PHILADELPHIA, March 22, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Ben Franklin
Technology Partners of Southeastern
Pennsylvania ("Ben
Franklin"); Independence Health Group ("IHG"), the parent
company of Independence Blue Cross; and Safeguard Scientifics, Inc.
("Safeguard") (NYSE: SFE) today announced that VitalTrax received
$150,000 in seed financing – the
first company to receive funds from the group's $6 million digital
health funding initiative, which was announced in December 2016.
Founded in 2016 by serial entrepreneur, Zikria Syed, VitalTrax
delivers a complete clinical trial data collection and patient
engagement solution built on a cloud-based enterprise platform and
a mobile application for patients. Its electronic clinical outcome
assessment tool, which is used to collect data directly from
patients, more closely resembles social media than traditional
clinical research documents, while still conforming to regulatory
requirements. Capital allocation will support the continued
development of the company's chief product.
"With its strong leadership and dedication to consumerizing the
healthcare industry, VitalTrax is poised to be a major player in
the region's digital health space and beyond," said Ben Franklin President and CEO, RoseAnn B. Rosenthal. "This is the first of many
exciting deals to come through our funding initiative with
Safeguard and IHG." Ben Franklin
will lead the due diligence process and day-to-day fund management
for VitalTrax.
"We are thrilled to receive this financing from premier
financial sponsors and healthcare organizations such as
Ben Franklin, Independence Health
Group and Safeguard. With this financing, we are not only gaining
their financial support but also access to their expertise in
building and growing technology companies and their vast network of
relationships in the healthcare industry." said Zikria Syed,
Founder and CEO of VitalTrax.
VitalTrax is headquartered at the Innovation Center at 3401
Market Street (ic@3401), a University City Science Center-run
co-working space on Drexel University's
campus, for which Safeguard and Ben
Franklin are sponsors.
About VitalTrax
VitalTrax delivers a complete patient
engagement solution for today's clinical trials comprising of a
cloud based enterprise platform and a mobile application for
patients. For clinical study teams, VitalTrax creates an enterprise
platform to run trials efficiently. For site teams, VitalTrax makes
it easier to recruit and communicate with patients during the
trial. VitalTrax's mobile app solution, Wing, is a world-class
patient engagement tool that provides a way for patients to search
for trials, apply to become a volunteer and stay involved during
the trial. For more information, please visit vitaltrax.net.
About Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania
Ben Franklin is the most active early stage
capital provider for the region's technology sectors. Ben Franklin combines best practices of venture
capital with a public-spirited purpose: leading the region's
technology community to new heights, creating jobs and changing
lives for the better. Ben Franklin
is an initiative of the Pennsylvania Department of Community and
Economic Development and is funded by the Ben Franklin Technology
Development Authority. www.sep.benfranklin.org
About Independence Health Group
Independence Health
Group, together with its subsidiaries, serves nearly 8.5 million
people in 25 states and the District
of Columbia, including 2.5 million in southeastern
Pennsylvania. In addition to a
growing consumer business, Independence Health Group serves
employer groups ranging from small businesses to national
corporations. Headquartered in Philadelphia, Independence Health Group is a
diversified company offering a wide range of services including
commercial, Medicare and Medicaid medical coverage, third-party
benefits administration, and pharmacy benefits management. To learn
more, visit www.ibx.com. Connect with us on Facebook
at ibx.com/facebook and on Twitter at @ibx.
Independence Blue Cross is an independent licensee of the Blue
Cross and Blue Shield Association.
About Safeguard Scientifics
Safeguard Scientifics
(NYSE: SFE) provides capital and relevant expertise to fuel the
growth of technology-driven businesses in healthcare, financial
services and digital media. Safeguard targets companies that are
capitalizing on the next wave of enabling technologies with a
particular focus on the Internet of Everything, enhanced security
and predictive analytics. Safeguard typically deploys between
$5 million and $25 million over the
course of its partnership with a company, initially investing in a
Series A or B Round and opportunistically in a Seed Round.
Safeguard has a distinguished track record of fostering innovation
and building market leaders that spans more than six decades. For
more information, please visit www.safeguard.com or
follow us on Twitter @safeguard and LinkedIn.
Forward-looking Statements
Except for the
historical information and discussions contained herein, statements
relating to Safeguard contained in this release may constitute
"forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Safeguard's
forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties.
The risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to
differ materially include, among others, Safeguard's ability to
make good decisions about the deployment of capital, the fact that
its partner companies may vary from period to period, its
substantial capital requirements and absence of liquidity from its
partner company holdings, fluctuations in the market prices of its
publicly traded partner company holdings, competition, its
inability to obtain maximum value for its partner company holdings,
its ability to attract and retain qualified employees, market
valuations in sectors in which its partner companies operate, its
inability to control its partner companies, its need to manage its
assets to avoid registration under the Investment Company Act of
1940, and risks associated with its partner companies, including
the fact that most of its partner companies have a limited history
and a history of operating losses, face intense competition and may
never be profitable, the effect of economic conditions in the
business sectors in which Safeguard's partner companies operate,
and other uncertainties described in its filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission. Many of these factors are
beyond Safeguard's ability to predict or control. As a result of
these and other factors, Safeguard's past financial performance
should not be relied on as an indication of future performance.
Safeguard does not assume any obligation to update any
forward-looking statements or other information contained in this
press release.
MEDIA CONTACTS
For Ben Franklin Technology
Partners of Southeastern
Pennsylvania
Jason
Bannon
Director, Marketing and Communications
215-972-6700 x3214
jbannon@sep.benfranklin.org
For Independence Health Group
Ruth Stoolman
Public Relations Manager, Corporate Communications
215-241-4807
Ruth.stoolman@ibx.com
For Safeguard Scientifics
Heather Hunter
Vice President, Corporate Communications
610-975-4923
hhunter@safeguard.com
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SOURCE VitalTrax