Editor’s note: BEYOND Expo 2023, which will be held in Macao from May 10 to 12, will focus on three key areas: BEYOND Sustainability, BEYOND Healthcare, and BEYOND ConsumerTech.
Global investment firm B Capital, the venture capital firm of Facebook Co-Founder Eduardo Saverin, plans to focus on opportunities across healthcare, including digital health, HealthTech, Medtech and BioTech.
“Our target investments range between $15 million and $50 million on first check,” Robert Mittendorff, Managing Director, General Partner and Head of Healthcare at B Capital told TechNode Global in an interview. “We invest as a firm from seed stage to IPO. We focus on companies with product market fit that are scaling in HealthTech and digital health, and biotech companies near or in clinical development.”
He said the firm is witnessing unprecedented innovation across the healthcare landscape. “Technological advancements in biology, AI, and automation are transforming the industry,” he added.
B Capital has closed its inaugural B Capital Healthcare Fund I at $500 million early of the month. Mittendorff joined B Capital in April 2021 to lead Healthcare Fund I and B Capital’s broader healthcare initiatives globally.
The B Capital Healthcare team focuses on deploying capital to category-defining companies that are building breakthrough products and solutions shaping the future of healthcare.
The current B Capital global healthcare portfolio includes over 20 companies in the United States, Asia and Europe, spanning early venture to late growth venture, across healthtech, digital health, biotech and MedTech.
Notably, the team co-led the latest round of investment in Hotspot Therapeutics, an AI-enabled drug discovery company, and led the latest round in Triumvira, a novel cell therapy platform in clinical development, according to earlier statement.
The team also led the latest financing in CapitalRX, a transformative tech platform for pharmacy benefits management. In MedTech, the team led the last round in Carlsmed, an AI-enabled personalized spinal implant company.
In January 2023, B Capital announced the close of Growth Fund III and affiliated funds with aggregate capital commitments of approximately $2.1 billion. With these funds closing, B Capital’s total assets under management are approximately $6.3 billion.
B Capital is a multi-stage global investment firm that focuses on seed to late-stage venture growth investments, primarily in the enterprise, financial technology and healthcare sectors.
Founded in 2015 by Facebook Co-Founder Eduardo Saverin and Raj Ganguly, B Capital leverages an integrated team across nine locations in the United States and Asia, as well as a strategic partnership with BCG, to provide the value-added support entrepreneurs need to scale fast and efficiently, expand into new markets and build exceptional companies.
Meanwhile, according to Mittendorff, the healthcare industry has been forced to adapt to the changes spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic and develop novel technologies that are now transforming the industry at a rapid rate.
“Advancements in areas such as digital health, HealthTech, MedTech, and biotech make for attractive investments with the potential to significantly shape the long-term future of healthcare,” he said. “We see today’s climate as an excellent one for venture given the decline in prices on assets that are still operating very well. We see valuations in the private market trailing the public by about six months. There are still many aggressively valued companies that we expect will correct in the coming quarters,” he added.
In the interview, Mittendorff also shared his views on healthcare startups’ valuations and the VC firm’s exit strategy.
Below are the edited excerpts:
What kind of opportunities B Capital sees in healthcare?
We are witnessing unprecedented innovation across the healthcare landscape. Technological advancements in biology, AI, and automation are transforming the industry.
In terms of timing, why now to set up its inaugural healthcare fund? Why not earlier?
This moment – combined with our decades of collective operating experience in the healthcare sector – presents a unique opportunity for B Capital to leverage our dedicated healthcare capital and active investment strategy to find and support companies advancing the sector.
For B Capital’s inaugural healthcare fund, any particular sectors B Capital priotizes/focuses more on?
B Capital’s inaugural Healthcare Fund I, in conjunction with B Capital’s recent close of Growth Fund III, invests in opportunities across healthcare, including digital health, healthtech, medtech and biotech. B Capital’s Healthcare team is focused on deploying capital to category-defining companies with industry leading teams that are building transformative solutions across the sector.
What kind of ticket sizes? Which stage the fund is looking at?
We invest as a firm from seed stage to initial public offering (IPO). We focus on companies with product market fit that are scaling in HealthTech and digital health, and biotech companies near or in clinical development. Our target investments range between $15 million and $50 million on first check.
How is the valuation of healthcare startups these days? Are they lower now as Covid-19 has tempered or it is still at a premium as compared to before the pandemic?
The healthcare industry has been forced to adapt to the changes spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic and develop novel technologies that are now transforming the industry at a rapid rate. Advancements in areas such as digital health, healthtech, medtech, and biotech make for attractive investments with the potential to significantly shape the long-term future of healthcare. We see today’s climate as an excellent one for venture given the decline in prices on assets that are still operating very well. We see valuations in the private market trailing the publics by about 6 months. There are still many aggressively valued companies that we expect will correct in the coming quarters.
How long will B Capital invest in healthcare startups? Could you share your exit strategy?
We invest from seed to IPO and have the ability to hold public stock as desired during management of the portfolio. We support companies for many years as they grow. We do not look for quick flips or short holds, but risk adjusted returns in partnering with solid management teams.
Singapore’s B Capital closes inaugural healthcare fund at $500M