Health IT, Hospitals, Startups

Emphasis on local investing shifts to Southeast with $5.1M angel fund and accelerators

One of the ongoing debates among investors is whether geography matters. I have often heard […]

One of the ongoing debates among investors is whether geography matters. I have often heard that West Coast angel investors are pretty flexible about where they live in proximity to their investments. Then there are East Coast angels, who like to invest within commuting distance. Backing that argument is Excelerate Health Ventures.

The angel investment group has closed a $5.1 million physician fund tapping an interdisciplianry team of physician, dentist, healthcare executive and entrepreneur investors. The targets? Seed and early stage healthcare companies in the Southeast region. One clue on where it will find some of these companies may come from an adviser to the fund quoted in its company statement.

Dr. Cam Patterson is the associate dean of UNC Healthcare Entrepreneurship and chief of cardiology at University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill as well as the fund’s adviser. He said the idea is to use the collective, interdisciplinary knowledge of physicians, dentists, entrepreneurs and healthcare executives to accelerate the creation and development of healthcare companies that can maximize returns for investors.

Specifically, it will focus on healthcare IT, software, medical technology, and companies with related that are capital efficient and can scale rapidly. It will use a network of providers, payers, and strategic partners to select, validate, mentor and grow their portfolio companies, according to a company statement.

There has not been a lot of attention focused on the Southeast as a source of healthcare startups but that’s been changing of late. Technology accelerator Iron Yard in Spartanburg, South Carolina began its inaugural digital health accelerator class today.It counts three of its temporary residents from the Southeast. In a demonstration of its southern flavor, one of its physician entrepreneurs, who hails from the ZocDoc-style company MyDocTime, brought fresh peaches from his farm for his fellow class members. It’s a geographically diverse class with members spanning from India to California. Among its healthcare partners is the Mayo Clinic.

Its motivation for starting a healthcare oriented accelerator came partially from local health systems.

XLerate Health opened an accelerator in Louisville, Kentucky earlier this year. HealthBox also said it was opening accelerators in Nashville and Jacksonville supported by Blue Cross Blue Shield companies.

It’s true that partnerships in healthcare need not be bound by geography. But since at least part of the goal is to stimulate the local economy by encouraging more companies to move to the region and grow jobs, geography certainly plays a role.

[Photo Credit: Protecting Investment from Big Stock Photo]

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