BOSTON– Cure Ventures (“Cure”), a life sciences venture capital firm focusing on company formation around groundbreaking curative technologies, today announced the closing of its inaugural fund, Cure Ventures Fund I, L.P., at its targeted hard-cap of $350 million in capital commitments. The fund is supported by a strong syndicate of both U.S. and internationally-based investors that include state and city public pension funds, foundations and endowments, fund-of-funds, hospital and health systems, sovereign wealth funds and family offices.
Cure Ventures is focused on early-stage investments in life science and biotechnology, primarily focused in new therapeutics. Cure’s unique approach also embraces genetic validation as part of an iterative process to guide a drug through development, increasing the probability of success and mitigating the cost of failure. Embedded Cure operators will work alongside portfolio company founders to drive day-to-day decision making.
“Biopharma venture capital is an enterprise in risk management that demands rigor, diligence and patience,” said Richard Lim, co-founder and managing partner of Cure Ventures. “At Cure, we aren’t just signing a check. We are committed to working closely with founders to collaborate and operationalize capital, making us a true sweat equity partner. We look forward to sharing more about our investments in the near future.”
Cure leverages a seed funding model, allowing for important de-risking activities–a critical step in the early drug development process–which sets companies up for success in the clinic and beyond. As part of this process, Cure intends to follow through and co-lead subsequent Series A and B rounds of promising companies, seeing such companies through to their exits.
“We founded Cure with a grand ambition: to eradicate life-debilitating and life-ending diseases with curative technologies,” said David Fallace, co-founder and managing partner. “We know it is people who drive the development of therapeutics that change patients’ lives, not capital. This is why we are committed to continuously interrogating and validating technology to find the best path forward in collaboration with founders.”
Cure Ventures was founded by a network of highly accomplished industry veterans, including Managing Partners, Richard (Rich) Lim, M.B.A.; David (Dave) Fallace, J.D., M.B.A.; and Lou Tartaglia, Ph.D. The managing partners have played major roles in the success of several biotechnology companies, including Juno Therapeutics, Agios Therapeutics, Nuvation Bio and many others.
Lim’s career in the life science sector spans three decades, demonstrating strategic and corporate development leadership within the biotech industry as well as investment leadership at top-performing venture capital firms. He is considered a trusted partner to visionary scientists and entrepreneurs by being directly involved in the early capital raises of leading prominent biotech startups.
Fallace has made investments in venture capital and alternative asset funds for over 20 years. He served as a member of the investment committee of several large multibillion-dollar firms overseeing alternative investment portfolios. Across these portfolios, he made investments as a limited partner and as a founding investor in startups.
Tartaglia has a career spanning more than 30 years, demonstrating scientific and therapeutic product project leadership within the biotech industry as well as investment leadership within multiple venture capital firms. His experience and skills as a rigorous scientist have manifested across a wide array of functional areas, allowing him to serve with distinction within the C-suite in numerous biotech startups.
“Cure holds the highest respect for the scientists whose life’s work we aim to back. In fact, we consider ourselves their partners, as we understand what they are going through,” said Lou Tartaglia, Ph.D., co-founder and managing partner. “Our team has personally overcome the kinds of challenges early-stage companies encounter, and we bring decades of drug discovery and operational experience to support our portfolio companies as they de-risk their science, grow and scale.”
