J.P. Morgan Asset Management has launched a new healthcare venture capital team through Life Sciences Private Capital.
The new venture capital team will invest in early and growth stage healthcare companies across strategies, focusing on novel therapeutics and technologies in several areas, including genetic medicine, oncology, neurodegenerative disease, rare diseases, autoimmunity, AI/ML platforms, metabolic diseases and neuropsychology.
The new capital team comes as healthcare deals have softened in 2022, though the value of transactions are still historically high. Healthcare deals began stalling earlier this year as economic conditions changed, including rising inflation rates, a tight labor market and higher interest rates and costs.
The healthcare venture capital team will sit within J.P. Morgan Private Capital, a growth equity and private credit investment platform.
Stephen Squinot, PhD, has been hired as chief investment officer and managing partner of Life Sciences Private Capital. He has more than 30 years of experience in biotechnology company building and investing space and joins the healthcare team from OrbiMed Advisors. He co-founded and built Alexion Pharmaceuticals and was a key scientific founder of Regeneron Pharmaceuticals.
In addition, Life Sciences Private Capital has named Gaurav Gupta, MD, who founded life science investment firm Ascendant BioCapital and was previously involved in private equity investments at OrbiMed Advisors, and Anya Schiess, who most recently served as co-founder and general partner of Healthy Ventures, to the team.
"Our new Life Sciences Private Capital team combines some of the industry's most revered biotech investors, operators and founders with J.P. Morgan's extensive healthcare ecosystem to capture compelling investment opportunities in the biotech sector, which is on the cusp of a golden age of therapeutic innovation," Brian Carlin, CEO of J.P. Morgan Private Capital, said in a statement. "Through Steve, Gaurav and Anya's deep company-building experience, the team will bring a unique ability to partner with portfolio companies and add significant operational value beyond financial investment."
The firm also named a handful of strategic advisors who bring industry knowledge and well-known healthcare names, including:
- Laurie Glimcher, MD – President and CEO, Dana Farber Cancer Institute
- Jeffrey Leiden, MD, PhD – Executive chairman, Vertex Pharmaceuticals
- Frederic Moll, MD – Chief development officer, J&J Medical Devices Companies
- Stephen Oesterle, MD – Former Medtronic senior vice president, Medicine and Technology
- Robert Stockman – Former chairman, REVA Medical
Amy joined TriMed Media as a Senior Writer for HealthExec after covering home care for three years. When not writing about all things healthcare, she fulfills her lifelong dream of becoming a pirate by sailing in regattas and enjoying rum. Fun fact: she sailed 333 miles across Lake Michigan in the Chicago Yacht Club "Race to Mackinac."