[ NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ]
Amsterdam, February 29, 2012 – Life Sciences Partners (LSP), the European health care investment group, today announces the addition of Rudy Dekeyser and Clemens van Blitterswijk to the LSP Group as partners for the recently established LSP-Health Economics Fund (LSP-HEF).

LSP-HEF is a new private equity fund managed by LSP. The focus is on investments in mature innovative medical technology companies that can reduce costs in health care while providing high quality health care to patients. LSP-HEF will bring together health care professionals and technology developers to implement cost-reducing technologies faster. Only European and US-based companies with products on, or close to the market, with a clear go-to-market strategy, and with a convincing health care economics case will be selected. The corner-stone investor in LSP-HEF is the Dutch insurance company Achmea, providing the first EUR 50 million for the fund. Furthermore, Achmea provides knowledge and expertise in health care economics to the fund. Due to a clear health economics benefit of the selected companies and close collaboration with care providers and other insurance groups, market acceptance and sales ramp-up will be accelerated, leading to financial success of the companies and making them attractive acquisitions targets, thereby providing an attractive return of investment for the fund.

Rudy Dekeyser joins LSP to become Managing Partner of the new fund. Prior to this position, Rudy was Managing Director of VIB, the Flanders Institute for Biotechnology, a public research organization with a headcount of 1,300 researchers and an annual budget of about EUR 100 million. VIB conducts frontline research in the field of life sciences and translates the inventions into novel diagnostics, innovative therapeutics and new companies. Rudy has also been a member of the board of a dozen biotech companies.

Clemens van Blitterswijk joins LSP as Founding Partner of the new fund. Clemens was until recently the Director of the MIRA Institute for Biomedical Technology and Technical Medicine and is Professor of tissue regeneration at the University of Twente. He is also the founder and former CEO of IsoTis and founder of several other successful technology start-up companies. Clemens will dedicate the majority of his time to the fund.

Rudy Dekeyser, Managing Partner of LSP-HEF: “The fortune of a healthcare company in today’s world will be largely determined by how well it can demonstrate that its products can significantly improve the current standard of care while simultaneously reducing the cost of the health care system. These companies are at the sweet spot of our new fund.”

Clemens van Blitterswijk, Founding Partner of LSP-HEF, adds: “Translating top science to application in or upon patients will make it a thrill to work in this magnificent team.”

René Kuijten, General Partner of LSP: “We are excited to welcome Rudy and Clemens as new colleagues. Their experience, expertise and track record in the space of health care and medical technology is a perfect match for the management of the LSP-Health Economics Fund. We trust that together with the existing LSP organization they will successfully implement the investment strategy of this new fund.”

About LSP
LSP (Life Sciences Partners) is a leading independent European investment firm, providing financing for private and public life-science companies. Since the late 1980s, LSP's management has invested in a large number of highly innovative enterprises, many of which have grown to become leaders of the global life-science industry. For example, LSP was a founding investor in Prosensa, Movetis, Crucell, Qiagen and Rhein Biotech. With over EUR 600 million under management and offices in Amsterdam, Munich and Boston, LSP is one of Europe's largest and most experienced specialist life-science investors. For more information, please visit www.lspvc.com.

René Kuijten, General Partner LSP
+31 20 6645500
exhvwgra@yfcip.pbz « back to overview