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Kurma Biofund

Kurma Biofund: Investment for sciences of life

The Kurma BioFund I fund’s investment strategy is organised around three key concepts :

Nourishing, Caring, Protecting.

In these three areas, we are committed to innovation serving the consumer, the patient and the environment.

Our principles and methods of investment

• KLS Partners' methods of investment, through Kurma Biofund, highlight a selective approach to risk rather than extreme diversification within lines of investment. For each investment, KLS Partners concentrates on a limited number of scientific projects or applications.

Technology Transfer (TT) :

• A first investment of between 150,000 and 500,000 euros is made in order to develop and test the scientific hypotheses and prove the applicability of the concepts with which the research is concerned. Sums are made available quickly and KLS Partners takes out an option on the results of the research.
  
  
• Depending on how fast the project develops, Kurma contributes up to 6 million euros, in two or three stages, released over the duration of the project (from three to five years, with a maximum of seven years).
  
  
• KLS Partners bases its TT investment strategy on the following principles :

 

• A preference for associating itself with the capital of the companies created by research centers and researchers, rather than for royalty agreements. This brings the possibiliy of faster benefits. Research centers and researchers therefore retain a large minority shareholding, with the Fund being the majority shareholder.
• Creation of a board of directors comprising the researchers who created the project (if they so wish) and professionals with relevant experience in the field of biomedical discoveries. Everyday management is carried out by experienced managers with a background in the biomedical industry, who are able to give the associate researchers the benefit of their experience.
• Researchers are free to pursue their academic research activities whilst remaining associated with the companies that have been founded, subject to the agreement of any committees set up to deal with conflicts of interest.

Financing Innovative Companies

• This is an investment of 1 to 10 million euros per project, in a lump sum or in several stages. Projects thus financed will emanate from research centers with whom a partnership exists, from mature biotechnology companies or from spin-offs of large pharmaceutical groups. These investment opportunities are managed by companies whose specific purpose is to concentrate on one or two projects. They follow a very classic pattern in their everyday functioning and benefit from the commitment of one of the Partners of the Fund.

Capital Development

• This involves an invesment of 4 to 6 million euros per project, usually released all at once. Such investments are limited and opportunistic, based on contacts with the network of financial organizations operating in the sector. The focus is on high value-added opportunities for biomedical products, medical services, nutrition, the protection of the environment or means of fighting pollution.

The « Kurma Biofund » Portfolio