Pacific Edge Receives NZTE Support for Push into South East Asia

Cancer diagnostics company, Pacific Edge (NZX:PEB) has received another boost to its plans to expand its global footprint, with a three-year $600,000 grant from New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE).

The grant is milestone driven for investment over a three year period and will aid in the evaluation of the South East Asia market opportunity for Pacific Edge and its novel Cxbladder bladder cancer diagnostic tests, as well as commercialisation and rollout into the region.  The grant funding requires a matching investment by Pacific Edge. The company has already made good progress in its initial investigations into South East Asia, with the launch of a User Programme with the prestigious Tan Tock Seng hospital in Singapore earlier this year.

Chief Executive Officer of Pacific Edge, David Darling, said: “We are pleased with this vote of confidence  and have been working extensively with the NZTE team in New Zealand and Singapore in our early evaluations. We are looking forward to completing the evaluation of this opportunity and expanding our footprint into South East Asia. This will be fantastic for our business and leverages the laboratory in Dunedin and the technology that allows the urine sample to be sent effectively over night from Singapore to Dunedin. Our business model enables us to operate with a very small commercial footprint and to service some great customers from New Zealand.”

“We have identified South East Asia as offering exciting potential, with two distinct customer segments of interest. Firstly are patients requiring testing and management for bladder cancer, in the same way as our other markets. Secondly and more unique to South East Asia, is the rapidly growing number of medical tourists who come to the region for regular wellness and medical checkups, where our Cxbladder tests could be a part of a variety of tests offered to patients seeking an annual wellness regime”.

“Logistically and commercially, Singapore is a great gateway to the markets of South East Asia. It offers a number of benefits, including the widespread use of English, internationally certified hospitals and a significant and growing population of medical tourists supported by a strong commercial drive in these countries to build businesses of scale to meet their needs, says Brent Pownall, Commercial Director of Pacific Edge Diagnostics NZ Ltd.

“Other potential market opportunities in the region include Bangkok and Taipei, which are also popular destinations for medical tourists.”