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IRVINE, Calif.—LensGen, which has developed Juvene, a proprietary, fluid-optic intraocular lens (IOL) to treat cataracts and presbyopia, announced that it has closed $10 million of a $20 million bridge financing round. The Irvine-based company also said that ophthalmic industry veteran James (Jim) Mazzo has been elected to its board of directors. The financing was led by the corporate venture investment arm of Hoya Group which produces eyeglasses, medical endoscopes, contact lenses, intraocular lenses and other medical devices.

It is part of a larger Series B Financing planned in early 2021 that will fund the company through approval of Juvene IOL pivotal FDA study, LensGen said in a statement.

“We are pleased that LensGen continues to make excellent progress toward advancing their IDE approval process and position the company for initiation of Phase I FDA study,” said Akiteru Furukawa, general manager, Hoya Corporate Venture Capital Group.

Mazzo is one of the eyecare industry’s best-known, most respected and charismatic leaders. He has over 40 years of experience building and advancing world-class ophthalmic organizations, most recently serving as president of ophthalmic devices and head of the ophthalmic devices strategic business unit for Zeiss. Mazzo serves on the ASCRS governing board, the AAO Foundation advisory board, and is an executive committee member of the Medical Device Manufacturers Association (MDMA) and is founder and chairman of Octane.