Investment guidelines
Triple Helix Capital’s Funds focus on investment opportunities across the globe.
The management team has deep knowledge of the healthcare, biotech and technology sectors in North America, Europe, MENA and APAC which will allow it to source attractive investment opportunities along the below guidelines:
Target Investment
Return p.a.: 25%+
Geography
Worldwide
Holding Period
3- 5 Years
Asset Class
Private and Pre-IPO
Companies
Indicative Ticket
$5m - $15m
Sectors
Healthcare
Biotech
Tech
Investment Style
Growth
Event-Driven
Special Situations
Impact Investing
Focused on Social Impact
and Shariah compliance
Sector of Focus One: Biotechnologies
Defining Biotechnologies
Biotechnology involves the application of biological entities including organisms, systems, and processes to develop, make, or modify products for specific uses. It encompasses a wide range of procedures for modifying such entities according to human needs.
Products comprise:
- Goods such as foods, pharmaceuticals, or compost
- Systems, such as waste management or water purification
- Environments, such as hydroponics
Biotechnology definitions are loose across the private and public sectors, as well as across countries. However, while production of traditional small molecule drugs may include biotechnological steps, such drugs are not considered biotech
Biotechnology will shape the next era of human development with an impact as significant as that of the computer revolution
- 45% of the current global disease burden could be relieved using technology conceivable today
- 60% of physical inputs in the real economy could be produced through biotech
- Approx. $750bn will be the value of the global biotech sector by 2024
- From $2T to $4T is the expected direct global economic impact of biotech applications over the next 2 decades
New applications enabled by biotech include replacing organ cells, early diagnosis of cancers, and driving food sustainability
- Cell Therapies: Seraxis produces an implantable device of lab-grown pancreatic cells that respond to glucose levels of type-1 diabetes patients. Cell therapy market: $7.8Bn in 2020 to grow at 14.5% CAGR from 2021 to 2028
- DNA Origami: Nanovery is using DNA origami to produce nanobots use AI to detect circulating tumor DNA. Companion Diagnostics market: $4.66 Bn in 2021 and is expected to grow at ~22.5% CAGR to reach $12.88 Bn in 2026
- CRISPR for Biofuels: Synthetic Genomics and Exxon Mobile are developing CRISPR-edited microalgae to reduce reliance on fossil fuels. Biofuels market: $135.7 Bn in 2019 is expected to grow at 6.9% CAGR between 2020 and 2027
- Cultured Meat: Using cellular agriculture, companies like Future Fields are developing lab-grown, antibiotic-free chicken, beef, duck, eggs. Cultured meat market: $103 Mn in 2020 and is expected to reach $248 Mn by 2026, at 15.7% CAGR growth
Sector Trends: The growth trajectory is to continue upwards over the coming years driven by new technologies and demographic changes
- Newly founded Biotechs can leverage all growth drivers to surpass competition and/or enter uncharted areas
- Technological progress: (i) Research breakthroughs enabling new approaches like CGT or designed enzymes with more firms focusing on CGT and (2) First CAR-Ts for curative treatment of blood cancer and first gene therapies
- Global R&D spend: Academic research is heavily reliant on R&D spend to generate innovations critical for the market. Global R&D spend more than tripled between 2008 and 2018
- Ageing Population: People over 60 years generate significant Biotech revenue (cancer, chronic diseases, etc.). More than $5Bn raised by firms working in longevity research
- Digital Capabilities: Computational Power +Genetic Sequencing + AI-Assisted Drug Discovery
Sub-Sector Focus
-
There are four trending sub-fields emerging within the red biotech space:
Cell & Gene Therapy (CGT)
Regenerative Medicine
Companion Diagnostics
Vaccines -
Globally, there are five key trending sub-fields within industrial biotech:
Biofuels
Biopolymers
Biotech Ingredients (Cosmetics, Fragrances)
Food / Feed Additives
Industrial Enzymes -
The trending sub-fields within agricultural biotech applies to both animal and plant fields:
Animal Health
Green Genetic Engineering
Crops Biologics
Animal Biotech Cloning
Sector of Focus Two: Digital Health
Digital transformation initiatives in the healthcare sector have continued to accelerate post-pandemic, with a clear focus on digitizing and improving the patient experience.
The 5 tech giants (Alphabet, Meta, Amazon, Apple and Microsoft) are aggressively investing in digital health start-ups (Microsoft via M12, Google via GV, Amazon via the Alexa Fund, etc.), developing new products (Meta’s smartwatch, Apple’s health app and apple watch, Google’s Derm Assist, Amazon primary care, etc.) or setting-up partnerships (Meta’s Alliance for Advancing Health Online, Apple’s health records data-sharing, Microsoft’s partnership with insurers, Google’s deal with HCA, etc.)
Global healthcare investment funding in 2021 surpassed $59B across nearly 3,000 deals. The acceleration of digital transformation initiatives was a major contributor, with digital health startups accounting for 40% of both the deals and funding raised.
A myriad of new market entrants in 2021 pushed early-stage deal share to 60% of global healthcare deals, the highest since Q3’19.
M&A activity persisted within digital health as acquisition hotspots included primary care, women’s health, and mental health, for a total of 605 deals in 2021.
Medical innovation activity retained its momentum as a main market driver: Aging populations, the rising prevalence of chronic disease, and technological developments continue to drive innovation of safer, more effective, or life-changing medical products such as drugs and devices.
Sub-Sector Focus
AI
Companies selling Al SaaS to healthcare clients or using Al to develop products for the healthcare market.
Telehealth
Companies developing or using information communication technology to aid the delivery of health & wellness services from a distance.
Medical Devices
Companies developing medical devices that aid in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, monitoring, or prevention of disease.
Mental Health Tech
Companies applying technology to problems of emotional, psychological, and social well-being
Digital Therapeutics
Companies developing evidence-based, software- driven therapeutic interventions to prevent, manage, or treat medical conditions
Omics
Companies involved in the capture, sequencing, and/or analysis of genomic, transcriptomic, proteomic, and/or metabolomic data
Health IT
Companies that market software solutions to healthcare provider organizations
Investment Model
The Model is based on 3 pillars
Platform and Technology Based
Based on meta-platforms spanning a wide array of applications
Impact and Localization Oriented
Based on social impact, localization of IP and Shariah compliance
Value Chain Focused
Based on high value creating segments
Focus on Technology Platforms:
Biotech platforms are scientific bases along with the associated methods and technologies that enable creation of biotech applications. They sit between basic sciences (chemistry, physics, etc.) and biotech applications.
- The focus on platforms is driven by:
- Cross-applicability to multiple applications
- Broad scope of innovation offering potential to create new white spaces
- Low risk of obsolescence as compared to specific applications
- The case of the mRNA technology platform:
- One underlying technology enables many applications (e.g., oncology treatments, heart damage repair and vaccines for commutable diseases)
- The technology evolves over time (e.g., eRNA by Laronde) which leads to even more new applications areas
- Once the technology was proven (COVID-19 vaccines), the number of products grows rapidly (e.g. cancer applications
Triple Helix Capital will focus on a specific number of meta-platforms, including Genomics / Multi-Omics, Molecular Biology, Cell Biology, Bioinformatics, Tissue Engineering, etc.
Focus on Impact & Localization:
The platforms of focus have the potential to positively impact the GCC region through a multitude of use cases, including, Cell and Gene Therapy, Regenerative Medicine, Green Genetic Engineering, etc. thereby addressing the top 10 leading causes of death (Ischemic Heart Disease, Stroke, CKD, Respiratory Infections, Cirrhosis, Diabetes, etc.) and providing an answer to unmet needs and national security priorities. More specifically:
- Crop productivity: currently low productivity driven by harsh climate and fresh water scarcity
- Food security: currently there is high reliance on imports, low self-sufficiency in fruits and vegetables, only focused on lower efficiency proteins
- Pharma sufficiency and pandemic readiness: currently vast majority of pharma products are imported, no biologics manufacturing facilities, no vaccine production expertise, no stock-piling
- Safe Birth: currently there is a high prevalence of genetic diseases compared to global peers associated to high lifetime treatment costs, and low pre-marital and pre-natal testing
Value Chain Focused
The Valley of Death is a phenomenon witnessed by the majority of the R&D ecosystems in the world and happens when science-based innovation face challenges and hindrances due to a lack of support and funding. This phenomenon impacts the GCC and MENA region disproportionately due to severe regulatory hurdles, funding scarcity, lack of investor awareness of the risk/reward conundrum, and general cultural unpreparedness. The third pillar of Triple Helix Capital’s investment model addresses this aspect specifically.
The Valley of Death
coincides with the segments of the value chain that drive value creation for investors:
Basic Research
Has a very slow payoff until commercialization and is usually covered by academic institutions
Applied Reasearch
Addresses the "valley of death" problem where many valid and promising science ideas do not materialize into products. Applied research is solution- specific and aims at addressing practical local problems
Product Trials & Prototyping
Strengthens localization and allows products to be more targeted to local needs
Scale-up Manufacturing
Off-patent products are highly competitive (not profitable) and therefore are out of our value chain focus
Triple Helix Capital’s approach to value chain investing covers the full spectrum of the Valley of Death phenomenon
For early-stage (and more project-focused) ventures, Triple Helix Capital will seek value creation through:
- Leveraging strategic partnerships with pharma and investment community
- M&A exit at “Proof of Concept in humans” either to established biopharma or other VCs/PEs
- Focus on specific therapeutic areas such as oncology, immunology, metabolic, neurodegeneration, and such
For late-stage ventures, Triple Helix Capital will seek value creation through selecting companies:
- With commercial potential or late-stage with products going into Phase 2b/3 trials
- That are candidate for M&A within 2 to 4 years of investment
- That could aim for an IPO exit within 3 to 5 years of investment
