Caixa Capital Risc has rebranded as Criteria Capital Risc as its parent company, CriteriaCaixa, prepares to invest €300 million in early-stage biotechnology, healthcare, and technology companies through 2030.
The investment program forms part of CriteriaCaixa’s 2030 Strategic Plan and will be carried out through two specialized funds: Criteria Bio Ventures and Criteria Venture Tech.
The initiative is intended to support high-potential companies developing transformative therapies and advanced technologies that can generate long-term economic and societal value. Investments will primarily target companies in Spain and Portugal, with selective opportunities also considered across Europe and North America.
Approximately 70% of the current venture portfolio’s value is represented by investments in Spain, reflecting CriteriaCaixa’s commitment to supporting the country’s startup, scientific, and innovation ecosystem.
Caixa Capital Risc was founded in 2002 within “la Caixa” and became a wholly owned subsidiary of CriteriaCaixa in 2013. The company will now operate under the Criteria Capital Risc name to more clearly position it as CriteriaCaixa’s dedicated venture capital investment arm.
The rebranding will not result in changes to the company’s organizational structure or existing investment portfolio. Criteria Capital Risc has operated as an active investor in the Iberian venture capital market for more than two decades.
Through its specialized investment vehicles, Criteria Capital Risc takes an active role in supporting portfolio companies. The investment team frequently holds board positions and provides founders with strategic guidance, financial resources, industry expertise, and access to a network of national and international venture capital and private equity investors.
Criteria Capital Risc and its two funds are included within CriteriaCaixa’s alternative investment portfolio, which is designed to diversify the holding company’s exposure beyond its founding stake in CaixaBank and its portfolio of significant investments in publicly traded companies.
CriteriaCaixa’s alternative investment platform includes venture capital, scalable companies, and real estate assets. The portfolio is managed through three wholly owned companies: Criteria Capital Risc, Criteria PE Management, and InmoCaixa.
Criteria PE Management is a recently established investment management company focused on gaining exposure to medium-sized private companies through third-party funds. InmoCaixa manages CriteriaCaixa’s real estate activities.
Under the 2030 Strategic Plan, the combined gross asset value of Criteria Capital Risc, Criteria PE Management, and InmoCaixa will be limited to 10% of CriteriaCaixa’s total gross asset value.
Criteria Bio Ventures
Criteria Bio Ventures is Criteria Capital Risc’s biotechnology and healthcare investment fund. It focuses on identifying, financing, and supporting companies developing new therapies that could transform the treatment and management of serious diseases.
The fund targets companies with strong scientific foundations, experienced teams, and the potential to scale their innovations into products capable of reaching patients.
Criteria Bio Ventures is particularly interested in therapeutic approaches designed to address unmet medical needs. It supports companies as they move through major research, clinical, regulatory, and business development milestones.
The fund also helps portfolio companies strengthen their growth strategies, establish relationships with additional investors, and maximize the commercial and societal value of their scientific innovations.
Criteria Bio Ventures was the first and principal investor in Minoryx Therapeutics, which is developing treatments for rare diseases including adrenoleukodystrophy and Rett syndrome.
It also backed Adaptam Therapeutics, an immuno-oncology company working to develop new approaches to cancer treatment.
Other portfolio companies include Aboleris Pharma, which is developing therapies for autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, and NRG Therapeutics, which is working on treatments for neurodegenerative diseases including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease.
The biotechnology portfolio also includes Tolerance Bio, which is developing therapies intended to reverse age-related deterioration of the immune system, and Cytospire, an immuno-oncology company.
Through these investments, Criteria Bio Ventures aims to help translate scientific research into therapies that can improve patient outcomes while supporting the growth of Europe’s biotechnology industry.
Criteria Venture Tech
Criteria Venture Tech is Criteria Capital Risc’s technology-focused investment fund. It concentrates on deep technology and several strategically important markets, including artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, software, and data infrastructure.
The fund invests in companies beginning at the pre-seed and seed stages and generally seeks to serve as the lead or co-lead investor in financing rounds.
Criteria Venture Tech also has the flexibility to continue supporting high-performing portfolio companies at later growth stages. This strategy enables the fund to participate in a company’s development from its earliest stages while helping founders structure larger funding rounds with global investors.
The fund’s objective is to help its portfolio companies become international leaders while strengthening Europe’s position in advanced technology development.
Criteria Venture Tech’s portfolio includes Ipronics, which develops programmable photonic chips for artificial intelligence applications, and Immfly, a digital platform used for onboard retail and entertainment services.
The portfolio also includes KD, a semiconductor company developing chips for advanced optical connectivity, and Barbara, an industrial software company focused on Internet of Things infrastructure.
By investing across deep technology, AI, semiconductor infrastructure, cybersecurity, and enterprise software, Criteria Venture Tech aims to support the development and retention of highly skilled technical talent within Europe.
Criteria Capital Risc’s €300 million investment plan will give the firm greater capacity to support companies through multiple stages of growth. It will also enable the investment platform to take larger positions in companies developing technologies and therapies with the potential to address major healthcare, industrial, and economic challenges.
CriteriaCaixa reported gross asset value of approximately €45 billion in 2025. Its assets are managed through four principal portfolios: its founding stake in CaixaBank, a significant investments portfolio, an alternative investments portfolio, and a liquidity portfolio.
The significant investments portfolio includes holdings in publicly traded companies such as Naturgy, Telefónica, ACS, and Veolia.
CriteriaCaixa serves as the investment vehicle of “la Caixa” Foundation. Its goals include generating financial resources to support the foundation’s annual budget and increasing the value of its assets through active portfolio management.
Dividends generated by CriteriaCaixa are reinvested into programs operated by “la Caixa” Foundation, including initiatives supporting vulnerable populations, scientific research, culture, education, and broader social development.
Through the Criteria Capital Risc rebrand and the planned €300 million investment program, CriteriaCaixa is expanding its role in the development of high-growth biotechnology and technology companies while strengthening its exposure to innovation-driven industries.
