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

Nebex Raises $30M Seed Round Led by GV to Build Market Infrastructure for the Global Space Economy29.6.2026 17:38:00 CEST | Press release

The new funding and banking relationship allow Nebex to scale the market and unlock the commercial space economy. Nebex, the market infrastructure platform for the global space economy, announced a $30M seed investment led by GV (Google Ventures), with participation from other top-tier venture funds. The company also announced a banking relationship with J.P. Morgan. The capital raise and new banking relationship will help Nebex scale its platform and connect sovereign space programs with the founders and companies building new technologies to serve the space industry. "We built Nebex because we've seen firsthand that ambitious space founders struggle to deliver complex sovereign programs due to the lack of capital markets infrastructure that supports revenue and cashflow. This is something that exists in nearly every other industry," said Tejpaul Bhatia, CEO of Nebex. "Support from these organizations gives Nebex the additional leverage and financial infrastructure to build the global

Medisca Enters Its Next Chapter Under Founder Antonio Dos Santos29.6.2026 16:19:00 CEST | Press release

Medisca today announced that Founder and Chairman Antonio Dos Santos has returned to the role of Chief Executive Officer as the company enters its next chapter of growth. For more than 35 years, Dos Santos has helped shape Medisca into a global leader in pharmaceutical compounding. As Chief Executive Officer, he will lead the company's long-term strategy, with a focus on expanding Medisca's global reach, investing in new areas of growth, strengthening strategic partnerships, and continuing to advance the products, services, education, and expertise that healthcare professionals rely on every day. "When I founded Medisca, my vision was to raise the standard of pharmaceutical compounding by bringing pharmaceutical-grade quality to the industry and giving healthcare professionals access to the products, knowledge, and innovation they needed to deliver better patient care," said Antonio Dos Santos, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Medisca. "That purpose continues to guide us. As we b

The Premier Jumping League (PJL) & McCarthy Jumping Team Announce Landmark Purchase29.6.2026 15:10:00 CEST | Press release

With $50 Million Team Acquisition, McCarthy Jumping Team Becomes First PJL Ownership Group Acquisition illustrates strong investor confidence in the future of professional showjumping as highly anticipated 2027 inaugural season to feature 16 teams competing across 14 international events The Premier Jumping League (PJL) today announced that seasoned trader, investor, and competitive race car driver Jason McCarthy and McCarthy Jumping League LLC acquired the first PJL team in a landmark $50 million acquisition, building on rising momentum for the highly acclaimed professional jumping league. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260629512997/en/ The Premier Jumping League (PJL), photographed by Daniel Benson. The milestone investment represents an unprecedented valuation for a team in a newly established sports competition and underscores the confidence that sophisticated investors are placing in the PJL. The inaugur

InvestEco Sustainable Food Fund IV Holds a Final Close With Total Commitments of C$106M29.6.2026 15:00:00 CEST | Press release

InvestEco Capital is pleased to announce the final close of the InvestEco Sustainable Food Fund IV. This fund will continue InvestEco’s work of investing in high-growth food companies that promote health and sustainability in the food sector. The Fund closed with total commitments of C$106M, the largest InvestEco fund to date. Investors include Farm Credit Canada, Export Development Canada, Business Development Bank of Canada, Fonds de solidarité FTQ, and two Government of Canada Social Finance Fund wholesalers: Boann and Realize Capital Partners. In addition, the Fund received commitments from a number of private investors and family offices. The Fund's investments to date include Humble Snacks, Little Sesame, Mid-Day Squares and Algae Cooking Club. The Fund expects to make a further 6 - 10 investments over the next few years. InvestEco Capital, founded in 2002, is a Toronto-based venture capital firm and impact investor focused on the sustainable food sector. For more information, em

Geoswift and SKUx Announce Strategic Partnership to Develop a First-of-Its-Kind Programmable Stablecoin Commerce Network29.6.2026 14:00:00 CEST | Press release

Bridging digital assets, traditional finance, enterprise treasury, and agentic commerce through global programmable money infrastructure Geoswift and SKUx announced a groundbreaking partnership to develop a next-generation programmable stablecoin commerce network. This strategic collaboration bridges digital assets, traditional finance, and real-world commerce at a global scale, representing a "one-of-one" opportunity by combining Geoswift's global infrastructure with SKUx's specialized item-level controls directly within point-of-sale (POS) systems. While enterprise stablecoin usage continues to accelerate globally, governments, enterprises, payment networks, and AI-driven commerce platforms are increasingly seeking programmable payment infrastructure that can bridge digital assets with real-world commerce. The innovation goes far beyond treasury management or even enabling consumers to spend stablecoins at retail locations. Instead, it unlocks true "programmable money" with embedded

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