Dutch venture capitalist Aglaia has launched the Aglaia Oncology Fund II, backed by high-net-worth families.
Investors will contribute a total of USD65 million to the fund, which has a final target of USD80 to USD100 million.
The group of investors has been expanded to include several institutional investors, including the European Investment Fund (EIF), which has made a substantial commitment. Aglaia is also one of the funds selected under the Dutch Venture Initiative, an investment fund recently launched by the Netherlands Ministry of Economic Affairs.
Through the new fund, Aglaia will be investing in an estimated 10 to 15 biotechnology start-ups which are in the process of developing groundbreaking technologies aimed at preventing and curing cancer.
Europe – and the Netherlands in particular – is home to a rapidly growing number of high-potential start-ups operating in this field, which are at an early stage of technological development. However, there is relatively little venture capital available in the market to fund these early stages due to the complexity of the research involved.
An estimated minimum of 21.4 million people will be diagnosed with cancer in 2030, with more than 13 million of these cases resulting in a fatal outcome.
In launching Oncology Fund II, Aglaia is helping to counter the risk of research findings not being further developed due to a lack of venture capital and thus failing to reach cancer patients.
Aglaia partner Mark Krul says “We demonstrated the effectiveness of our strategy with our first fund. The confidence our investors have placed in us will now enable us to use this new fund to substantially increase our contribution to the fight against cancer by building a portfolio of companies engaged in developing truly innovative anti-cancer medications.”
