Tánaiste launches new €25 million bioscience fund 11/13/2002
Mary Harney, Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, today launched the Growcorp €25 million European Bioscience Fund I – a new seed and venture capital fund focused on identifying investment opportunities in the bioscience sector in Ireland and the rest of Europe, as well as US scientists and entrepreneurs seeking to start a business in Ireland. Co-investors in the Fund are Enterprise Ireland, Irelandia Investments and Price WaterhouseCoopers.
Making the announcement the Tánaiste said: “the Government is committed to developing the right long-term policies and investing in the key areas needed to sustain and grow the economy through the next generation. Biotechnology is predicted to be a major basis for economic growth in the 21st Century. While the current state of the indigenous Biotechnology Industry is small, the medium-term objective of Enterprise Ireland is within 5 years to have increased the number of companies from a current base of 21 to 60 and the number of people employed in the sector from 400 presently to 1800.
The State has a pivotal role to play in bringing forward such companies but the long-term source of funding must lie with private sector markets.”
“Growcorp was the first private sector company in Ireland with an investment fund to offer proof of concept funding specifically targeted at the bioscience sector”, the Tánaiste said. “This Fund was fully committed by August last. I am pleased to announce that Growcorp is now launching a new €25 million fund, the European Bioscience Fund I, which is supported by Enterprise Ireland and by existing investors, Irelandia Investments and PricewaterhouseCoopers. This is an endorsement of Growcorp’s progress since incorporation and evidence of increasing investor confidence in the early stage bioscience sector.
“I firmly believe that the developing research infrastructure in Ireland, including the continued increased funding allocated under the National Development Plan, will provide a significant number of commercial investment opportunities for Growcorp based on high quality science. The commercialisation of research in Ireland, a critical component of Ireland’s future economic development, needs the participation of a vibrant Venture Capital industry, with expert knowledge related to emerging technologies, such as biosciences. This Growcorp Biosciences fund, which has been funded by the private sector in partnership with Enterprise Ireland, is a first class example of a public-private partnership focussed on delivering on strategic industrial development objectives. “The Government is highly committed to developing this exciting new science based sector. Enterprise Ireland will be at the forefront of the indigenous sector supporting market-led research in universities, attracting back to Ireland bio-entrepreneurs with international experience, building management teams around scientific teams, assisting with development of business plans, giving pre-venture capital support to early stage companies and co-funding companies who succeed in getting venture capital support,” concluded the Tánaiste.
According to Michael Donnelly, Chief Executive of Growcorp: “We have assembled an experienced management team with a combined 50 plus years of successful international experience in the sector. Growcorp’s management team has broadly based expertise in technology, life sciences, investment, marketing and business development.
The Growcorp Group team works with entrepreneurs to get the business from start-up to commercial reality. We have also established strategic alliances with US bioscience advisory companies and a US bioscience fund manager. In addition to opening up the US funding market for later funding rounds, these alliances expand the scope of the advisory services that we can offer to our investee companies.
“Our active management principles and our knowledge and experience of regulatory and intellectual property management are especially valuable not only in identifying the future winners but also in driving their successful development from within”, Mr Donnelly continued. “We have built up a portfolio of interesting early stage investments in diagnostics, therapeutics, drug delivery and sensor technologies. We take an active role in the development of each of our portfolio companies and we seek representation on the Board of the company, to ensure that we will be directly involved in planning its future development. In this way we offer far more than simple funding, we offer experience and expertise across a broad range of disciplines which can be brought to bear to ensure the long term success of our investee companies.”
