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Investment in health startups in the BioRegion of Catalonia has set a new record in the H1 2022, raising €296M, reveals Biocat in its BioRegion report. This is more than all funding secured in 2021, which stands at €238M.

According to the report, the period between January to July saw a total capital raise of €258M, or 87 per cent of the capital, followed by stock market, public grants, and crowd equity.

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Investment in startups

Investment in biotechnology at €150M surpassed the previous high-water mark of €147M in 2020. It is mainly due to two crucial venture capital investments – €51M in Minoryx Therapeutics and €50M in SpliceBio. 

Growth in medtech subsector

Another notable event is the growth in the medical technology subsector, which saw an all-time high at €110M compared to €104M in 2021. 

The growth is fueled by a mega round of €100M secured by dental health startup Impress, reveals the report. 

Additionally, digital health firms raised €30M, roughly the same as in the first half of 2021. 

International participation

The report says the first half of 2022 closed with 25 venture capital operations, 95 per cent  of them with international participation.

Biocat’s report discloses the participation of international VCs in the BioRegion of Catalonia has grown to 110. 

The most significant growth was seen between 2019 and 2022, as the number of international funds invested in healthcare business projects doubled from 43 to 110. 

The report also lists the international investment funds that invested in the BioRegion: 

Region

• Europe – 67 per cent
• United States – 26 per cent
• Asia – 12 per cent

Kurma (France), Mangrove Capital (Netherlands), Idinvest (France), and Fund+ (Belgium) have co-invested in most startup rounds in the BioRegion.

Some specialised venture capital funds established in Catalonia include Ysios, Alta Life Sciences, Asabys, Invivo Capital, Inveready, and Caixa Capital Risc.

Investment areas

In terms of investment areas, 41 per cent of the co-investment rounds went to biotech companies, and the rest were spread fairly evenly between digital health (30 per cent) and medtech (23 per cent) startups.  

“The falling valuations, number of operations, and stock market activity in European and American markets makes it difficult to predict what will happen in the second half of the year,” says the report. 

Biocat CEO Robert Fabregat says, “Having funds based in Barcelona has been one of the key factors for attracting international capital to Catalonia, along with top-notch research and talented entrepreneurs and researchers.”

Joel Jean-Mairet, the founding partner of Ysios Capital, says, “In capitalisation, there is a lot of venture capital money, and startup dynamics won’t change. In fact, it’s an opportunity for many because late-stage investors are investing in more early-stage projects. The conditions could change from now: we’re moving into a much more selective period because we can’t see how long this downturn will last,” he explains. 

Biocat: What you need to know

Founded in 2016, Biocat is an initiative of the Government of Catalonia with the mission of boosting science and technology-driven innovation to grow the economy and make social impact.