An investment bank that recently launched a crowdfunding platform focusing on healthcare is emphasizing a variety of investment options as one of its selling points.
HealthiosXchange is providing investment opportunities for accredited investors across pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical, medical devices and healthcare services from the seed stage to growth stage. It’s also offering ways to invest alongside venture capital investors and foundations through non-dilutive capital, Reg. D, and managed institutional funds.
It also offers investors a proprietary scoring system that determines the best investments for their investment priorities.
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In an interview with MedCity News, David Loucks, the CEO, said: “We think crowdfunding can create many different investment opportunities but it’s just one piece of the puzzle. Companies refinance their business on average every 17 months for six or seven years. So you have to have the long view in mind. You have to let investors know you will be there to support their interests.”
Loucks views the exchange as a way to ensure that early stage companies find the funding they need to go from seed to exit. Crowdfunding is seen by its supporters as one way to plug up the hole left by the decreased venture capital investment in areas such as biotechnology and medical device companies particularly as companies advance their technology from the proof-of-concept stage to early clinical trials.
He added: “The healthcare industry has an interesting way of galvanizing interests… We want to attract investors that have a passion for building something.”
HealthiosXchange launched the platform with a staff of 10 to support the initial launch. Theyll also help to organize roadshows and webinars.
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Foundations represent an interesting area for investment partnerships. Their connection to patient communities make them attractive to early stage companies. At least one foundation, the American Heart Association, runs an accelerator. It provides a way to identify companies at the technology transfer level and connect them with potential investors.
Drawing attention to some of the resources it offers accredited investors, Loucks said it has a research universe of data and analysis for 3,000 companies and expects that to grow to 5,000 companies by the end of the year.
HealthiosXchange isn’t the only company offering a healthcare-focused crowdfunding platform. There’s also Venture Health, Healthfundr and MedStartr.
[Photo credit: Crowdfunding from BigStock Photos]
