Key Takeaways
- • Kurma Partners closed Biofund IV at €215 million ($252 million), closing 14% below its €250 million target but 34% larger than its €160 million predecessor fund, reflecting challenging biotech market conditions.
- • The fund has deployed capital across 11 investments to date with plans to reach approximately 20 portfolio companies, including obesity treatment developer Alveus Therapeutics ($159.8 million Series A) and antibody-drug conjugate specialist Adcytherix (€105 million Series A co-led by Kurma in October 2025).
- • Adcytherix represents a repeat-founder strategy, built by the team behind Emergence Therapeutics, which Eli Lilly acquired for $406.5 million in in-process R&D expense, demonstrating Kurma's track record in ADC-focused exits.
- • Bpifrance, a state-backed French bank and co-founder of Argobio Studio (Kurma's biotech builder platform), anchors Biofund IV as one of four cornerstone investors, reinforcing institutional support for European biotech venture capital.
- • Portfolio construction spans early-stage and emerging programs across Nuevocor, EvlaBio, Laigo Bio, and Elkedonia, positioning Kurma to capture multiple inflection points across the European biotech ecosystem.
Summary
Kurma Partners, the Paris-based biotech venture capital group, has formally closed its fourth flagship fund, Biofund IV, at €215 million ($252 million) in committed capital. The closure came after an initial first close in October 2024, when the firm had raised €140 million against a stated target of €250 million by end-2025. The final fund size represents a 14% shortfall against the original €250 million objective, underscoring persistent headwinds in biotech venture funding during 2024–2025. Nevertheless, Biofund IV remains 34% larger than Biofund III's €160 million closing, signaling sustained institutional confidence in Kurma's European-focused thesis despite macro turbulence.
The fund is executing a concentrated deployment strategy, with 11 investments completed as of the announcement and a stated target of approximately 20 total portfolio companies. This disciplined approach reflects Kurma's focus on backing transformative therapies across obesity treatment, antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), and adjacent modalities. Lead investments include Alveus Therapeutics, a U.S. and Denmark-based obesity startup that raised $159.8 million in Series A financing in January 2026, and Adcytherix, a French ADC developer that secured a €105 million Series A round co-led by Kurma in October 2025. Adcytherix's founding team previously built Emergence Therapeutics, an ADC platform that Eli Lilly acquired; the transaction involved $406.5 million in acquired in-process R&D, demonstrating the commercial viability of Kurma's strategy in this space.
Beyond headline investments, Kurma has deployed Biofund IV capital across secondary and emerging-stage rounds in Nuevocor, EvlaBio, Laigo Bio, and Elkedonia, leveraging its integrated biotech builder platform, Argobio Studio, to accelerate value creation. Bpifrance, the French state investment bank and co-founder of Argobio, secured a cornerstone position in Biofund IV alongside three other anchor investors, reinforcing public-private alignment in European life sciences innovation. This capital structure positions Kurma to support a diversified portfolio spanning asset-class maturity levels while maintaining conviction in European biotech's long-term competitiveness.
The fund is executing a concentrated deployment strategy, with 11 investments completed as of the announcement and a stated target of approximately 20 total portfolio companies. This disciplined approach reflects Kurma's focus on backing transformative therapies across obesity treatment, antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), and adjacent modalities. Lead investments include Alveus Therapeutics, a U.S. and Denmark-based obesity startup that raised $159.8 million in Series A financing in January 2026, and Adcytherix, a French ADC developer that secured a €105 million Series A round co-led by Kurma in October 2025. Adcytherix's founding team previously built Emergence Therapeutics, an ADC platform that Eli Lilly acquired; the transaction involved $406.5 million in acquired in-process R&D, demonstrating the commercial viability of Kurma's strategy in this space.
Beyond headline investments, Kurma has deployed Biofund IV capital across secondary and emerging-stage rounds in Nuevocor, EvlaBio, Laigo Bio, and Elkedonia, leveraging its integrated biotech builder platform, Argobio Studio, to accelerate value creation. Bpifrance, the French state investment bank and co-founder of Argobio, secured a cornerstone position in Biofund IV alongside three other anchor investors, reinforcing public-private alignment in European life sciences innovation. This capital structure positions Kurma to support a diversified portfolio spanning asset-class maturity levels while maintaining conviction in European biotech's long-term competitiveness.
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