Business Wire

SOFINNOVA-PARTNERS

13.12.2023 07:01:34 CET | Business Wire | Press release

Share
Sofinnova Partners Launches Biovelocita, the First Pan-European Investment Strategy Dedicated to the Creation and Acceleration of Biotech Startups

Sofinnova Partners (“Sofinnova"), a leading European life sciences venture capital firm based in Paris, London, and Milan, announced today the launch of Biovelocita, an investment strategy dedicated entirely to the creation and acceleration of biotech startups in Europe.

Biovelocita’s newly formed team will provide a hands-on, robust framework for startups, combining direct management, financial backing, and access to Sofinnova’s extensive infrastructure and network. The strategy builds upon Sofinnova’s established track record of nurturing innovative ventures within the healthcare and sustainability sectors. It draws inspiration from the achievements of Italy’s first biotech accelerator, BiovelocITA, co-founded by Gabriella Camboni, Silvano Spinelli and Sofinnova Partners in 2015, which has significantly contributed to the growth of the Italian biotech ecosystem.

Graziano Seghezzi, Managing Partner of Sofinnova Partners, said: “With Sofinnova Biovelocita, we are doubling down on our commitment to innovation and company creation in the life sciences. To improve and expand our company-creation toolbox, we have brought together a group of experienced investors and entrepreneurs who have been collaborating with Sofinnova for over a decade, some nearly two decades. With this top-tier team, we look forward to strengthening one of Sofinnova’s strategic pillars: acceleration, which is already making rapid strides in the medical device space with Sofinnova MD Start, our in-house medtech accelerator.”

Key partners of this initiative include:

  • Gabriella Camboni, Partner, pivotal in the conception of this strategy as a co-founder and CEO of BiovelocITA. She also co-founded two Sofinnova companies, EOS (Ethical Oncology Science), serving as its COO until its acquisition by Clovis Oncology in 2013, and Novuspharma, which was acquired by Cell Therapeutics, Inc. in 2003.
  • Matthieu Coutet, Partner, brings nearly two decades of experience in venture capital and operations, including significant contributions to the launch of biotech startups such as TherAchon and Annapurna Therapeutics, and the founding of AdBio Partners.
  • Alex Leech, Partner, an experienced biopharma company builder and a serial CEO, most recently serving as the founding CEO of Alchemab Therapeutics, which raised an $82m Series A investment round.
  • Zhizhong (Joel) Yao, Partner, a former Principal in the Sofinnova Capital Strategy, and a Kauffman Fellow, instrumental in the launch of several biotech start-ups. Holds a Harvard PhD in Chemical Biology and Systems Biology and did post-doctoral research at the French National Institute of Agricultural Research.

Seghezzi concluded: “We know from our extensive experience that close cooperation between top management teams, world-class scientists, and dedicated financing, forges the path for biotech champions of tomorrow. With this new strategy, we are poised to catalyze transformative innovation in biotechnology.”

About Sofinnova Partners

Sofinnova Partners is a leading European venture capital firm in life sciences, specializing in healthcare and sustainability. Based in Paris, London and Milan, the firm brings together a team of professionals from all over the world with strong scientific, medical and business expertise. Sofinnova Partners is a hands-on company builder across the entire value chain of life sciences investments, from seed to later-stage. The firm actively partners with ambitious entrepreneurs as a lead or cornerstone investor to develop transformative innovations that have the potential to positively impact our collective future.

Founded in 1972, Sofinnova Partners is a deeply established venture capital firm in Europe, with 50 years of experience backing over 500 companies and creating market leaders around the globe. Today, Sofinnova Partners has over €2.5 billion under management. For more information, please visit: sofinnovapartners.com.

To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20231212907842/en/

About Business Wire

Business Wire
Business Wire
101 California Street, 20th Floor
CA 94111 San Francisco

http://businesswire.com
DK

Subscribe to releases from Business Wire

Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Latest releases from Business Wire

Ant International Secures Payment Institution Licence from the Central Bank of Brazil4.9.2026 16:41:00 CEST | Press release

Expanding the company’s capability to support local partners with FinAI solutions Ant International, the leading global digital payment, digitisation, and FinAI solutions provider, today announced that it has received a Payment Institution (PI) licence from the Central Bank of Brazil. “With the Central Bank's invaluable support, we are ready to step up more reliable and comprehensive global payment and account services to enterprises, platforms and SMEs in the country's dynamic digital economy, in ever deeper collaboration with its highly developed payments ecosystem and financial services industry,” said Rodrigo Reif, General Manager, Ant International Brazil. Ant International provides cross-border payments and account services, embedded credit and treasury services, and other finAI and blockchain solutions to clients across Asia, Europe and the Americas. The company processes over 20 million transactions daily, connecting 2 billion consumer accounts to 150 million global merchants v

Bending Spoons completes the acquisition of Airtable4.9.2026 14:30:00 CEST | Press release

Bending Spoons S.p.A. (NASDAQ: BSP) has completed the previously announced acquisition of Airtable, the platform used by more than 500,000 organizations to reshape how teams organize data and manage critical workflows. “Airtable continues to grow because customers value its best-in-class flexibility,” said Luca Ferrari, Bending Spoons CEO and co-founder. “Teams can bring all their data, context, and AI agents together in one place, shape their workflows around their specific needs, and progressively expand their use of the platform over time. As we take the reins, our focus will be on sustaining that growth by investing heavily in Airtable’s product, customer support, and go-to-market capabilities.” “I’m proud of what the Airtable team has built and excited to see the business enter this next chapter,” said Howie Liu, co-founder of Airtable. “I’m confident Bending Spoons has the resources and long-term perspective to help Airtable continue delivering exceptional value to its customers

EQT to acquire McGill and Partners, a leading specialty (re)insurance broker for USD 2.0 billion, from Warburg Pincus4.9.2026 13:48:00 CEST | Press release

Warburg Pincus and McGill and Partners have reached an agreement with EQT that will see Warburg Pincus sell its majority stake to EQT McGill and Partners founders, management team and colleagues will re-invest alongside EQT, retaining a meaningful ownership stake in the firm going forward as they continue to serve clients globally Maintains commitment to firm’s independent model and culture of ownership, developed organically since its founding in 2019 EQT will partner with Steve McGill and the management team to accelerate organic growth, including via talent recruitment, further development of technology and data capabilities, and expansion of innovative digital solutions EQT and McGill and Partners are pleased to announce that EQT X ("EQT") has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire a majority stake in McGill and Partners from Warburg Pincus for USD 2.0bn. Founder and Chief Executive Officer Steve McGill will continue to lead the firm, while Chairman John Lloyd will remain a

A Race Is Never Won Alone: With La Tavolata, Barilla Brings the Paddock Family Together on the Monza Grid4.9.2026 12:18:00 CEST | Press release

A nearly 100-meter-long dinner table hosted more than 200 guests for an evening celebrating collaboration, trust and the bonds built beyond competition. On Thursday evening ahead of the Formula 1® Italian Grand Prix, Barilla transformed one of the sport’s fastest and most competitive environments into a place where the Paddock Family took center stage. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260902463001/en/ La Tavolata by Barilla on the starting grid of the Monza circuit. More than two hundred people gathered around a single table: drivers, Team Principals, mechanics, engineers, strategists, safety and medical car drivers, personal trainers, tire technicians. The individuals whose collaboration, precision and trust shape every race, every decision and every performance. A nearly 100-meter table set with plates and pasta. With the first-ever Tavolata organized by Barilla and F1, people from across the Formula 1® ecosy

Aqara Showcases The New Smart Lighting Series and Immersive Smart Home Experience at IFA 20264.9.2026 11:30:00 CEST | Press release

Aqara, a global leader in IoT, today announced a new lineup of smart lighting products and a global community platform for smart space creators, at IFA 2026 in Berlin. The announcements reflect Aqara's ongoing vision for AI-driven spatial intelligence — spaces that understand their users and adapt to how people actually live in them. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260904365343/en/ Aqara Showcases The New Smart Lighting Series and Immersive Smart Home Experience at IFA 2026 The new lighting series — spanning indoor and outdoor use — integrates seamlessly with Aqara's existing ecosystem of sensors, switches, and hubs, bringing complete whole-space lighting scenarios and automated controls to life. The new Aqara products showcased include the Floor Lamp T1, LED Downlight T2, LED Strip T2, Outdoor String Lights H1, and Permanent Outdoor Lights H1. In addition, the company will present Aqara Builder, a platform fo

In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.

Visit our pressroom
World GlobeA line styled icon from Orion Icon Library.HiddenA line styled icon from Orion Icon Library.Eye