Medicxi raises USD 400m to invest in single-focus life sciences companies

Medicxi IV is the same size as its predecessor in numerical value, although it was raised in a different currency from the EUR 400m Medicxi III. The US dollar a more operational currency, he said, as many of the firm's LPs are based in North America and its recent transactions have closed in dollars.

Medicxi III is fully deployed in terms of new platform investments but has powder reserved for follow-on investments, he said.

Investors
The fund is backed by institutional investors, largely from the US, alongside a couple of pharmaceutical companies, he said. Novartis and Johnson & Johnson were LPs in the GP's third fund.

Investments
The fund describes its deployment strategy as ‘asset-centric', partnering with ‘drug-hunting' entrepreneurs with clear product visions, with Rubertis adding that these are drawn from the pharmaceutical, biotech and academic spaces.

It will deploy tickets of USD 10m-USD 20m across the pharmaceutical life cycle.

It positions itself as investing in companies with one high-conviction therapeutic programme, as opposed to those with pipelines of multiple molecules for different indications. "Some individuals have a sixth sense to cherry-pick a drug ahead of the discovery process. Finding that one molecule means you have high conviction, whereas choosing 100 molecules is a bad strategy," Rubertis said, adding that this narrow focuse space is where the fund likes to play.

Medicxi does not have specific targets in terms of indication, but rather assessing whether the therapeutic addresses an unmet need - although inflammation and immunology comprise a large part of its deployment. As it stands, around 70% of its portfolio is biologics with the remaining 30% in small molecules.

One of its portfolio companies, Versanis Bio, which focuses on cardiometabolic diseases, was acquired by Eli Lilly this month for USD 1.9bn, two years after the sponsor co-led a USD 70m Series A. Its lead candidate is Bimagrumab and the buyout comes at a time when pharmaceutical companies are increasingly turning their attention on anti-obesity treatments.

Another, Villaris Therapeutics, was acquired by Incyte for USD 70m with another USD 1.3bn in milestone payments after pre-clinical data for Auremolimab demonstrated high potency and efficacy in treating vitiligo.

People
Medicxi - Francesco De Rubertis (co-founder).

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