JIC makes LP investment in Catalys Pacific Post-POC Fund, LP

Tokyo, May15, 2025 – Japan Investment Corporation (“JIC”) has announced its decision tomake an LP investment of USD14 million in Catalys Pacific Post-POC Fund, LP (“CPPost-POC”), which is managed by Catalys Pacific, LLC (“CP”), a company thatinvests in the life science field.

JIC’s mission is to create a virtuouscycle of risk capital that supports the next generation of domestic industriesby providing funds to help companies grow and strengthen their competitivenessthrough open innovation, promotion of private investment, and the developmentof investment professionals. To achieve its mission, JIC invests inpolicy-relevant strategic business areas through LP investments in funds underJIC’s umbrella and in private funds.

 

About LPinvestment in CP Post-POC

(1) Current status of investmentmarket

In thepharmaceutical industry, research and development costs are rising worldwide, andsignificant amounts of funding are required from the early stages of new drugdevelopment, especially for biopharmaceuticals and rare diseases. In addition,new drug development is becoming more complex, making it important to securepersonnel with advanced expertise.

Inresponse to this situation, major U.S. pharmaceutical companies are activelypromoting new drug research and development through open innovation, and it iscommon to see drug discovery startups with experts in specific fields proceedingwith clinical trials and development, and major pharmaceutical companiesincorporating the results. This approach is supported by the U.S. drugdiscovery startup ecosystem, which includes risk capital funding frominstitutional investors and VCs, and the cultivation of entrepreneurial talentwith drug discovery-related expertise through academia and accelerators.

In Japan,meanwhile, the ecosystem for nurturing drug discovery startups remainsimmature, and although the supply of risk capital to the biotechnology and drugdiscovery fields from institutional investors and VCs continues to rise, theshortage of private risk capital persists at all stages.

(2) About CPPost-POC

CP pursues a strategy of in-licensing overseas compoundsthat have been approved or are undergoing clinical trials, and establishing anew company in Japan to carry out clinical development and sales; CP also setsup new companies overseas to advance promising compounds that cannot bedeveloped due to insufficient research and development expenses at domesticpharmaceutical companies and universities. Through these strategies, CP has builta track record of establishing and investing in numerous drug discoverystartups both in Japan and overseas.

CP Post-POC will invest in drug discovery startups fromexisting CP fund investees that have obtained proof of concept (POC) inclinical trials, supporting late-stage development leading to new drug approvaland subsequent commercialization. Through these efforts, it will seek tocontribute to the supply of risk capital and the development of human resourcesthat cannot be adequately addressed by existing funds.

With this investment, JIC hopes to provide capitalto the under-funded life sciences field, particularly to growth-stage startups,and support the growth of drug discovery startups with large-scale fundingneeds, thereby creating a cycle of capital supply in this field and contributeto the development of the ecosystem.

In addition, by providing fund management support toCP, JIC expects to contribute to the medium- to long-term expansion of riskcapital supply from institutional investors through funds managed by CP.

Overview of CPPost-POC

Name:                    CatalysPacific Post-POC Fund, LP

Established:          2022      

Duration:               10years (with a possible extension of 2 years)

GP:          　          CatalysPacific Post-POC Fund GP, LP

Overview of CP

Name:                  Catalys Pacific, LLC

Established:        2018

Address:              Tokyo,Seattle (U.S.)

Representative:   Founder,Managing Director BT Slingsby

 

(Reference) JIC 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 are essentialfrom the perspective of strengthening industrial competitiveness but lackprivate investment capital (investment strategies, sectors, stages, regions,etc.) with the aim of stimulating private investment capital in the short termand 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 in September 2018 under the IndustrialCompetitiveness Enhancement Act. JIC’s investment focus areas are creating avirtuous cycle of domestic investment and innovation; creating  and fostering startups; leveraging promisinguntapped management resources lying dormant in local areas, including startupsfrom academia and medium-sized companies; and promoting business restructuring inresponse to changes in market and business environments. JIC provides riskcapital to these areas through funds independently established by JIC and LPinvestment in private funds to promote open innovation in Japan, strengthen thecompetitiveness of Japanese industries, and contribute to expansion of Japan’s investmentecosystem.