Arboretum Ventures: Sixth Fund Target Exceed At $268 Million

By Amit Chowdhry • Jul 9, 2023

Arboretum Ventures – a healthcare venture capital firm based in Ann Arbor, Michigan – announced the closing of its $268 million sixth fund, exceeding the target fund size. The investors include major health systems, payors, pension funds, endowments, and family offices.

This closing is a major milestone for the firm, which is now in its twenty‐first year of operation with total capital under management now at $1 billion. And the fund will be managed by a long‐tenured senior team including Managing Partners Jan Garfinkle, Tom Shehab MD, Dan Kidle, Partner and COO Paul McCreadie, and CFO Marcy Marshall.

Arboretum’s 60+ investments in medical devices, diagnostics, life science tools, and IT‐enabled healthcare services have impacted over 16 million patients nationwide. And these investments have spanned a diverse set of disease areas including oncology, cardiovascular, infectious disease, pulmonology, urology, and orthopedics.

Earlier this year, Jan was a recipient of the National Venture Capital Association’s inaugural Venture Vanguard award, recognizing venture capital leaders who have made significant contributions to the industry.

Based in Michigan, Arboretum has a national footprint but has historically deployed about 75% of its investments in “under‐ventured” geographies. And some of the firm’s most successful investments across the country include BioIQ, Inogen, NeuMoDx, nVision, NxThera, Rethink, and Swift Biosciences.

KEY QUOTES:

“More than ever, our strategy of investing in companies that aim to lower healthcare costs while improving outcomes is vital to addressing significant challenges that face the healthcare industry. Our healthcare system continues to grapple with an aging population and rising costs – we’re excited to partner with entrepreneurs who are ready to meet this challenge head‐on.”

— Managing Partner Tom Shehab, MD

“We are grateful for the continued support of our investors, especially in such a challenging fundraising climate. Our network of health system partners and industry advisors will help shape our investment strategy by providing insights to key strategic healthcare priorities.”

— Managing Partner Jan Garfinkle

“In 2002, Jan and our cofounder Tim Petersen took a risk and started Arboretum with the premise that you could build a successful venture fund in Michigan. Twenty‐one years later, we continue to embrace that entrepreneurial spirit, seeking out great opportunities overlooked by others.”

— Managing Partner Dan Kidle