CriteriaCaixa reboosts its investment business in science and technology -based startups

CriteriaCaixa, the holding company that manages the business assets of ‘la Caixa’ Banking Foundation, today announces a reboot of its startupinvestment business to facilitate the growth of science and technology-based high-potential emerging companies.

Through its two funds, Criteria Bio Ventures and Criteria Venture Tech, it plans to invest €300 million ($343M) in innovative early-stage companies, to promote transformative therapies and technologies that can have a positive impact on society, prioritizing long-term value creation. Investments will primarily be focused on Spain and Portugal, and selectively on Europe and North America. Investments in Spain represent nearly 70% of the current portfolio’s value, reflecting the company’s strong commitment to developing the country’s business and innovation ecosystem.

Within the framework of its 2030 Strategic Plan, CriteriaCaixa also voted to rebrand its venture capital management company to better align with the current positioning of the company. Caixa Capital Risc was founded in 2002 within ‘la Caixa’. In 2013, it became a wholly-owned subsidiary of CriteriaCaixa. It will now operate under the Criteria Capital Risc brand name, reinforcing its market positioning as CriteriaCaixa’s venture capital investment arm. This rebranding does not entail any changes to the structure or portfolio of the asset manager, which has been one of the leading venture capital investors in the Iberian Peninsula for over 20 years.

Through its two specialized vehicles, Criteria Bio Ventures and Criteria Venture Tech, Criteria Capital Risc actively manages its investments by sitting on the boards of its portfolio companies and by focusing on helping them create value. It provides strategic support, expertise, financial strength and privileged access to leading national and international venture capital and private equity firms.

Alternative Investment Portfolio

Criteria Capital Risc and its two investment funds are part of CriteriaCaixa’s alternative investment portfolio. This is designed to diversify the founding stake (CaixaBank) and significant investment (publicly traded companies) portfolios. It includes three types of assets: venture capital, scalable companies and real estate assets.

For operational reasons, the alternative investment portfolio is managed by three companies wholly-owned by CriteriaCaixa: Criteria Capital Risc; Criteria PE Management, a recently created asset management company dedicated to investing in medium-sized, unlisted companies through third-party funds; and InmoCaixa, which manages the holding’s real estate business. According to the 2030 Strategic Plan, the gross asset value (GAV) of the Alternative Investment Portfolio (Criteria Capital Risc + Criteria PE Management + InmoCaixa) is limited to 10% of CriteriaCaixa’s GAV.

Investment in biotechnology and healthtech startups

Criteria Bio Ventures is the investment fund of Criteria Capital Risc specializing in biotechnology and health. It aims to identify, fund and support innovative companies developing new therapies with the potential to transform disease management and improve people’s lives. It focuses on projects with a solid scientific foundation, highly qualified teams, and clear potential for scalability and impact.

It seeks to work with entrepreneurs developing disruptive therapeutic approaches focused on addressing unmet medical needs and with the potential to become new therapeutic solutions. The fund helps companies advance through key development milestones, strengthen their growth strategies and maximize the value of their innovations. Through its investments, Criteria Bio Ventures seeks to contribute to the development of an innovative business ecosystem, able to transform scientific excellence into solutions that reach patients and generate a sustainable economic and social impact.

The fund was the first and main investor in Minoryx Therapeutics (therapies for rare diseases such as adrenoleukodystrophy and Rett syndrome) and in Adaptam Therapeutics (immuno-oncology). Its portfolio also includes Aboleris Pharma (autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis), NRG Therapeutics (therapies for neurodegenerative diseases such as ALS and Parkinson’s), Tolerance Bio (therapies capable of reversing the aging of the immune system) and Cytospire (immuno-oncology).

Investment in technology startups

Criteria Venture Tech is Criteria Capital Risc’s investment fund specializing in technology, with a focus on deeptechand key vertical markets such as AI, cybersecurity, and software and data infrastructures. Through its investments, it intends to develop a solid technological ecosystem, contributing to attracting, developing and retaining high-value talent.

The fund invests in technology startupsfrom the early stage, including pre-seed and seed, with the objective of assuming lead or co-lead positions. It has the ability to support the best performing companies in its portfolio, even at advanced growth stages. With thisapproach, the fund can actively participate in the development of companies from their earliest days and contribute to structuring funding rounds with leading investors.

Criteria Venture Tech intends to position its portfolio companies as global leaders, putting deeptech development in Europe at the forefront of the global stage.

Current portfolio companies include Ipronics (programmable photonic chips for AI), Immfly (digital platform for on-board retail and entertainment), KD (chips for advanced optical connectivity) and Barbara (industrial software for IoT).