The Government of Catalonia has approved the creation of the Lidera Health Transfer Fund, a new co-investment instrument managed by the Catalan Institute of Finance (ICF) that will promote innovative projects in the health and life sciences field emerging from Catalan universities and research centers.
The fund will have a total of €60 million to finance advanced therapy projects in early development stages, aiming to make them viable and facilitate the creation of new companies attractive to private investors. The Government has approved a contribution of €50 million, while the remaining €10 million comes from the public promotional banking sector.
The creation of the fund is part of the ICF’s new venture capital strategy, which will increase to €645 million the resources managed by the public promotional banking for venture capital projects. In addition to ICF’s current investment vehicles (totaling €360 million), the umbrella fund Catalunya Lidera, endowed with €285 million, will be added to finance health transfer, deeptech, and advanced technology initiatives through four instruments: Lidera Health Transfer (€60 million), Lidera Advanced Technologies (€55 million), Lidera Impact and Innovation Conversion (€70 million), and Lidera Large Companies (€100 million).
The sector generates knowledge that struggles to reach the market
Catalonia has established itself as one of the most competitive health innovation hubs in Europe, thanks to export growth, attraction of foreign investment, an increase in scientific publications, and rising participation in clinical trials, according to the BioRegió de Catalunya 2024 Report indicators.
However, it is a sector with a high demand for capital, requiring highly qualified professionals, both in technical and business management fields, as well as the involvement of specialized investors. Therefore, a significant portion of the knowledge generated in Catalan research centers still lacks the financial and support tools necessary to reach the market.
In this context, advanced therapies, such as those focused on oncology or new medical technologies, generate high-level science that requires technical validation through so-called killer experiments, essential tests to determine the initial feasibility of projects. These validations require substantial investments that often hinder access to subsequent development stages and do not receive private funding.
The new fund will enhance the viability of high-growth potential projects
The instrument promoted by the Catalan Government and the ICF is designed to provide financial support at this critical stage to health innovation projects with high growth potential, strong business prospects, and significant strategic impact for Catalonia.
Thus, once these initial stages are completed (which may also include stages following the killer experiments up to the start of the commercialization process of research results), projects will be in a position to receive private investment, contributing to the growth of the health and life sciences R&D sector in Catalonia.
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