Sofinnova Partners Closes €82M MD Start IV Fund to Build New MedTech Startup

Sofinnova Partners a Paris-based life sciences investment firm, has closed its Sofinnova MD Start IV fund with €82 million in capital.

According to the firm, the fund was oversubscribed and continues a strategy launched in 2008. The strategy has helped create around a dozen companies in the life sciences sector.

“Sofinnova MD Start is one of the few strategies in Europe focused on creating medtech companies from the ground up. What makes the model distinctive is the active role our team plays in building and supporting every company from day one. This latest fund will allow us to scale that approach and remain a key part of Sofinnova’s platform across the life sciences value chain,” said Antoine Papiernik, Chairman and Managing Partner of Sofinnova Partners.

Founded in 1972, Sofinnova Partners is a European venture capital firm focused on healthcare and sustainability. The firm has offices in Paris, London, and Milan and operates a multi-fund platform with seven investment strategies, each managed by a specialised team.

Its investment strategies include Capital, the firm’s flagship early-stage biopharma and MedTech fund; MD Start, which focuses on creating MedTech companies; Crossover, which backs growth-stage BioTech and MedTech companies; Industrial Biotech, which supports sustainable startups; Telethon, which invests in early-stage Italian science; Digital Medicine, which focuses on techbio and HealthTech; and Biovelocita, a BioTech accelerator developed with research organisations.

Sofinnova Partners says it has invested in more than 500 companies and manages over €4 billion in assets. The firm invests in startups from the Seed stage through to later stages and takes a hands-on approach to building companies across the life sciences sector.

MD Start is focused on creating MedTech companies from the ground up rather than investing in existing businesses. The strategy started with MD Start I, which closed with €8.2 million in 2008. MD Start II followed in 2015 with €10.3 million, while MD Start III reached €63 million in 2019. The latest fund is around 30% larger than its predecessor.

According to Sofinnova, Fund III invested in six companies that went on to raise more than €140 million in follow-on funding. Among the key successes from the MD Start strategy are LimFlow, which was acquired by Inari Medical for up to €392 million ($415 million), and preCARDIA, which was acquired by Abiomed.

Other portfolio companies include CorWave, which has raised more than €100 million; BrightHeart, which has received FDA and CE Mark clearance and recently raised €11 million in Series A funding; and Moon Surgical, whose Maestro system has FDA and CE Mark clearance and has been used to treat more than 3,700 patients.

Anne Osdoit, Partner at Sofinnova Partners, said, “We are grateful for the continued support of our existing and new limited partners. Their commitment reflects confidence in our active, hands-on approach to company building. With Sofinnova MD Start IV, we look forward to continuing to work closely with engineers, clinicians, and scientists to advance their transformative medical technologies from the lab to the clinic.”

The close of MD Start Fund IV comes after Sofinnova Partners’ flagship Sofinnova Capital XI fund, which closed at €650 million, exceeding its initial target. The fund also received a €30 million commitment from the British Business Bank.

With the final close of Fund IV, Sofinnova Partners plans to create six to eight new MedTech companies across Europe and the US over the next five years. The firm will provide founders with funding and hands-on support, helping them develop their companies from the early stages through important clinical and operational milestones.