The U.S. venture firm MPM Capital has created a partnership with India's Reliance Life Sciences aimed at injecting fresh capital into the subcontinent's life sciences industry. In the deal, RLS has become a partner in MPM BioVentures IV, a newly-closed $550 million fund which will budget a portion of its investment dollars for Indian biotech companies. The two firms are also considering the potential of a new seed fund that would be devoted to Indian companies. The move is a welcome development for India's biotech sector, which has been long on potential and short on cash. It also offers another glimpse at the increasingly global structure of drug development, as companies develop international strategies for cutting costs and shortening development time frames.
"RLS is creating one of the most diverse and integrated corporate life science efforts in the world today," says MPM Capital General Partner William Greene, M.D. "There is no doubt that biotechnology is going global. As investing pioneers in the life sciences sector, MPM wants to be and needs to be part of the process. We believe that Reliance's multi-faceted footprint in India provides a natural foundation from which to accomplish our objectives. Similarly, we expect the collaborative effort to help Reliance deliver on its own vision of coupling U.S. innovation and entrepreneurship with talent and service delivery in India."
- see the release on the investment pact
- for more on the fund, check out this MarketWatch article