Forbion – a leading European life sciences venture capital firm – announced recently that it has raised €1.35 billion ($1.5 billion) for its two newest funds, bringing the total of funds under management to €3 billion. Both of the funds exceeded their original target sizes and represent Forbion’s largest fundraising success to date.
The final close of the Forbion Ventures Fund VI reached the hard cap amount of €750 million and the final close of the Forbion Growth Opportunities Fund II has also been secured at the hard cap amount of €600 million. And the two funds meet the needs of distinct segments of the market. The Forbion Ventures Fund VI is focused on building companies at an earlier stage of development and the Forbion Growth Opportunities Fund II – supports the expansion of late-stage life sciences companies.
The Forbion Ventures Fund VI and the Forbion Growth Opportunities Fund II are going to be managed by Forbion’s highly specialized and experienced investment team and supported by a high-caliber group of operating partners, venture partners, and advisers.
Forbion Ventures Fund VI
The Forbion Ventures Fund VI is going to build a portfolio of highly impactful therapeutics companies including existing biotechs and new companies (co-) founded by Forbion, which are created around assets sourced from pharma or academic institutions or around proven management teams. And Forbion’s Ventures Fund VI builds on the firm’s strong track record from previous Forbion Ventures funds. Forbion Ventures Fund VI has seen a strong re-up rate by existing investors and at the same time has attracted several new investors including Dutch pension funds PME and PMT, Loyola University of Chicago, the Scott Trust Endowment Ltd, and Pictet Alternative Advisors.
Forbion Growth Opportunities Fund II
The Forbion Growth Opportunities Fund II builds on the strength of the first Growth Fund. This fund is focused on investing primarily in European later-stage biopharma companies developing novel therapies in areas of high medical need. In these financings, the team is aiming to take leading positions with investment sizes of up to €70 million per deal. This fund has attracted several new institutional investors, including Amundi and Legal & General Capital which join Dutch pension funds PME and PMT, Pantheon and Eli Lilly and Company. The Forbion Growth Opportunities Fund II has already made 4 investments to date.
KEY QUOTES:
“We are extremely proud of the confidence investors have placed in us as evidenced by the €1.35 billion that we have raised. This is a record for Forbion and a testament to our long track record as a leading investor that supports ambitious management teams and successful life sciences companies across different stages of their development. Achieving the final close of the Forbion Growth Opportunities Fund II at the hard cap highlights the continuing need for investment in late-stage European life sciences companies, a market segment that remains underserved. Furthermore, the successful final close of our Forbion Ventures VI Fund demonstrates continued investor appetite for our specialist investment strategy and the opportunities we see for superior returns in development-stage life sciences companies.”
- Sander Slootweg, Managing Partner and co-founder of Forbion
”We are delighted at the success of these two fundraisings, which were oversubscribed against the backdrop of considerable market uncertainty. The high demand from existing and new institutional and corporate investors reflects their confidence in the strong fundamentals of our industry and in Forbion’s ability to provide capital and expertise that enables high-quality life sciences companies to develop new therapeutics that can significantly impact the future of medicine.”
- Robbert van de Griendt, General Partner, Investor Relations and Impact
