Point72 Ventures, the early stage investment firm that’s now solely investing the personal wealth of the multi-billionaire hedge fund magnate Steven A. Cohen, is getting into healthcare investing.
The firm has hired Scott Barclay, a former partner at the life sciences and frontier technology investment firm, DCVC, to run its new healthcare practice.
Since the investment firm is more like a family office than a traditional fund with limited partners, it’s hard to gauge the size of the firm’s commitment to healthcare — even from its partners. But a back of the envelope calculation should see the firm committing roughly $300 million to its healthcare efforts, according to Point72 Ventures managing partner, Matthew Granade.
Barclay sees the focus of the new investment arm as investing in companies combining technology and empathy for the healthcare industry. That empathy manifests itself in an understanding of how physicians, administrators and patients all navigate the complexities of getting care, he said.
Entrepreneurs can expect the new fund to invest roughly $50 million per year across a range of early stage startups.
“The entry point is anywhere from incubation to large, modern day, Series A deals,” said Barclay. “It’s a wide aperture.”
A typical deal size could range from $200,000 to $3 million to $4 million and the firm will even lead large Series A deals where it could commit as much as $15 million.
For Barclay, there’s no question about the need for new healthcare technologies. “There’s no part of healthcare that we think works very well,” the longtime investor said. While he won’t pursue pure therapeutic investment opportunities — leaving those deals to the Arch Capitals and 5AM Ventures — Barclay said that he would look to invest in care applications that push computing, diagnostics, and therapeutics closer to patients.
Entrepreneurs looking for insights into where Barclay may be looking can see precedents in previous investments like Carbon Health, Swift Medical, and the medical informatics company MIC.
“We’re looking to truly impact outcomes at scale,” Barclay said.
At Point72 Ventures, Barclay and the team he’s bringing on board will compliment efforts that the firm has launched to back startups focused on financial technologies and services, artificial intelligence and machine learning, and enterprise software and cybersecurity.
“At Point72 Ventures, our goal is to be foremost experts in the areas in which we invest,” Granade added. “Scott has a 15-year track record and real passion for working with innovative, healthcare-focused founders. He is the kind of expert-focused investor we want at Point72 Ventures, and we are thrilled to have him on board.”
