Week in Review: Convergence between Life Sciences and Technology and A Look at New Partner Company Medivo
Posted by | November 18, 2011
The convergence between life sciences and technology cannot be ignored. That’s why at Safeguard Scientifics, we consolidated of our life sciences and technology deal teams. The synergies between these sectors and our combined experience in both areas give us the ability to be forward-thinking and strategic with our capital deployments.
On the heels of that decision, we announced that we led a $7 million Series A financing round for Medivo, a New York-based healthcare IT company that provides data analytics and lab testing services that empower and enable patients and physicians to improve health. Our newly established partnership with Medivo embodies this convergence between diagnostics and healthcare IT, as well as the consumerization of healthcare through the power of the Internet.
The lab testing industry in the United States is a $50+ billion market, and is expected to double by 2020. Medivo is well-positioned to capitalize on these trends by identifying gaps in care and providing convenient access to testing services.
Healthcare IT is an ever expanding industry, even in this difficult economic environment. Growth stage companies like Medivo are taking advantage of this market opportunity by using this expansion to fuel job creation. According to the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) and StartUpHire.com, venture-backed startup companies have created significant job opportunities this year, particularly those focused on innovation, including IT and healthcare services. In total, more than 10,800 positions are available at more than 3,200 venture-backed startups in the United States.
Venture-backed startup companies continue to add value to the American job market, and Safeguard is proud to support the mentoring of these future entrepreneurs through our work with NFTE Philadelphia. Just yesterday, NFTE Philadelphia hosted its third annual Visionary Gala. Designed to celebrate the region’s youth entrepreneurs and business community role models, the event honored Michael G. Rubin, Founder and CEO of Kynetic, and Founder and Former CEO of GSI Commerce, which was recently acquired by eBay for $2.4 billion.
In other news:
- NuPathe (Nasdaq: PATH) announced its third quarter 2011 financial results on Nov. 14. In addition, NuPathe provided a status update on its migraine patch, announcing plans to resubmit a New Drug Application (NDA) to the FDA in the first half of 2012.
- Tengion (Nasdaq: TNGN) reported its third quarter 2011 financial results on Nov. 14, including an announcement of a restructuring plan designed to fund the company’s lead development programs through key milestones in 2012, while reducing the company’s anticipated cash utilization. As a result, Tengion expects to have sufficient cash to fund its planned operations through Nov. 2012.
- Beyond.com and ThingWorx have been selected by AlwaysOn as Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic 100 winners. Five criteria set our two partner companies apart for the AlwaysOn editorial team and industry experts: innovation, market potential, commercialization, stakeholder value, and media buzz.
Both Beyond.com and ThingWorx will be honored at the IMPACT Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic Conference on Nov. 29 and Nov. 30 in Philadelphia. Safeguard executives Jim Datin and Phil Moyer will also be participating in the event, addressing “Valuations, Exits, and Liquidity for Emerging Growth Healthcare Companies” and highlighting themes in “Enterprise 3.0.”
To read more of our “Week in Review” series, please use the following feed: safeguardscientifics.com/WeekInReview. Enjoy your weekend!
