SMBC invests in Rakuten Medical cancer therapy venture

The investment was part of the bank’s social value creation investment fund.

Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) announced its investment in Rakuten Medical, Inc., a US-based biotechnology venture company that develops and commercialises photoimmunotherapy for cancer.

SMBC’s investment was part of Rakuten Medical’s Series F funding round aimed at securing regulatory approval in the United States, the bank said in a release.

The investment was also part of the bank’s social value creation investment fund, a framework it established for supporting new technologies and industries that can create social value, it added.

SMBC said that the maximum investment amount of the fund for the fiscal year (FY) 2025 is set at ¥50b ($408.9m), an increase of ¥10b ($81.7m) from the previous FY.

Rakuten Medical’s photoimmunotherapy for cancer is based on its Alluminox platform.

The bank said that photoimmunotherapy is a new type of cancer treatment that combines a drug, composed of an antibody that binds to specific target cells and a medical device for laser illumination.

This approach enables selective destruction of targeted cells and can potentially address a variety of cancer types.

Clinical trials to obtain approvals in countries outside Japan and research activities aimed at expanding indications beyond head and neck cancers, are also underway, it added.