Ysios Capital launches a €100M fund to boost the creation of biotech companies
The manager focuses on the early stages of a high-risk sector that requires a lot of financing
BarcelonaYsios Capital has launched a 100 million euro fund to boost the creation of biotechnology companies. The venture capital firm, specialized in life sciences, will focus on Spanish companies, with the aim of supporting them in their earliest stages.
It will be the first instrument of this size that Ysios will launch for the early stages of "biotech" companies. These are the most complicated in this sector, which requires a lot of initial investment and also involves a lot of risk. Until now, the firm had created tools like this for more mature and consolidated companies, such as the fund it recently created together with Andbank to invest in US-listed companies.
The fund announced now will primarily invest in technology transfer projects and companies that are starting to seek resources with seed rounds. To do this, Ysios will work with universities and research centers to "transform scientific discoveries into new therapies with an impact on patients".
The fund will be led by Ysios managing partner Joan Perelló and partner Arturo Urrios. "Spain has world-class science and a unique opportunity to transform this knowledge into new biotechnology companies with a global impact. We want to take another step in our ability to work from the origin of innovation, collaborating closely with the scientific ecosystem," Perelló defended.
More than 400 M€ under management
For the moment, the instrument has already raised part of the budget, with the participation of the Centre for Technological Development and Innovation (CDTI). The fund has set itself the objective of establishing at least three new companies throughout this 2026.
Founded in 2008, Ysios has invested in more than 40 biotechnology companies, such as Stat-Diagnostica, which was bought from the German group Qiagen and has just opened a global center for infectious diseases in Esplugues de Llobregat. It has also invested in other local companies such as SpliceBio, Ona Therapeutics and Minoryx Therapeutics. Currently, the firm headquartered in Barcelona and San Sebastián has more than 400 million euros in assets under management through three funds.