Next Phase Newsletter

A large Japan-based conglomerate has businesses in several industries including life sciences and chemicals, and invests in and partners with strategically relevant startups via a corporate venture group.  The firm is open to global opportunities and is geography and stage agnostic.

Healthcare/Medical is one of the major focus areas of the firm’s investments. The corporate venture capital arm is interested therapeutics solutions such as solutions beyond the pill (digital therapeutics) and around the pill (delivery systems etc). Therapeutics areas of interest are CNS, Autoimmune diseases, metabolic diseases, regenerative medicine, Aging related solutions and Vaccines. The corporate venture capital arm is also interested in diagnostics solutions based on genomics, metagenomics, metabolomics, healthcare ICT (biosensors etc), and medical big data. Furthermore, medical devices for wound care, bone cement and hospital related infection treatment is also is an area of interest and is open to all classes of medical devices including 510k and PMA.

The corporate venture capital arm has a close, collaborative relationship with the parent company and its life science businesses and can also present opportunities to other relevant branches as appropriate.  The firm is a flexible investor and does not require companies to have a Japan-centric angle. For medical device & digital therapeutics opportunities, the group does prefer technologies with strong promise in the US market.

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

A global investor, exclusively focused on the development of oncology therapies, makes selective investments in early-stage drug development companies targeting cancer therapies that can bring solid proof of concept to the table. Typically, the firm invests in incorporated companies from late seed stage to early series B. The investment size will vary, and it can range from 3 to 10 million dollars with the possibility of investing lower amounts for seed stage companies. The firm may make 3-4 investments in the next year, depending on the opportunity. The firm has no geographic restriction and is actively seeking new investment opportunities across the globe.

In the life sciences, the firm is currently seeking new investments targeting the development of oncology therapies, and is open to all types of therapeutic modalities and all indications within the oncology space, including platform technology that has a lead oncology therapeutic product. The firm will typically not invest in medical devices or diagnostics, unless as companion to a therapeutic solution. Project will be evaluated on solid preclinical proof-of-concept (late preclinical stage/pre-IND or early clinical), and will often fund the companies at least up to human proof-of-concept (clinical Phase Ib – Phase IIa).

The firm only invests in private companies with experienced management teams and breakthrough potential. The firm most often takes the responsibility to be lead investor, alone or in syndicate as the opportunity demands, and wants to be actively involved in the successful development and growth of the portfolio companies. To this end, the firm has several experts in oncology, intellectual property and drug development on the investment team and available to the portfolio companies.

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

A venture capital firm is investing out of their second fund of over $200 million.  The firm invests via relationships with universities, and also in external startups that are not from these partnerships.  The firm typically makes initial investments of $1M-$5M and allocates up to $10M over the life of the investment. The firm usually invests in Series A rounds and beyond, but only participates as a part of a syndicate where a lead investor has already been identified. Further, the firm only invests alongside other institutional capital.

Though the firm does not have a strict mandate in terms of subsector or indication, therapeutics for oncology, cardiovascular, anti-inflammatories, and ophthalmology drugs have historically done well and are favored by the investment team. In addition to therapeutics, the firm will consider diagnostics and medical devices, but has not been active in these sectors.

The firm prefers an experienced management team with a successful track record, and primarily invests in U.S. and Canadian companies. The firm does not typically seek a board seat along with an investment, but may take an observer seat in the event the company’s management team is inexperienced.

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

A PE investment firm headquartered in Singapore makes global investments into life science and healthcare companies as well as services related to healthcare. The firm acts as a lead investor and utilizes their network to seek out other co-investors. Typical deal size is $0.2m to $10m.

The firm is interested in therapeutics, medical devices, diagnostics, healthcare IT, healthcare services, biotech, R&D services and supplier companies. The firm is both stage and indication agnostic and has no revenue requirement. The firm has flexible investment criteria but a cross border strategy  is very important as the firm is less interested in companies whose business focus is restricted to one country. The firm looks for companies with a multinational, global component.

The firm is flexible with their management team requirements. The firm is open to bringing in their own talent to assist with management and have supported scientists in becoming successful entrepreneurs. The firm is a value-added investor driven by opportunity. The firm takes a board seat when making investments.

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

A fund backed by a medical foundation makes investments in start-ups that fundamentally improve patient care in the area of orthopedic, spine & trauma surgery. While the firm will invest globally, the current focus is on companies located in North America, Europe and Israel. The firm prefers to participate in Series A rounds, investing between $1-2.5M with the potential to provide additional capital in later rounds.

The firm looks to fund companies with disruptive technologies in medical devices, diagnostics, and healthcare IT/digital health in the trauma and orthopedic surgery space. This includes technologies for before, during or after surgery, such as imaging, surgical tools, implantable devices and clinical data management. However, the firm is not currently looking to fund any regenerative medicine or tissue engineering applications within this space. If a medical device or diagnostic, companies should have a working prototype and preclinical data, while healthcare IT/digital health companies should have a running MVP as well as the ability to show market traction.

The firm invests in teams and companies that solve fundamental problems. The firm is looking for a clear market understanding and strong USP.

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

A private equity firm headquartered in Tokyo, Japan with additional offices worldwide is currently making new investments from a 2016 fund. The firm has a dedicated life science investment team and invests in venture stage companies. The firm invests in various stages, typically start-up and early stage. For life science companies, the firm generally allocates USD 3-5 million per round. The firm is currently focused on opportunities in the US, Israel and Japan.

The firm invests opportunistically in the life sciences. The firm seeks to invest in innovative therapeutics, diagnostics, and medical devices. For therapeutics, the firm generally invests in novel platform technologies and considers both small molecules and biologics. The firm is indication agnostic and will consider orphan diseases. The firm is also agnostic to the stage of development, but typically invests in companies with a lead asset in clinical trials. For medical devices, the firm is also opportunistic and generally invests in devices that are in the clinic. The firm generally only invests in new IP/NCEs, and does not invest in repurposed or reformulated products.

The firm  is currently focused on private companies in the US, Israel and Japan. The firm generally requires a seat on the board of directors or observers.

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

A venture fund founded in 2016 and based in Australia looks to invest in early-stage companies (pre-seed to series A stages) in therapeutics, medical devices, diagnostics or digital healthcare. The firm is looking for companies located in the Australia/New Zealand area as well as companies from the US with connections to Australia. The firm is especially interested in any company looking to finance and facilitate clinical trials in Australia, due to the firm’s experience and connections in this area and the streamlined Australian clinical trial ecosystem compared to EU and US clinical trial procedures. The firm will invest between $50,000-$150,000.

The firm is interested in companies developing technologies in therapeutics, medical devices, diagnostics or digital healthcare. The firm looks for projects that are in a pre-clinical phase, but both need to have some animal or other proof of principle data as a minimum before the firm will consider investing.

The firm has no management team requirements, but is prepared to actively collaborate with researchers to assist in the development and execution of commercialization strategy. The firm will typically seek to appoint one of its executive team or affiliated experts to the board of directors, to assist the project in its development.

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