RougeTx Launches with $58 Million Series A Financing to Advance First-in-Class Treatment for Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia

• Series A co-led by BioGeneration Ventures, Angelini Ventures and Kurma Partners, with participation from Epidarex Capital, Vesalius Biocapital Partners, ROM Utrecht Region, p53 Invest and Kerna Ventures.
• Financing will advance a potential once-daily oral treatment designed to restore blood vessel stability in HHT, a serious inherited bleeding disorder with no approved therapies.
• periSCOPE platform supports pipeline expansion across vascular diseases associated with vascular instability.
  

NAARDEN, the Netherlands, Oct. 06, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- RougeTx, a preclinical-stage biotechnology company developing first-in-class disease-modifying therapies designed to restore vascular integrity by targeting pericyte dysfunction, today announced its launch with a $58 million Series A financing. The round was co-led by founding investor BioGeneration Ventures (BGV) with Angelini Ventures, together with EIB (European Investment Bank) co-investment facility Aurea, and Kurma Partners, with further participation from Epidarex Capital, Vesalius Biocapital Partners, ROM Utrecht Region, p53 Invest, and Kerna Ventures.

The financing will support RTX-001, RougeTx's lead program, as it advances toward first-in-human clinical development for hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT). HHT is the second most common inherited bleeding disorder. The disease is caused by abnormal blood vessel formation known as arteriovenous malformations (AVMs), which can lead to recurrent nose and gastrointestinal bleeding, iron deficiency, chronic anemia, and potentially serious complications affecting major organs. There are currently no approved therapies for HHT, and patients rely largely on supportive care and off-label treatments.

“RTX-001 is designed to stabilize fragile blood vessels by restoring pericyte attachment. The data we have generated for RTX-001 gives us a strong foundation as we move toward the clinic. This financing also allows us to explore where the same biology may impact other vascular diseases,” said Andrew Lightfoot, Chief Executive Officer at RougeTx.

Franck Lebrin, Co-Founder and Scientific Advisor at RougeTx, remarked: “RougeTx represents the culmination of more than 20 years of research, initially at Inserm and over the past decade in my laboratory at Leiden University Medical Center. I am excited by the opportunity to bring a novel treatment to the HHT community.”

Sandra Glucksmann, Executive Chair at RougeTx, noted: “For too long, people living with HHT have faced a serious, lifelong disease with no approved treatment options. RougeTx was founded with a commitment to this community and a belief that advances in vascular biology can finally make a meaningful difference for patients and families. We are grateful to our investors for their support and shared commitment to our mission.”

Through its periSCOPE platform, RougeTx is applying its deep understanding of vascular biology beyond HHT to identify new treatment opportunities in diseases driven by vascular instability. The platform is intended to support a pipeline of small-molecule therapies based on a common underlying biology.

In connection with the financing, Edward van Wezel, Managing Partner at BGV; Regina Hodits, Managing Director at Angelini Ventures; Hadrien Bouchez, Partner at Kurma Partners; Elizabeth Roper, Managing Partner at Epidarex Capital; and Stéphane Verdood, Managing Partner at Vesalius Biocapital Partners, will join RougeTx's Board of Directors alongside existing directors.

For further information, contact:

RougeTx
info@rougetx.com

Media Enquiries

Optimum Strategic Communications
Zoe Bolt, Eleanor Cooper, Katherine Bliss
+44 (0) 203 882 9621
rougetx@optimumcomms.com

About RougeTx

RougeTx is a spin-off from Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC) and is developing first-in-class small-molecule therapies to restore vascular stability in diseases driven by pericyte dysfunction. Pericytes regulate angiogenesis and support blood vessel integrity and function. Our aim is to move beyond current symptom management toward urgently needed disease-modifying treatments for vascular diseases.

Our lead program targets Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia (HHT) along with additional indications related to vascular stability diseases. For more information, please visit: https://www.rougetx.com/

About BGV
BioGeneration Ventures (BGV) is a venture capital company, with a focus on early-stage European biotech companies. The Company has a strong track record of significant financial returns through investing in innovations in healthcare and providing the expertise to build world-class companies. BGV manages over EUR 450 million investing in areas where true scientific innovations, unmet medical need, and the potential to demonstrate a significant proof of concept all converge. BGV works with founding teams to mature science and build companies. The Company uses its experience to guide progress into clinical trials, ultimately leading to successful drug development and value realization for its investors. For further information, please visit: https://biogenerationventures.com/en/

About Angelini Ventures
Angelini Ventures is an international venture capital company and part of Angelini Industries, an Italian industrial group working in health, industrial technology and consumer goods. Angelini Ventures was formed in 2022 with planned investments of €375 million, about €150 million of which have already been allocated to startups developing innovative solutions and ideas in biotechnology, medtech and digital health. It invests in innovative companies in Europe and North America that can improve patients’ life expectancy and quality of life. The company is based in Rome and has a global team of 25 professionals working in nine cities (Rome, Milan, Turin, London, Singapore, Boston, Berlin, Dubai, Geneva, New York, Munich, Basel and Paris). Angelini Ventures is part of Angelini Industries’ strategy to promote innovation by combining existing capabilities and new skills to identify, finance and implement solutions that innovate on traditional healthcare models.

About Kurma Partners
Founded in Paris in 2009, Kurma Partners, an Eurazeo group company, has established itself as a benchmark player in financing innovation to build the healthcare industry of tomorrow. Kurma invests in companies from inception through to growth stages, covering the entire healthcare spectrum through its various dedicated franchises. These have expanded alongside successive funds in early-stage biotechnology (Biofunds I, II, and III), early-stage digital health and diagnostics (Kurma Diagnostics and Kurma Diagnostics 2), and most recently, growth capital (Kurma Growth Opportunities Fund). The Kurma team consists of 25 professionals, including 10 partners, operating across two offices in Paris and Munich. They are deeply integrated into the European ecosystem and have woven a robust network of international connections with prestigious research institutes, hospitals, entrepreneurs, industry players, and peer investors. With this final closing, Kurma Partners' total Assets Under Management (AUM) across all franchises reached €1 billion. Kurma Partners is part of the Eurazeo group. For further information, please visit: https://www.kurmapartners.com/en

About Epidarex Capital
Epidarex Capital is a transatlantic venture capital firm that builds exceptional life science companies in emerging hubs in the UK and US. Epidarex's experienced team of early-stage investors partner with entrepreneurs and leading research institutions to transform world-class science into highly innovative products addressing major unmet needs in global healthcare. For further information, please visit: https://epidarex.com/

About Vesalius Biocapital Partners
Vesalius is a specialist life sciences venture capital investor, investing in companies in later stage companies in drug development, medical device diagnostic and e-health since 2007. Vesalius Biocapital IV, launched in June 2023, targets first and best-in-class European life science companies in drug development and digital health. Its investment portfolio is well balanced between drug development and non-drug development investments and committed to providing capital to science-backed innovation and ambitious entrepreneurs. The team is based in Europe to explore investment opportunities and valuation potential for the portfolio. Managing Partners include Guy Geldhof, Dr Jean-Christophe Renondin and Stéphane Verdood. For more information, please visit: https://vesaliusbiocapital.com/