Sofinnova closes €165M biotech fund and backs three startups

FRANCE – European venture capital firm Sofinnova Partners has secured €165 million (US $180 million) for its new biotech fund, Biovelocita II, with strong backing from major pharmaceutical companies, including Amgen, Bristol Myers Squibb, and Pfizer.

This fund builds on the firm’s €1.2 billion raised last year and supports its growing biotech acceleration strategy.

Sofinnova announced that the fund is now the largest Pan-European biotech accelerator, exceeding its initial target.

It aims to support promising biotech startups across Europe, expanding beyond Italy to include France, the UK, and Denmark, with future plans to reach additional countries.

“We have now developed a pan-European strategy and assembled a world-class team to create and manage companies across the European biotech ecosystem,” said Graziano Seghezzi, managing partner at Sofinnova Partners.

With offices in Paris, London, and Milan, Sofinnova has invested over €4 billion in more than 500 companies since its founding in the 1970s. It funds biopharma, medtech, industrial biotech, and digital medicine startups.

The new Biovelocita II fund has already screened over 300 projects and made key investments in three biotech companies: BioClec, Forth Therapeutics, and Signadori Bio.

BioClec, headquartered in Italy, is developing new treatments for Alzheimer’s disease by targeting microglia, the brain’s immune cells.

The company is based on the research of Dr. Marco Colonna from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, USA. BioClec’s therapies focus on a novel microglial pathway and are currently in the discovery phase.

Forth Therapeutics, a University of Edinburgh spin-out, is working on precision therapeutics for fibrosis, a condition that leads to organ damage.

The company is based on research by Professor Neil Henderson, a fibrosis and tissue regeneration expert.

Forth Therapeutics is developing treatments for fibrosis across multiple organs and has access to one of the world’s largest single-cell human liver disease datasets.

Signadori Bio, created in collaboration with Gustave Roussy Institute in Paris, is focused on developing cell therapies for cancer.

The company benefits from the expertise of Dr. Jean-Luc Perfettini and Professor Nathalie Chaput, leading scientists in cancer immunotherapy.

Sofinnova’s latest fund highlights the increasing demand for biotech acceleration in Europe. “The strong response from our pharmaceutical partners and the fact that we exceeded our fundraising target underscores the demand for such an approach,” added Seghezzi.