・Fostering globalstartups in the life sciences sector
・Acceleratingopen innovation between startups and Japanese companies
・Strengtheningthe life sciences startup ecosystem
Tokyo, February 6, 2023 – Japan Investment Corporation (“JIC”) has announcedits decision to make an LP investment of USD30 million in Saisei Bioventures,L.P. (“SB”) managed by Saisei Ventures LLC (“Saisei Ventures”)
JIC aims to stimulatea virtuous cycle of risk capital to support next-generation industries in Japan. To achieve thisvision, JIC promotes open innovation as a means for supporting growth and enhancingthe international competitiveness of businesses. JIC approaches these challenges bystimulating private sector investments in open innovation together with JIC’sown investment, while fostering investment professionals.
To achieve its mission,JIC invests in policy-relevant strategic business areas through LP investmentsin funds under JIC’s umbrella and in private funds.
About LP investment in SB
(1) JIC investment criteria
JIC’s investment criteria* identifies“Driving the creation of new businesses for Society 5.0” as one of its focusareas. JIC provides support to business sectors involved in the creation of new businesses characterized bydiscontinuous growth with high uncertainty from a business perspective and which require along-term, large-scale supply of risk capital.
*https://www.j-ic.co.jp/en/investment/criteria/
(2) Current status of investment market
From the perspectiveof stimulating discontinuous innovation toward the realization of Society 5.0,support for life sciences startups in fields such as biotechnology and drugdiscovery is critically important given the length of time and considerablefunding required to take them from the research and development stage through tomarket launch. Although promising basic research and technologies exist inthese areas in Japan, the level of private funding available to startups seekingto commercialize their research results and technologies is insufficient, andthe ecosystem supporting these startups is less developed than those in Europeand the United States. Therefore, a long-term, large-scale supply of riskcapital is needed.
(3) About SB
Saisei Ventures, the fund management company of SB, leverages its networksin Japan and the US to create and foster startups to commercialize and globallydevelop technologies and research results held by Japanese companies andacademia in the life sciences sector – with a particularly emphasis on cell andgene therapies and regenerative medicines – and promotes business developmentin Japan and product development in collaboration with Japanese companies.
SB is Saisei Ventures’ inaugural fund and it will invest mainly in venturecreation, seed, and early stage startups in the life sciences sector with afocus on cell and gene therapies and regenerative medicines.
JIC expects that the LP investment in SB will help promising Japanesestartups in the life sciences sector, particularly those focusing on cell andgene therapies and regenerative medicines, to grow into global startups byleveraging the mature ecosystem in this sector in the US, leading to openinnovation through collaboration between the investee startups and Japanesecompanies and academia.
By supporting the first fund of an emerging life sciences VC that investsprimarily in cell and gene therapies and regenerative medicines – areas currentlythe subject of significant research and development activity in Japan – JICalso intends to help strengthen the domestic startup ecosystem in the lifesciences sector.
Overview of SB
Name: SaiseiBioventures, L.P.
Established: 2021
Duration: 10years (with a possible extension of 2 years)
GP: Saisei CapitalLtd
Overview of management company
Name: Saisei Ventures LLC
Established: 2021
Address: Chiyoda-ku,Tokyo, Cambridge, US
Representative: Jonathan Yeh
(For reference)
JIC’s fund investment strategy
(For reference)
Objectives of JIC’s LPinvestments
1. Stimulate the supply of risk capital to helpcompanies grow and to enhance their competitiveness
JIC intends to provide capital to areas that areessential from the perspective of strengthening industrial competitiveness butlack private investment capital (investment strategies, sectors, stages,regions, etc.) with the aim of stimulating private investment capital in theshort term and medium-long term.
2. Create diverse investment teams, professionals, andstrategies to support a virtuous cycle of risk capital
1) Investmentteams
JIC promotes growth of the investee fundsas a leader in the intermediary of risk capital provided by institutionalinvestors (pension funds, foreign investors, etc.) towards the establishment offuture funds. This will be achieved by expanding experience and track recordsamong its fund investment team (management company) and by further improvingits ability to respond to institutional investors.
2) Investmentprofessionals
With the cooperation of industryorganizations such as JVCA, institutional investors, and investee managers, JICsupports the research and introduction of best practices of managers and thedevelopment of human resources serving as investment professionals.
3) Investmentstrategy
JIC will add diversity and depth to themarket by making an LP investment in funds even for those with strategies thatare not common in Japan yet, in response to their fund raising, including atthe time of its establishment.
About Japan Investment Corporation (JIC)
Japan InvestmentCorporation (“JIC”) was established on September 25, 2018 under the IndustrialCompetitiveness Enhancement Act. JIC’s investment focus areas are driving thecreation of new businesses for Society 5.0, creating "unicornstartups", leveraging promising untapped regional technologies andpromoting business consolidation across industries and organizations. JICprovides risk capital to these areas through funds independently established byJIC and LP investment in private funds to promote open innovation andcontribute to strengthening the competitiveness of Japanese industries andexpanding the investment ecosystem.
Press Contacts
Japan Investment Corporation
Corporate Planning, Communications Group:
Tokyo Toranomon Global Square 9F,
1-3-1 Toranomon, Minato-ku, Tokyo 105-0001
