Lausanne, Switzerland, January 25th, 2005: Apoxis SA today confirmed that the Company has completed a private second round of financing. Novo Nordisk has together with existing investors Banexi Ventures Partners, HealthCap and private investors invested a total of 15 million euros.

Apoxis SA  is a biopharmaceutical company involved in the discovery and development of novel therapeutic proteins able to modify apoptotic cell death (cell suicide). Apoptosis plays a central role in the regulation and control of cancer and auto-immune diseases, and hence the regulation of apoptosis represents a promising method of treatment of a number of life-threatening diseases.
Apoxis has a pipeline of projects that focuses on the development of therapeutic proteins within cancer and auto-immune diseases. One of these proteins, the MegaFasL, has shown promising results in hard to treat cancers. In another internally developed program, Apoxis has demonstrated ability to inhibit apoptosis in animal models with potential applications in many auto-immune diseases.

"We are delighted to have received this level of financial support from both existing and new investors. We believe that obtaining significant Novo Nordisk investment represents strong scientific and business validation for our technology and projects. This new round of financing will allow us to bring molecules into clinic, while consolidating our project portfolio", said Dr. Jean-Pierre Rosat, Apoxis's CEO.

Apoxis represents a valuable addition to the portfolio of venture capital investments done by Novo Nordisk. The investment underscores Novo Nordisk's focus on biopharmaceuticals and our willingness to invest in companies with new and promising approaches" said Johannes Jensen, Vice President of Novo Nordisk Biotech Fund.

Magnus Persson, general partner of HealthCap noted: "Apoxis is a very exciting development company with high-potential assets that we believe the outstanding management team is well positioned to capitalize on"

Sophie Pierrin-Lepinard, general partner at Banexi Ventures Partners adds: "We have been impressed by the significant progress that Apoxis has made since our last investment and are delighted to have had this opportunity to make a further financial commitment to support Apoxis's growth"
              
 
About Apoxis SA
Apoxis is a Swiss-based biopharmaceutical company. Apoxis has developed a unique technology, the Megaligand approach to engineer multimers of compounds in the TNF family and, thus, render normally inactive molecules highly agonistic or highly inhibitory. Apoxis has also gathered critical intellectual property positions on extra- and intra-cellular molecules and mechanisms, which will be out-licensed to pharma partners for further development. For further information see http://www.apoxis.com/

About Novo Nordisk
Novo Nordisk is a healthcare company and a world leader in diabetes care. The company has the broadest diabetes product portfolio in the industry, including the most advanced products within the area of insulin delivery systems. In addition, Novo Nordisk has a leading position within areas such as hemostasis management, growth hormone therapy, and hormone therapy for women. Novo Nordisk manufactures and markets pharmaceutical products and services that make a significant difference to patients, the medical profession and society. With headquarters in Denmark, Novo Nordisk employs approximately 20,000 full-time employees in 69 countries, and markets its products in 179 countries. Novo Nordisk's B shares are listed on the stock exchanges in Copenhagen and London. Its ADRs are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol 'NVO'. For global information, visit http://www.novonordisk.com/.

About HealthCap
HealthCap is a family of multi stage venture capital funds, investing internationally in life sciences, with the Odlander Fredriksson Group as their exclusive investment advisor. With committed capital exceeding 600 million euros, HealthCap is the largest specialized provider of venture capital within life sciences in the Nordic countries and one of the largest independent actors in the sector in Europe. For more information, please visit http://www.healthcap.se/

About Banexi Ventures Partners
With over 220 M€ under management, Banexi Ventures Partners is a venture capital company focused on early stage high technology companies with a priority given to three high growth areas: life sciences, electronics-semiconductors and information technologies. The company sets its aim on talented entrepreneurial management teams and helps them to structure their projects while providing them with the appropriate resources and incentives. Banexi Ventures Partners is based in Paris, France. More information can be found at http://www.banexiventures.com/