EIF and Symbion Capital 1 A/S: supporting seed and pre-seed capital in Denmark

The European Investment Fund (EIF) has signed a commitment to invest up to DKK 75 million into Copenhagen based Symbion Capital 1 A/S. The signing of this fund marks an important step towards developing the market for seed and pre-seed capital in Denmark, which up until now has lacked substantial EIF involvement.

Managed by Symbion Management A/S, Symbion Capital 1 will seek investments in the greater Copenhagen region, including the Swedish side of Oresund. It will target companies that are in their seed or pre-seed phases and active in the IT, biotechnology and life sciences sectors. The EIF proposes to invest up to DKK 75 million in Symbion Capital 1, which constitutes 25% of the DKK 300 million upper cap of the fund.

Symbion Capital 1 is sponsored by Symbion A/S, an incubator established in 1986 by 100 scientists to support scientific research projects in the Copenhagen area. Currently 88 young companies are based at Symbion and the demand remains high with some 500 applications in 2000. Due in part to the incubation activity of its sponsor, substantial deal flow is foreseen for Symbion Capital 1. Additional deal flow is expected from the management team's intended collaboration with some of the leading science parks and research institutes in the region. As such, Symbion Capital 1 will contribute to furthering European competitiveness in key technologies, a point that is fully in line with EIF's investment strategy.

The EIF is the European Union's specialised financial institution for venture capital and guarantees. Based in Luxembourg, the EIF was established in 1994 as a joint venture between the European Investment Bank (EIB), the European Commission and European banks and financial institutions. The EIB has recently become the majority shareholder of the EIF. The latter, with an investment potential of over EUR 3 billion until 2003, is now a major player in the European venture capital market. Its investment strategy focuses on the promotion of European technology.