CoreValve Inc., a French heart valve developer, is switching its headquarters from Paris to Irvine with an eye toward raising money to fund the development of its product.
“There is no doubt that we’re going to need more money,this is a heart valve,” said Rob Michiels, CoreValve’s chief operating officer and president.
Options to raise money could include another round of venture funding. Or it could seek to go public, “if we’re far enough along or if there could be a market window in the U.S.” Michiels said.
CoreValve’s investors have included Sofinnova Partners, a Paris venture capital firm.
The company has raised $30 million so far and estimates it needs to another $30 million to continue work on its heart valve, Michiels said.
The prospect of a public offering “is definitely the underlying reason why we have done the flip-flop and become a U.S. corporation so that door could be open to us,” Michiels said.
For more on this story, see the April 3 issue of the Business Journal.
