FCA Venture Partners‘ venture fund FCA Venture Partners VI has made the first close on what will be a $75 million fund, its largest fund to date. The fund will target early and growth stage health IT companies providing healthcare services and health tech, which have scalable business models and are led by strong management teams.
In an emailed statement, the firm, which is the venture capital manager of Clayton Associates, will make 10-14 early stage and growth stage investments averaging $3 million to $6 million through the new fund.
The Nashville, Tennessee-area firm was founded by former Hospital Corporation of America Chairman Clayton McWhorter in 1996, initially as an incubator for angel investing. Since then, the firm has invested over $130 million across 72 portfolio companies. The latest fund shares the same strategy as its previous fund, FCA Venture Partners V, a $53 million fund. The two funds have a narrower focus than the previous four funds, which also invested in non healthcare areas, such as real estate. McWhorter died last month of lung cancer.
When Investment Rhymes with Canada
Canada has a proud history of achievement in the areas of science and technology, and the field of biomanufacturing and life sciences is no exception.
In addition to the venture fund manager, Clayton Associates also has a seed stage investment fund, Bullpen Ventures, and an angel investment business, Rolling Hills Ventures.
In a phone interview with Nancy Allen, CFO and partner with the firm, she noted that investments with the fifth and sixth funds reflect a strategy shift by the firm to lead investments, have a board seat and be more actively involved in the companies in which it invests.
Among the trends she’s seeing, Allen said some of the portfolio company exits it is working on involve a private equity firm. In previous years, an exit would usually be an acquisition, or maybe an IPO.
So far, the firm has made two investments with the sixth fund, according to Allen. AB Pathfinder develops autism therapy management software. One Medical Passport to help patient manage their personal medical histories.
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