OrbiMed has raised $3 billion to place a fresh round of bets on biotechs and life sciences companies in the U.S., Europe and Asia.
Arriving three years after OrbiMed closed the previous iterations of the investment vehicles, the latest fundraising push dials up the company's spending power in Asia. OrbiMed Asia Partners VI raised over $1 billion to invest in healthcare growth equity and venture capital, up from the $751 million committed to the fifth fund and $800 million funneled into the fourth vehicle.
OrbiMed’s Asia-focused fund is the latest sign of increased investor interest in the region’s burgeoning life sciences sector. Earlier this month, TCGX raised $600 million for its first Asia life sciences fund and put down roots in the region with offices in Shanghai and Hong Kong.
Interest in investing in Asian biotechs has increased as the region, driven by China, has become a major source of new drug candidates for Western pharmaceutical companies and a potential hotbed for new global drugmakers. OrbiMed’s interest predates the recent surge in R&D activity, with the investor's current portfolio listing 22 Asian biopharma companies.
OrbiMed Managing Partner Carl Gordon pointed to “China's emergence as a biotechnology powerhouse” as one reason that “there has never been a more exciting time to invest in life sciences innovation.” Gordon name-checked AI and the proliferation of therapeutic modalities as other developments that are “expanding the opportunities to develop transformative treatments.”
The healthcare investment firm unveiled the new Asian fund alongside the latest version of its OrbiMed Private Investments vehicle. The fund, the 10th in the series, has raised more than $1.9 billion to invest in U.S. and European life science venture capital opportunities. Both funds will deploy their capital to build leading companies across biopharma, medtech and technology-enabled healthcare services.
OrbiMed Private Investments X is slightly larger than its predecessor, which secured $1.86 billion, and notably bigger than the $1.5 billion fund that the company raised in 2021.
The firm's U.S. biotech portfolio has delivered a series of wins in recent months. Forte Biosciences and Crinetics Pharmaceuticals accepted buyout offers worth $2.2 billion and $10 billion, respectively, in July. Over the next two months, Braveheart Bio, BlossomHill Therapeutics and ADARx Pharmaceuticals all went public.
The growing role of China as a source of biopharma innovation is one of the hot topics being discussed at Fierce Biotech's high-impact event in London next month. Find out more information and register by clicking on the banner below:
