Europe’s next big growth fund could help narrow biotech’s capital gap

Europe is getting another infusion of growth capital via the €5 billion Scaleup Europe Fund. While the fund will invest across a broad range of innovative sectors, private equity firm EQT Partners’ selection as fund manager — and its life sciences investing expertise — suggest a meaningful share could flow into biotech.

The fund’s backers see it as another step toward making European biotech companies less reliant on U.S. investors for growth capital. Several European firms, including Forbion, Sofinnova Partners, Medicxi and Novo Holdings, have raised substantial growth funds in recent years, but Europe’s supply of growth capital still pales in comparison with the deeper pools available from U.S. biotech specialist investors...