Irish Govt to Fund U.S. Life Sciences VC Presence in Ireland

Richard Bruton in Silicon Valley (Enterprise Ireland)

The government of Ireland plans to invest $37.5 million in Sofinnova Ventures, a venture capital firm in Menlo Park, California that supports start-ups in the health care field, for the company to establish a presence in Ireland. Ireland’s Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton (pictured right) made the announcement today during a visit to California’s Silicon Valley.

Enterprise Ireland, that supports Irish companies in world markets, will supply $25 million of the investment. Ireland’s National Pensions Reserve Fund is expected to fund the remaining $12.5 million.

Sofinnova Ventures invests in new companies offering biopharmaceutical products, usually in clinical and late preclinical stages of development. The company says it looks to invest in spin-off or technology-based products with a strong research base that meet previously unmet medical needs.

In October 2011, Sofinnova announced its latest fund, Sofinnova Venture Partners VIII, that raised $440 million for life sciences investments. One company in the Sofinnova portfolio is Amarin Corporation in Dublin, a clinical stage company developing treatments for hypertriglyceridemia, a condition of elevated fats related to cholesterol in the blood.

“I am determined that, with implementation of good government policies, we will see further development of a dynamic venture capital industry in Ireland,” says Bruton. “In this way, high-growth Irish companies will have access to the funding they need and we can help achieve the levels of growth we so badly need.”

Read more: Venture Firm Raises $440 Million for Life Sciences

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