Archive | February, 2018

A Relationship-Transactional-Based Conference: LSN’s Redefining Early Stage Investments Conference – What’s Different?

15 Feb

By Dennis Ford, Founder & CEO, Life Science Nation; Creator of RESI Conference Series

RESI takes place every few months and is a “rolling” ongoing conference series that provides a vehicle to regularly meet with potential partners. No other conference provider has instituted this kind of format. Most conferences are either annual or bi-annual. At RESI, the two main constituencies – scientist/entrepreneurs and investors/strategic partners – have an ongoing opportunity to connect based on fit (i.e. type of product, stage of company, size of raise and other criteria), create a dialogue that grows into a relationship and eventual partnership. LSN has found that having a conference series where buyer and seller can easily meet and follow up every few months greatly aids the building-a-relationship process.

The state of the partnering-conference model that LSN saw when we launched RESI was mostly content-based informational conferences with a partnering software program you could use to set up meetings.

LSN added a matching module for the pairing-up of profiles of the early stage buy-side and sell-side players. RESI is a relationship-based partnering conference and not a content-based informational conference. There is a huge difference in the two models. I recently wrote an article about the subject.

Partnerships take time to move down the tracks, and the RESI conference provides a one-of-a-kind vehicle: a series of ongoing meetings in various geographic life science hubs that has become an industry-wide vehicle to identify, meet and continue a dialogue with potential partners. For both the sell-side and the buy-side, establishing and consummating partnerships is a full-time job. RESI makes it easier for both sides. Scientist/entrepreneurs find investors/strategic partners and investors/strategic partners source technology assets.

Most life science conferences, even though some have partnering, are still information-centric: paid speakers, panels of industry trends and programming around providing information and education. RESI is relationship-based, so no paid speakers – as a matter of fact, investors vie for speaking spots because of the status that is associated with being on a panel at a RESI conference. Most conferences are silo specific – either drugs, devices, diagnostics or healthcare IT. RESI covers all these silos, and that’s a plus for investors and strategic partners whose mandates cut across several verticals.

RESI is purely partnering-based, and the content and panels revolve around the investors’ and the strategic partners’ existing mandates. RESI’s Workshops are all about helping with various start up issues: from valuations, to negotiating LOIs, to branding and messaging, to fundraising boot camps. No FDA, no BREXIT, no lending or debt, just very focused on connecting and navigating the early-stage arena. It’s all about learning and interacting with investors and strategic partners.

Canada is a Rising Power in Life Science Innovation

15 Feb

By Lucy Parkinson, Director of Research, LSN

RESI is headed to MaRS in Toronto for the third time. Our annual visits to the city have allowed LSN to take the pulse of Canadian life science, and we have seen Canada go from strength to strength over the years and attract an increasing amount of investment interest. Taking a look at a sample of startup data from the LSN Company Platform, we can examine life science trends in Canada.

While every region of Canada is home to some life science startup activity, the main hubs are in Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia. Let’s see how the different verticals within life science and health innovation are represented in those three hubs. From our sample, we took a look at early stage therapeutic companies (Preclinical through Phase II), development-stage medical technology companies, and all digital health companies.

While biotech activity is occurring throughout Canada, we see a concentration of digital health and medtech activity in Ontario. The city of Toronto is home to several major research universities and institutions, and innovation has grown up around this research hub.

Looking more closely at those early stage biotech assets, we find that Canada’s drug development startups have developed a strong base of preclinical assets and many of those assets have moved through to Phase I and Phase II.

Much like in other regions, oncology is the dominant area of research, but Canada is also home to a wealth of biotech development in neurology, infectious diseases, dermatology, and other fields.

It’s little wonder that investors are starting to look north of the border for life science deals. Taking a look into the LSN Investor Platform, we find that LSN tracks over 700 investors who will consider an investment opportunity in Canada. Over 80% of those investors are located outside of Canada! We anticipate that from those investment firms, over 300 investment staff will be in attendance at the upcoming RESI on MaRS event. As novel life science technology becomes an increasingly global marketplace, LSN encounters more investors who have a global rather than a regional mindset when it comes to finding high quality assets, and with so much research being generated by top institutions, Canada is well placed to take advantage of that trend.

“The 10 Myths of Fundraising” Presentation at Freemind Group’s Non-Dilutive Funding Summit

15 Feb

By Claire Jeong, Research Analyst, LSN

claire

At the 13th Annual Non-Dilutive Funding Summit on January 10th during JPM, Life Science Nation (LSN)’s Founder & CEO, Dennis Ford presented to an audience of actively fundraising, early-stage life science entrepreneurs. “The 10 Myths of Fundraising” session helped provide fundamental context on the daunting fundraising process, from proper branding & messaging to creating a Global Target List (GTL) of investors and how to utilize these materials for a successful fundraising campaign. Most importantly, the session walked through the top 10 myths in fundraising, uncovering the truth to these common misconceptions and providing realistic insights that every fundraising CEO should know.

For those who missed out, we are happy to be able to provide a video of this presentation! If you are interested in delving into the topics covered in the video and beyond, be sure to take a look at Dennis’s book, The Life Science Executive’s Fundraising Manifesto.

Hot Investor Mandate 1: Family Office-Connected Firm Seek Life Sciences Technologies of All Stages, With Focus on Specialty Medical Devices

15 Feb

A Canada-based firm founded in 2010 consists of a team of entrepreneurs seeking to invest in small-to-mid sized healthcare & pharmaceutical companies. The firm is open to investing in private companies at all stages from seed through growth and expansion. The firm can act as a co-investor or lead, and additionally can leverage distribution networks and partnerships across 4 continents. Typical allocations are < €25 M structured as equity, and may come from a combination of the partners' personal funds, a family office whose wealth is managed by the firm, or the firm's own fund. Portfolio companies focus on specialty pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, medical devices, & ancillary health services. The firm will invest in English-speaking markets.

The firm’s specialty area is in generic pharmaceutical manufacturing and distribution, and manufacturing and distribution of specialty medical devices. Urology and urogynecology devices, injectable medications, cardiovascular medications, dental devices, vaccines, oncology therapeutics, diagnostics, and surgical simulators are reflected in portfolio companies. The firm is open to reviewing technology in all stages of development. Devices that fit well in the focus and distribution regions of portfolio companies are of particular interest.

The firm looks for strong & accomplished management teams and above all, values innovation, transparency, integrity, execution, and fun. The firm may or may not seek a board seat depending on the structure of the allocation.

If you are interested in more information about this investor and other investors tracked by LSN, please email mandates@lifesciencenation.com.

Hot Investor Mandate 2: Spain Investment Firm Broadly Seeking Life Science Opportunities in USA & Europe, with Focus on Pre-Clinical Therapeutic Assets

15 Feb

A firm with offices in Spain invests in early-stage companies in the life science and technology sectors. The firm makes investments of EUR 2-6 million in seed and early stage financing rounds. The firm makes both equity and venture debt investments. The firm focuses on investment opportunities in Spain but will also consider deals elsewhere in Europe or in North America.

In the life sciences, the firm focuses on therapeutics and also invests in diagnostics, medical devices and healthcare IT. In therapeutics, the firm focuses on preclinical opportunities with a focus on assets that are 12-18 months prior to IND. In diagnostics, the firm focuses on opportunities with an identified biomarker or a completed retrospective study. In medical devices and healthcare IT, the firm only invests in companies that are very close to commercialization or already generating revenues. The firm generally does not invest in large indication areas such as diabetes, metabolic disease, cardiovascular and renal disease. The firm’s areas of interest include oncology, CNS, dermatology, and ophthalmology (particularly front of eye diseases). The firm has invested in rare diseases but it is not the firm’s sole focus.

In therapeutic opportunities, the firm seeks companies that have obtained proof of concept data in animal studies and can reach human clinical trials with no more than EUR 6 million in further private investment.
In Spain, the firm typically leads investment rounds, and may syndicate with other firms or leverage public funding. In North America, the firm seeks to co-invest in rounds led by top-tier investors.

If you are interested in more information about this investor and other investors tracked by LSN, please email mandates@lifesciencenation.com.

Hot Investor Mandate 3: Large Canadian VC Firm Invests in USA & Canada Life Sciences Technologies, Open to All Sectors and Stages of Development

15 Feb

One of the largest Canadian-based venture capital firms focused exclusively on the life sciences industry is making seed and venture investments from its third fund of $125M, and usually seeks to be the first institutional capital in a company. Equity investments are the preferred capital structure; however convertible notes may be employed for seed investments. Initial investments may be as small as $1M (seed-stage companies) with up to $15M allocated over the life of the investment. The firm prefers to lead financing rounds of Canadian companies and co-lead investments based in the United States.

The firm is focused on investments in therapeutics, medtech and diagnostics. The firm is agnostic in terms of subsector and indication and invests in early pre-clinical up unto Phase III therapeutic assets with the caveat being that the capital needs of the company fall within the fund’s criteria for investment size. As for devices and diagnostics stage of development, the firm invests in products in development and in clinical settings given the aforementioned capital constraints for therapeutics. For medtech, the firm has a preference for 510(k) regulatory pathways but will also evaluate devices with a PMA pathway.

The firm has no strict criteria for management teams and will work with novice entrepreneurs, however those management teams with experience are favored. The firm looks to originate 2/3 of its investments in Canada and the rest in the United States, and typically seeks a board seat along with investment.

If you are interested in more information about this investor and other investors tracked by LSN, please email mandates@lifesciencenation.com.

Hot Investor Mandate 4: VC Firm Looks for Medtech and Digital Health Companies in USA and Canada, with Focus on Drug Platform & Consumer-Facing Technologies

15 Feb

A venture capital firm with offices in Boston, San Francisco and Toronto, Ontario invests in several verticals including enterprise software, media and technology, health and life sciences, virtual reality, industrial & business services and blockchain solutions. The fund makes initial investments in the range of $250K – $1M in the form of straight equity or convertible notes and typically targets seed and series A rounds. The firm only leads or co-leads rounds that they can capture a meaningful stake in the company and chunk of the round with $1M. The fund looks to be very active in their investments and add value to portfolio companies through ongoing support and advice as well as leveraging a broad business network. The firm is focused on companies based in the U.S. and Canada and looks to do 10-20 deals per year.

In the healthcare space, the firm is primarily interested in the healthcare IT/digital health, medtech and diagnostics space. The fund is not interested in traditional medical devices and diagnostics that require FDA approval, but rather devices and diagnostics with both a hardware and software component which do not require a traditional regulatory pathway. The fund is most interested in point-of-care and consumer facing technologies as well as platform technologies that help bolster and make the drug discovery/research process more efficient and accurate.

The firm is looking for companies with some type of traction, not necessarily revenue but at least an LOI or pilot in place. The fund will work with novice entrepreneurs, but the founder(s) should at least have deep technical expertise in the area they are pursuing. The firm looks for a board seat as well as pro rata and information rights along with an investment.

If you are interested in more information about this investor and other investors tracked by LSN, please email mandates@lifesciencenation.com.

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