Advent Access raises S$2.6 million pre-series A financing

Advent Access (Advent), a Singapore based innovative medtech company, announced that it has closed a pre-Series A financing round, having raised S$2.6 million in investments and collaboration to advance the development and commercialisation of its patented av-Guardian technology for vascular access in dialysis patients. The financing was led by Accuron MedTech (Accuron), the largest medical device company in Southeast Asia.   

The investment was made through the Med Tech Alliance, an accelerator appointed by Singapore’s SPRING SEEDS Capital to facilitate the growth of start-ups in the local medtech industry. 

Peh Ruey Feng, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Advent Access, said: "We are excited to have Temasek-backed Accuron MedTech onboard.  Abel and the Accuron team bring deep experience in growing technologies from Asia, breadth in accessing international markets and financial depth in nurturing startups that will set us apart regionally and internationally. Advent Access is now well equipped to accelerate the development of av-Guardian and tackle some of the most pressing needs in end stage renal disease. Working closely with Accuron, we look forward to unlocking the future of independent dialysis." 

Vascular access is essential for patients undergoing dialysis, providing a reliable site where the bloodstream can be easily accessed for each procedure. However, placing dialysis needles is often the most stressful part of the treatment. If the needles are not well placed, complications can arise and dialysis is inadequately performed.  It is the most common cause of hospitalisation in patients suffering end stage renal disease, directly impacting the cost efficiency of the treatment and the quality of life of patients.

Advent Access has developed the av-Guardian, an award-winning device-guided needling platform that engineers a high-quality tissue track to enable reliable and less-painful vascular access to the arteriovenous fistula (AV fistula) commonly used by dialysis patients. The av-Guardian is the world’s first medical device to pioneer the concept of a "guardian guide-door" to the AV fistula that is non-invasive to the vessel, significantly reducing wear and tear on the dialysis patient’s vein and resulting in a reduction in hospitalisation and surgery.  The funds raised will be used to advance av-Guardian towards a filing for CE mark registration within the next 18 months, a major milestone in making the device available to patients globally. 

Advent is a spin-off from the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR).  The company has been working with ETPL, the commercialisation arm of A*STAR, in technology productisation and clinical validation.