR-T therapy for blood cancers, including Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma and leukemia.
According to Mint, Immuneel is preparing to expand into other markets across West Asia and Asia-Pacific, building on its early commercial success in India. The company is evaluating several expansion models, including a hub-and-spoke manufacturing approach and partnerships with local players, while working through regulatory requirements in prospective markets. Mookim told Mint that the company believes there is an opportunity to compete in other emerging markets by leveraging its cost advantage and manufacturing innovation. As per Mint, the company plans to use the fresh capital to expand its Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) manufacturing capacity, advance its research pipeline, support the commercialisation of Qartemi, and accelerate its entry into markets across the Asia-Pacific and the Middle East. Immuneel is also pursuing clinical co-development partnerships in Australia and Southeast Asia as part of its global expansion plans.
As reported by Mint, Immuneel is already treating patients with lymphoma and will soon extend treatment to leukaemia, with plans to bring in treatments for multiple myeloma and autoimmune disorders. The company is also exploring newer platform technologies, including allogeneic CAR-T therapies that use immune cells from healthy donors to create off-the-shelf treatments. Immuneel conducted India's first CAR-T cell therapy trials in 2022 and has focused on lowering costs through manufacturing innovation and process re-engineering. Chief Executive Amit Mookim told Mint that the funding would help the company build a next-generation pipeline and expand access to advanced cell therapies globally. The company is currently advancing a next-generation pipeline alongside scaling manufacturing and commercial operations following the launch of Qartemi.
According to Mint, India represents a large potential market with more than 120,000 new diagnoses and 70,000 deaths annually in blood cancer cases, ranking third globally behind the US and China. The company's expansion comes as parts of the global CAR-T industry have pulled back amid high manufacturing costs, with companies like Caribou Biosciences discontinuing early-stage programmes and Allogene Therapeutics narrowing focus amid funding pressures. In India, Aurigene Oncology, a unit of Dr. Reddy's Laboratories, discontinued its CAR-T programmes in FY26 as part of portfolio rationalization. As per Mint, Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw emphasized that India can play a meaningful role in shaping the future of cell and gene therapy for the world, adding that the company aims to combine scientific innovation with affordable manufacturing. The fundraise comes as Immuneel looks to build on the commercial launch of Qartemi while broadening its presence in global markets and advancing new therapies for blood cancers.
