Monument Therapeutics secures £850k to advance breakthrough schizophrenia treatment

25 February 2025

Manchester, 25th February 2025 — Monument Therapeutics, an innovative neuroscience company applying digital biomarkers to psychiatric drug development, has secured £850k in further funding led by ACF Investors, with participation from Wren Capital, o2h Ventures, and angel investors. The investment will be used to fund its schizophrenia programme and drive the next stage of growth for the company.

Schizophrenia affects approximately 20 million people worldwide. Cognitive impairment associated with schizophrenia (CIAS), a core symptom of the condition, impacts memory, attention, and executive function, significantly reducing patients’ quality of life. Despite its profound effect, there are currently no approved treatments for CIAS.

Monument Therapeutics has developed MT1988, a novel fixed-dose combination drug for the treatment of CIAS. MT1988 has shown excellent pre-clinical results, with substantial cognitive improvement produced by combining two well-characterised small molecules that act on nicotinic receptors. It is designed to enhance cognitive function while mitigating common side effects seen with similar treatments. The drug is intended to be used alongside existing antipsychotic medications, offering a complementary solution for patients.

This latest funding will support the progression of MT1988 through further clinical development, with Phase 1 results expected in Q2 2025.

Dr Jenny Barnett, CEO of Monument Tx, said: “The development of new treatments in neuroscience has historically been hindered by the difficulty of identifying the right patients for the right drugs. At Monument, we use digital biomarkers to better match patients with targeted treatments, a strategy we call precision psychiatry or stratified neuroscience. This latest funding is a key step forward as we look to progress MT1988 through clinical trials, with the potential to finally address the cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia that have long been neglected.”

Tim Mills, Managing Partner at ACF Investors, said: “Monument Therapeutics is tackling one of the most elusive areas of neuroscience drug development with an innovative, precision-based approach. CIAS is an area of huge unmet need and we believe that MT1988 has the potential to make a real impact on a range of conditions. We look forward to supporting Jenny and the team as they push the boundaries of neuroscience and work towards a much-needed solution for patients worldwide.”

Sunil Shah, CEO of o2h Ventures, said: “We are excited to support Monument in its mission to address the cognitive impairment associated with schizophrenia, an area of significant unmet medical need. Jenny Barnett has been a fantastic CEO leading the charge and finding innovative sources of funding for the programme. We look forward as they progress their asset to clinical trials, with the potential to bring real benefit to patients.”

About Monument Tx

Monument Therapeutics applies a unique novel drug development strategy, leveraging digital assessments of cognition to match patients with new pharmaceutical treatments. Lead asset MT1988 targets the cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia, which are extremely costly for society and profoundly impact the affected individuals and their quality of life. For more information, please visit www.monumenttx.com

About ACF Investors

Launched in 2011, ACF Investors (formerly the Angel CoFund) is a privately managed and commercially focused venture capital fund that works alongside sector smart business angels to invest in high-potential SMEs across the UK, directly providing funding to support exceptional businesses. To date, ACF Investors has supported 120 companies, including such names as Ebury, Gousto, Creo Medical, and Form3, providing more than £85 million in direct investment alongside more than £500 million from business angels and other investors, making it one of the most active early-stage investors in the country. To find out more, please visit www.acfinvestors.com

About o2h Ventures

The o2h Ventures ‘Human Health’ SEIS and KI EIS funds make tax-efficient investments in Pre-Seed and seed-stage companies that address human disease: we fund the development of novel therapeutic treatments; we help build new services and tools offerings throughout the biotech ecosystem, and we spur the creation of software & artificial intelligence that will change healthcare. The o2h team are leaders in the biotech community and have been actively involved as investors, holding various board/industry positions as well as being engaged in grassroots scientific activity for over 20 years. o2h Ventures operates from their proprietary 2.7 acre Mill SciTech Park where they are developing a unique model for incubating small life science companies. For more information or to invest in the fund, please visit www.o2hventures.com

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