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DCP announced that it has reached a definitive agreement with Venus Medtech for an equity investment. The investment will facilitate Venus Medtech's buildout of its sales network to establish the leading position in China's transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) market.

Venus Medtech is dedicated to providing cardiovascular products for structural heart disease and its first generation of TAVR product, Venus A, was the first such product in the country approved by the China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA) in April 2017. The product has already been introduced in top tier cardiovascular hospitals and has been endorsed by a panel of leading cardiologists in China.

The TAVR product is used to treat severe aortic stenosis (AS), an age-related degenerative disease prevalent in the elderly. Severe AS is a fatal disease with a mortality rate of 50% in 2 years if left untreated. Before the introduction of TAVR, patients could only be treated through open heart surgery for valve replacement. However, elderly patients, typically with multiple comorbidities, are often categorized as inoperable and denied access to surgery. TAVR, as a transcatheter procedure with minimal damage, is the only solution for the elderly. 

Since its first introduction in Europe in 2007 and later in the United States, TAVR technology and products have been fully validated in developed markets and the global market is forecast to grow from US$ 3 billion in 2017 to US$ 5 billion globally in 2020 with strong momentum thereafter. Edwards Lifesciences, an international leader in this sector, has half of the revenue attributable to TAVR products, and is valued at US$ 28 billion.

As the first company granted approval by the CFDA for a TAVR product, Venus Medtech has a critical first-mover advantage in China that has proven to be extremely durable in other markets. China has a large and growing pool of TAVR patients as the population ages and life expectancy increases. This patient group was previously shut out from the surgical room due to high risk of complications and damage during the operation and now Venus Medtech is offering a solution for millions of affected families. 

Eric Zi, Cofounder and CEO of Venus Medtech said: "We are extremely excited to have DCP as our long-term value-added partner. This cooperation will benefit from the DCP team's 25 years of successful investment experience in China led by Mr. David Liu. In particular, we hope to leverage DCP's significant investment / acquisition experience, and its portfolio management capabilities to accelerate Venus Medtech's expansion."

"DCP is delighted to have the opportunity to invest into Venus Medtech," said David Liu, Executive Chairman of DCP. "We are extremely impressed with the company's outstanding management team, strong technological capabilities and deep industry knowledge. We look forward to fully utilizing our network and expertise to help Venus Medtech to grow into the next phase of development."

"Venus Medtech is led by a management team with global vision and strong sense of social responsibility and we are honored to partner with such a company to help it grow to a global medical device player," added Wayne Wang, Managing Director of DCP. 

The proceeds will be invested in Venus Medtech's R&D, production, and sales network expansion to fuel the company's rapid development.

About Venus Medtech:

Venus Medtech is a leading heart valve developer in China. The firm, located in Hangzhou National Hi-tech Development Zone, focuses on the research and development of internationally advanced artificial cardiovascular valve systems with commercial applications and has succeeded in developing such products both in China and around the world.

Venus Medtech is fully dedicated to research and development and has twice been the first to pioneer the production of models for new valve systems: the pre-loading transcatheter valve system (Venibri) and the self-expanding transcatheter pulmonary valve system (Venus P-valve). Since 2013, Venus Medtech has received investments from Qiming Venture Partners, Sequoia China and Goldman Sachs.

For additional information, please visit Venus Medtech website http://en.venusmedtech.com