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V-Bio Ventures

We are a life sciences fund investing throughout Europe in start-up and early-stage companies with high growth potential. Our articles cover investment-related topics in life sciences, including innovation trends, the latest business themes and exciting updates on our portfolio companies.
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Picture of V-Bio Ventures

V-Bio Ventures

We are a life sciences fund investing throughout Europe in start-up and early-stage companies with high growth potential. Our articles cover investment-related topics in life sciences, including innovation trends, the latest business themes and exciting updates on our portfolio companies.
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Cancer diagnosis and therapy in one: Precirix tackles tumors with camelid antibodies

A new drug that can identify tumors, trace metastases, and treat cancer – all in one? Belgian start-up Precirix is aiming high with its lead compound – a precision radiopharmaceutical using camelid antibodies to bind to, and irradiate, cancer cells.

Moderna: from secretive platform company to vaccine superstar

Moderna Therapeutics has never really been a typical biotech. Sure, nowadays it is world famous thanks to its COVID-19 vaccine, which has resulted in an $80 billion market cap and projected sales of $18.4 billion for 2021. But the path to success has not been that of a standard biotech’s journey. Through ups and downs, controversies and triumphs, here’s the fascinating story behind the rise of Moderna and the creation of its COVID-19 vaccine.

Friend or foe: building a healthy relationship with your board

CEOs of start-ups face many challenges. Among many tasks, they have to set up the organization, write the business plan, build an effective management team and, of course, attract finance. How concerned should they be with the composition of the board? And what can CEOs do to ensure that the board helps rather than hinders their company?

To fund or not to fund: the psychology of investment decisions

Much has been written about the psychology of decision making and how venture capitalists choose which companies they want to fund. Although due diligence is an important part of the process, first impressions and emotions play a huge role in reaching that stage. Diverse teams are vital to making sure that gut reactions aren’t driving poor investment choices in VC funds.

V-Bio Ventures invests in new start-up Protealis to uplift sustainable plant protein production

Ghent, Belgium, 8 April 2021 - Today V-Bio Ventures announces its investment in Ghent-based company Protealis, a new spin-off from VIB and ILVO. Inspired by the mission to grow more sustainable plant-based proteins locally, Protealis aims to harvest the full potential of legume crops. With innovative breeding technologies and proprietary seed coatings, Protealis will create new opportunities for European farmers to help overcome Europe’s protein deficit. The initial focus is to develop high-yielding, high-protein soybean varieties. V-Bio Ventures led the EUR 6 million seed financing round joined by Agri Investment Fund (AIF), Participatiemaatschappij Vlaanderen (PMV), Estari Group, Globachem Group, Gemma Frisius Fund and VIB. The capital will support the company’s plans to further develop its proprietary technology, expand its crop portfolio and bring the first soy varieties adapted to local needs to the market by 2022.

AgomAb’s journey of growth in regenerative medicine

Ghent-based AgomAb Therapeutics recently raised a Series B of $74 million, the largest round ever for a Belgian biotech in pre-clinical phase. Based on argenx’ technology, the company is developing HGF-mimetic antibodies for regenerative medicine. AgomAb has come a long way since it’s foundation in 2017 and has been pegged by many as one of the future stars of Belgian biotech.

V-Bio Ventures: a fresh fund with a difference

V-Bio Ventures recently announced their second fund, with the first closing already totaling 78 million euros [final close at 110 million euros - Ed.]. As a VC fund with a focus on early-stage life sciences companies, V-Bio will be using Fund 2 to continue supporting European start-ups working on effective healthcare or sustainable agriculture solutions. In this interview, co-founders Christina Takke and Willem Broekaert, along with new Managing Partner Shelley Margetson, share some success stories from V-Bio’s first five years and how they plan to create value for both investors and society in the future.

V-Bio Ventures launches its second fund at EUR 78 million

First Closing of V-Bio Fund 2 is announced at EUR 78 million. V-Bio Fund 2 will ensure seamless continuation of investment activities in early-stage European life sciences companies. V-Bio Ventures announces expansion of executive team, with Shelley Margetson joining as Managing Partner

How to build the right team for start-up success

One of the key ingredients to start-up success is a stellar management team. Attracting (and retaining) the right kind of talent is a challenge though, especially when trying to balance the skills and personalities of different individuals. Getting this balance right is key to a well-rounded and cohesive team that will let a company grow into its full potential. Here is our advice on some important factors to bear in mind when building a life sciences management team.

Decades-old discoveries cause paradigm shifts in modern medicine

Complete paradigm shifts in medicine are rare, but there have nevertheless been several major examples in the past hundred years. Treatments and approaches that seemed set in stone one decade can easily seem silly the next, as new information about the disease or underlying biology comes to light. Hindsight grants us clarity, but sometimes the factors that lead us down a particular treatment path can be as arbitrary as a feud between colleagues. Might there be paradigm shifts looming in oncology, neurology and more, triggered by a return to previous treatments?

An insightful solution to eye injections

Developing new therapies is sometimes not enough: for retinal indications, accurate delivery is key to making a drug work. Lowering the patient burden by minimizing injections is also an important factor to consider. Oxular, an Oxford-based biotech and V-Bio Ventures portfolio company, has developed a technology platform to address the unmet need for less frequent dosing and better drug delivery in retinal diseases.

V-Bio Ventures invests in new start-up Animab in a EUR 3.4 million Seed Financing to improve health and performance of livestock animals

Gent, Belgium, 27 October 2020 – Today V-Bio Ventures announces its investment in Animab, a new venture spin-off from VIB, in a EUR 3.4 million Seed financing round. The company develops monoclonal antibodies for oral administration to ensure intestinal health of livestock. The initial focus is on improving the resilience of piglets during the fragile post-weaning period. The start-up will use the seed capital to develop its first oral antibody product for protection against ETEC and initiate a product portfolio for the livestock industry.

Can Darwin’s theory explain why we get sick?

While physicians care for their individual patients and are interested in the factors contributing to the individual’s condition, evolutionary biologists investigate the cause of the biological phenomenon, trying to understand for example why a certain disease has developed in a particular species such as our own Homo sapiens. By combining the view of physicians with the view of evolutionary biologists, the field of evolutionary medicine has the potential to improve our understanding of certain diseases and how to prevent them.

A novel approach to neurology could bring relief to people in pain

In August 2020, V-Bio Ventures announced their investment in Biodol Therapeutics, a French start-up looking to make a difference to people suffering from chronic pain. The company is developing a drug to treat neuropathic pain by addressing the interplay between nerves and the immune system. In a billion-dollar market dominated by ineffective and dangerous painkillers, their unique approach could reduce the suffering of millions.

Drug combos: how much is 1 + 1?

Many of our current antiviral, antibacterial and anti-tumour medications are comprised of combinations of two or three active substances, selected on the basis that these combinations slow down emergence of drug resistance. We are currently witnessing a rapid expansion of disease indications for which exploratory drug combos are being tested, as well as of the rationales for combining drugs. In this article, we examine the drivers behind this trend and the inherent caveats and complexities of drug combo development.