The funds have started rolling into Parabase Genomics from its new round of financing. The company, which launched from the UMass VDC, offers a rapid, non-invasive genetic test for newborns for hundreds of inherited disorders. What’s surprising isn’t that the company was funded, but how it found the lead investor – through a cold call.

The Myth of the Referral: Conventional wisdom is that if someone doesn’t refer you, investors won’t talk to you. A referral from another company at the UMass VDC got Parabase in front of Walnut Venture Associates which participated in the round. But the lead investor, SXE Ventures, based in Hong Kong, was solicited cold…