Healthcare Industry News: Targanta Therapeutics
News Release - November 14, 2007
Skyline Ventures Closes $350 Million Healthcare Fund
PALO ALTO, Calif. & WALTHAM, Mass.--(HSMN NewsFeed)--Skyline Ventures, a leading venture capital firm that focuses on healthcare and life sciences investing such as medical devices and therapeutics, announced today the closing of Skyline V, a $350 million venture capital fund. Skyline began raising the fund in late June and closed on its hard cap of investor commitments in late October. In a separate announcement, Skyline announced that it co-led an investment in Dicerna Pharmaceuticals, Inc., its first commitment for the new fund.Skyline’s new fund will target approximately 15 investments with approximately $15-35 million per portfolio company over the life of the investment. The fund will continue the approach Skyline has been using since raising its third fund in 2001 of hands-on investing in early-stage, mid-stage and later-stage companies.
John Freund, Managing Director at Skyline, commented, “The closing of the new fund marks a very successful year for Skyline. Over the past 12 months, three of our portfolio companies were sold -- Avidia to Amgen in late 2006, and NimbleGen to Roche and NovaCardia to Merck this year. In addition, four portfolio companies went public. These were Hansen Medical in late 2006, and Sirtris Pharmaceuticals, MAP Pharmaceuticals and Targanta Therapeutics this year. We also expanded our team, opening an office in the Boston area in May, and that part of the country will continue to be a major focus for our investing.”
Skyline has six investment professionals, each of whom has either an MD or PhD degree as well as senior operating experience in one or more venture-backed healthcare companies. The Skyline team includes John Freund, M.D., Eric Gordon, Ph.D., Stephen Hoffman, M.D., Ph.D., Yasunori Kaneko, M.D., David Lowe, Ph.D., and Stephen Sullivan, M.D. The team is based in Palo Alto, California, except for Stephen Hoffman, who is based in Skyline’s office in Waltham, Massachusetts.
About Skyline Ventures
Skyline Ventures, formed in 1997, is a nationally-known venture capital firm that specializes in investing in outstanding product-focused healthcare companies. Its areas of expertise include small molecule and protein therapeutics; medical devices; diagnostics; and technologies that facilitate drug discovery and life science research. Skyline has approximately $800 million under management, including Skyline V.
For additional information on Skyline Ventures please visit www.skylineventures.com.
Source: Skyline Ventures
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