novo-seeds-life-42.html
Novo Annual Report 2015
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investing in early-stage life science n ovo
seed
s builds innovative nordic
biotech
companies
through early-stage investment. in close collaboration with leading researchers, academic institutions, entrepreneurs and leaders in the
biotech
industry, we help promising life science develop its commercial potential. this takes place through two programmes: pre-
seed
grants and
seed
investments. since 2007, we have built a pipeline of new
biotech
start- ups, developing portfolio
companies
towards commercialisation and success. today, our portfolio comprises 16 active
seed
companies
and 21 pre-
seed
projects, primarily from the nordic region. these
companies
cover the spectrum from early-stage discovery through to clinical-stage
companies
. an exciting year in 2015, we not only saw a significant exit from our portfolio; we also took our first step into industrial
biotech
. in may 2015, the flagship in novo
seed
s? portfolio, epitherapeutics was acquired by gilead sciences inc., a major us
biotech
company, in a landmark deal for a scandinavian
biotech
. epitherapeutics is based on the groundbreaking science conducted by world-leading epigenetic researcher, professor kristian helin and his team at the university of copenhagen (read more on pp. 46-47). in april 2015, we made a
seed
investment in the danish start-up, biosyntia. the company specialises in the development of novel cell factories for the production of biomolecules by fermentation.
seed
investments the most promising early-stage
biotech
companies
based on advanced research are developed and financed through
seed
investments. while capital is a critical element, active involvement in building the team, selecting leading experts as advisors, and defining the milestones for the company development plan, are equally important. through our hands-on approach to
seed
investing, we aim to transform innovative science into products that address unmet healthcare needs and improve quality of life. novo
seed
s has created a strong pipeline of early-stage
biotech
companies
within drug development, medical devices and, as of 2015, industrial
biotech
. as access to capital is always a challenge for early-stage
companies
, we place great emphasis on working closely with other regional and international venture funds. this collaboration not only brings additional capital; it also gives access to talent and networks, which is a critical success factor. significant investment rounds represent an important validation of a
biotech
company. in 2015, novo
seed
s attracted more than a 2-1 ratio of co-investment in our portfolio
companies
. pre-
seed
grants one way in which we identify and develop new
biotech
start- ups is through the pre-
seed
grant programme. awarded on behalf of the novo nordisk foundation, our pre-
seed
grants are given to early-stage, state-of-the-art academic research projects with promising commercial potential. we work closely with each project to help them grow and draw on external experts and entrepreneurs who can contribute commercial experience and strategic directions to the individual projects. in this way, we begin to set the team for a future spin- out company, and provide each project with the best conditions to develop into attractive
seed
investments. promising
companies
have already emerged from the pre-
seed
grant programme ? with galecto
biotech
, pcovery and orphazyme as prominent examples. today, galecto
biotech
and pcovery are active novo
seed
s portfolio
companies
and have attracted strong investor syndicates with international participation. pre-
seed
grants
seed
investments 350 400 300 250 200 150 100 50 0 accumulated cost of pre-
seed
grants and investments (as of 31.12.15) pre-
seed
projects portfolio
companies
2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 40 30 20 10 accumulated number of pre-
seed
projects and portfolio
companies
(as of 31.12.15) 0 annual review 2015 43 novo
seed
s
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