EQT Life Sciences’ inaugural LSP Dementia Fund has flown past its target raise to reach 260 million euros ($281.8 million), which will go on to support 10 to 15 companies working in neurodegeneration.
The firm was hoping to raise 100 million euros ($108.4 million), but demand from investors such as the Alzheimer’s Association and European Investment Fund pushed beyond the target to the hard cap of 260 million euros. A number of unnamed pharmaceutical companies in Asia and the U.S., insurance companies and others contributed to the fund.
EQT plans to use the fund to boost investment in biotechs that are working to advance therapeutic breakthroughs in dementia while also generating strong returns for investors. The firm said in a Wednesday release that the level of investment in dementia does not match the “graveness” of the situation, where 54 million people worldwide suffer from the disease.
Money from the fund has already benefited a handful of biotechs. NewAmsterdam Pharma, which is focused on cardiovascular and Alzheimer’s diseases, was the first investment in January 2021. Muna Therapeutics (Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases), AviadoBio (frontotemporal dementia and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), Nobi (smart care solutions in nursing homes) and QurAlis (frontotemporal dementia and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) have since followed.
Earlier in March, EQT joined a group of investors to support QurAlis’ $88 million series B. The 2020 Fierce 15 winner plans to use the cash to advance two lead amyotrophic lateral sclerosis candidates, QRL-201 and QRL-101, through the clinic. Further money from the raise will support early pipeline research in frontotemporal dementia.
The fund’s investment team is run by Philip Scheltens, M.D., Ph.D., a professor emeritus at Amsterdam University Medical Center. His main clinical and research interests are Alzheimer’s, vascular dementia and frontotemporal dementia, and he has authored more than 1,000 scientific publications.
EQT has a total of 113 billion euros ($122.46 billion) under management, with companies in Europe, the Asia-Pacific region and the Americas.